What's wrong with a change of heart? Apparently more than what's wrong with killing dogs.

I can't believe that there are people out there cheering for Michael Vick and booing Brett Favre. And yet I see plenty of football fans saying that Vick has "the right to an occupation", but at the same time getting ticked off at Brett.

Hello? Anybody home?! Vick tortured and killed several dogs. All Brett did was come out of retirement. Does retiring somehow terminate your "right to an occupation"? Is that "right" still there in spite of what you do off the field?

And if any of you had forgotten, let me remind you that Vick hung dogs from trees, electrocuted them with jumper cables, drowned them in water, and even had them enter into a pit against other dogs. Vick did all that, and laughed.

Of course that's not nearly as bad as (gasp) announcing retirement and then (double gasp!) deciding to return. No, it's perfectly fine for Vick to be extremely cruel to dogs, but for Brett Favre to come out of retirement is just terrible.

First things first: there is no such thing as a "right to an occupation". If there was, I'd take my hockey stick, walk up to the nearest NHL team and drop that line so they would have to let me play.

Come on, people. Playing in the NFL is a privilege. What Vick did should have made him lose the privilege. But it's not just the fact that Vick is returning that's ridiculous, it's the fact that he wasn't jailed for a good ten years plus. If life were a giant monopoly game, all the star atheletes, and celebrities for that matter, would be loaded with "get out of jail free" cards. To suggest that Vick received the sentence he deserved, is practically laughable. None of the big names do. That much is evident when over 100 MLB players are juiced up on steriods

But the sad truth is that fans often don't see things as right or wrong. They tend to only care about what's going to happen on the field. They want Favre to retire so the story can go away and they can move on. And they want Vick to return so, well, the story can go away and they can move on. I know a lot of this is the media's fault. They practically spent an entire day discussing Vick's signing with the Eagles, and another day talking about Favre's return.

Whatever. I have two words for you: go Vikings. I'm really happy to see Favre on one of my favorite teams. The addition of him makes them, in many people's opinion, NFC favorites.

As for Vick, the day the first Eagles game comes on this year is the day I turn off my TV and go for a walk with my dog.

Mail Time

To: ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and all other "experts"

From: Rafael Nadal and Andy Roddick



NADAL: Hey, sorry to bother you. I know you all are probably busy writing yet another article about how dominant Roger Federer is and therefore don't have time to read this, which is ok. I don't mind. Go ahead and continue. No, really...



Ok, who am I kidding? I'm sick and tired of the Roger Federer appreciation tour. Have you all forgotten that I hold a large lead over him in the head-to-head category? Are you all too busy marveling at his 15 major titles? Psh, by the time I'm done I'll have more than 20 of those.



Can't you see that my Swiss rival's time as king is running out? You sure seemed to be getting the hint a few months ago after I beat him for, what, the 5th time straight or something like that? You were all getting ready to hop from one bandwagon to the next. Then I lose a couple matches, hurt my knee, and all of sudden we're back where we started? Gimme a break.



RODDICK: I haven't forgotten about what happened last Wimbeldon. Although you may have forgotten that I played in it. I won 39 games while Roger took 38, yet I still lost. Now I know how Al Gore must have felt.

You all are talking about what a great match that was, but it seems the whole thing is about Federer, Federer, Federer. I don't mean to sound bitter, but, hey, I was part of that match, too. I played my heart out and kept it close. Yet it seems I'm nothing but a minor side note. This certainly isn't the treatment Roger got when he lost to Nadal a year ago.

And it's not like I haven't done anything else recently. I beat Federer a few times. I have the fastest serve ever. I'm the best tennis player in America. I may not be as good as Federer but I am very close. Yet he gets ten times the hype that I get.

NADAL: It's ridiculous to say that Roger Federer dominates tennis as much as Tiger Woods dominates golf. I have beaten Federer about twice as many times as he beat me. If anyone dominates the rivalry, it's me. And I'm not the only one who can take him down. Other skilled players like Roddick have beaten him a few times.

I am the future. And soon Roger will be nothing but the past. I have already put a dent in his crown, even if you can't see it. Soon it will be gone. I will shatter any records that he sets. Only then will you finally see that I was the better player all along.

Hopefully you will, anyway.

