The Spotlight NFL Week 10 picks against the spread

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Hello everyone and happy football Sunday!  Last week we came awfully close to losing our first week after we went 5-3 (with Monday night) but so this week we’re going to be taking a look at 7 games in the NFL but I will again warn that this is a tough week.  There are a lot of games this week where teams are so close and/ or Vegas has set the line exactly where it should be.  Let’s see what we can do here to navigate you through the week.

1) Dallas Cowboys (+2) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Hold your breath here but I’m taking the Cowboys on the road, no less, to their first game of the year without Tony Romo.  I like some of things that Tampa Bay has done this season and I think that in a year or two they’re going to push for a playoff spot with Famous Jameis under center.  That said, they can’t win at home and they repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot a evidenced by last week’s game at Metlife where I really felt that they had the game except for a few dropped passes.  On the other side of dime here, the Cowboys have kept it close every single week and against pretty good teams (at least in Seattle and Philly).  If they can find a way to win this week, it won’t put Romo in the unenviable task of having to win every game in order for his team to have a chance to make the postseason and I think they know that too.

2) Chicago Bears (+9) at St. Louis Rams

I’m going back to the Bears this week after picking them to win the game outright in San Diego.  I’m actually starting to have a little bit of faith in Jay Cutler who seems to find a way to keep his team in games every week.  The Rams are probably the better team here but the’ve been under fire all week after the hit to Teddy Bridgewater and Vikings Head Coach, Mike Zimmer coming at the Rams personnel hard.  I also think the Rams were exposed last week in Minnesota and you know I don’t pick underdogs unless I feel there is a chance they can win outright.  I liked them at 7.5, love them 9, Da Bears with pick number two.

3) New York Giants (+7.5) over New England Patriots 

Perhaps underdogs are a theme this week with me but I love the Giants here.  Tom Coughlin is 5-1 lifetime against Bill Belichick which includes two Superbowl wins, one of which, the Patriots entered that game undefeated! I know you’re probably going to be quick to point out that those were different teams and while you’d be right, realize that those Giants teams weren’t that good back then, they were mediocre teams that went on historic runs. Eli Manning has been really good this season and I feel like he always plays to