Favre will remain retired

On Tuesday night, Brett Favre announced that he would be staying retired, as reported by ESPN's Ed Werder.

Ah, too bad. I was hoping that he could head over to Minnesota and fill in their only weak position: quarterback. I guess Favre did what he thought was right, but I'm surprised to hear this and I personally disagree with his decision. I know Favre was having some throwing issues, but he did get the surgery and hey, him at, say, 75 percent, is better than a lot of guys at 100 percent.

Oh well, I guess I'll just have to hope that Tarvaris Jackson does his best.

Not So Different

It's no stretch to say that parallels could be drawn between Favre and Jeter

For those of you who don't know, former Packers and Jets quarterback Brett Favre has recently expressed his interest in joining the Minnesota Vikings.

If you didn't know.

Of course, it would pretty hard for you not to know, given the way that the media (particularly ESPN) has built up every recent comment by Vikings coach Brad Childress. It looks like we might be in for another crazy summer, folks. Ever since Brett Favre first announced his retirement, it's been chaotic. Recently, while brainstorming on the matter, I ended up asking myself, Is this what it'll be like when Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter "retires"?

I know that may sound a bit random, but given Jeter's track record, I wouldn't be surprised. Many people may not know this, but Brett Favre and Derek Jeter are two very similar athlete. To start, both are very good, wholesome characters both on and off the field. Favre is a great guy who has always been loved for his good character and sportsmanship. So is Jeter. Even in a juiced-up era for baseball, most fans highly doubt that Jeter was guilty of performance-enhancing drugs.

But there are two other similarities between these two that likely will have a larger impact. The first is their constant love of the games that they play. It doesn't take a sports expert to tell you that Brett Favre and Derek Jeter both have a lot of fun. Just look at Sunday night, when Angels' pitcher Francisco Rodriguez walked Mariano Rivera with the bases loaded, resulting in an ear-to-ear grin from the Yankees' shortstop, who cracked a similar smile during the previous at-bat, when he was intentionally walked. And if you think that Brett Favre doesn't have a lot of fun, tell that to the guy who made the Wrangler commercial.

The other similarity is one that neither Jeter nor Favre can do anything to change, and that is that both are loved and overhyped by the media. If you disagree, look me in the eye and tell me that devoting more than half of SportsCenter to Brett Favre's reinstatement isn't overhype. As for Jeter, the media seems to spend more time covering him than any other player in baseball, not counting steroid coverage.

Do not mistake me. I am not picking on Jeter or Favre. If Favre wants to play another year, and the Vikings want him, then let him play. Same goes for Jeter, should he go down the same road.

Still the question remains, will Jeter do the same as Favre? It's hard to tell, but judging from what we know, it shouldn't come as a total surprise if he does.

But enough about this, I sound worse than the media for overhype.

Crosby's conduct inexcusable

Shortly after an oh-so-close fall to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom lined up to shake hands with Penguins' captain Sidney Crosby.

Except Crosby wasn't there. He was too busy celebrating his Stanley Cup victory. The length of his celebration made Alex Ovechkin look like Pavel Datsyuk (I hope you're reading this, Don Cherry). Kris Draper was among those who agreed that the Pens' captain messed up

Enough about the argument of Crosby being caught up in the moment. This is the NHL, a league where being respectful has a much higher value than in any other. Yes, he did shake hands later, but leaving Lidstrom waiting was just flat out wrong. If Sid the Kid wants to act like that, then let him pick up a basketball.

Also note that, as a captain, it was Crosby's job to set an example for his fellow teammates. If I were the Penguins' coach, I'd probably take away the C and demote him at least to assistant (then again, if I were coach, Crosby probably wouldn't be captain in the first place, but I digress).

Yes, Lebron was a lot worse, but no, that doesn't mean that Crosby's off the hook. The fact remains that what he did was both disrespectful and wrong.

Mind your manners, Mr. Crosby, because when it comes to the NHL, it's a very important category.

Stripes to blame?
Several Red Wings fans are angered by the refereeing in the Stanley Cup Finals. One such ticked-off fan writes "This will go down as the first Stanley Cup Final to have a winner predetermined. Congratulations to having a friend higher up, Pittsburgh." I don't like to criticize officials, but I sort of agree with the guy. The Penguins first goal in game 7 should have been an icing call. Had the men in stripes called it right, the game could have changed completely.
But even though the refs were pretty bad, I still have to admit that the Wings could have won it anyway.

From basher to supporter
Former Red Wings basher Berry Melrose seems to have mellowed a bit since being fired as head coach of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Heading into the playoffs, he predicted that the Red Wings would face the Capitals in the final. After the Wings fell to Pittsburgh, Melrose basically said that the Wings were the better team and that they should have won the series.

Awards
Alex Ovechkin won the Hart Trophy (league MVP) for the second year in a row as well as the Lester B. Pearson Award (MVP chosen by players) and the Maurice Richard Trophy for most goals. Pavel Datsyuk finished third in Hart Trophy voting and was able to once again claim the the Selke (best defensive forward) and Lady Byng (sportsmanship and gentlemanly play) trophies. The Vezina Trophy for best goalie was won by the Bruins' Tim Thomas, while the Norris (best defensman) went to Zdeno Chara. Evegeni Malkin received the Art Ross Trophy for most points, and Steve Mason recieved the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year. Finally, Bruins coach Claude Julien won coach of the year.

Wings need to wake up

Sloppy. That's what it was. No ifs, ands, or buts. No question about it. The Wings played flat out terrible in game 4.

Now the series is tied 2-2. These aren't the same Penguins that were lining up to get the Wings's autographs las year. They are capable of taking this series. To prevent that, the Wings must pick themselves up, dust themselves off, and go back to playing good hockey. Two other things would also be crucial.

Utilize Datsyuk

Enough of this confusion. If he's healthy, then play him. The Wings need Pav. In games 1, 2, and arguably 3, Henrik Zetterberg was able to fill in well. But by now he's spent; Datsyuk needs to give him a breather.

We all miss the skilled, humorous Russian. Throughout the season, Pavel has been the heart and soul of the squad.

Crosby and Datsyuk have been killing us. If it isn't one, it's the other. The problem the Wings have had is not being able to shadow them both. Well, now they can. Should Datsyuk return, he could shadow one while Zetterberg takes care of the other.

Give Draper more minutes

Come on, Mike Babcock. Can't you tell that the man's been playing his heart out? The Wings were mostly sloppy in game 4, but Kris Draper actually looked pretty good. Draper is extremely good at winning face-offs. Possession was a problem in game 4. Possession is often gained by winning face-offs. Am I noticing a pattern there?

Draper can play defense. In game 4, odd-man rushes did the Wings in. Odd-man rushes result from sloppy defense. Wow, there's another pattern. Go figure.

And Draper can skate. In game 4, the Wings seemed to be playing at half the speed that Pittsburgh was playing.

Patterns, patterns, patterns.

One thing is for sure. The Wings sure could use a good one.

Wings fall short in game 3

But the important thing is that they weren't slaughtered

Thank God that game 3 is out of the way. Yes, the Wings lost, but come on, were you really expecting a sweep? We all knew game 3 was going to be the hardest game for the Wings, so what happened Tuesday was what I would actually consider to be a good sign.

Are you scratching your head? If so, let me clear up the haze. My point is this: the Wings lost, but it wasn't by much, which is good. Remember that they have already taken the first two games. Heading into Pittsburgh, the Wings looked in control. The Pens' best chance of winning the series was to blow past the Wings in game 3, thus swinging momentum back in their direction.

But instead of that happening, the Wings kept it close. They hung in there for the majority of the game. If the Wings had lost, say, 5-0, the Pens would be in a good position. But the Wings played well and were able to send a message to the Penguins: Even on our bad days, we barely lose.

If the Wings can take game 4 (which I think they can), they will take a commanding 3-1 lead right before their return to Joe Louis Arena. If they lose game 4, well that's another story.

Are you starting to see what I'm getting at? Game 3 was not, by any means, a must-win for the Wings. The more important game is Thursday's. The only way that game 3 could have been devastating would have been if the Wings were blown out because that could have an effect on how they perform in game 4. A loss Thursday could change things quite a bit.

The important thing about game 3 is that it is over, and it ended without torture. The Wings can now shift their focus to game 4 which will, more than likely, have a much bigger effect on the direction of the series.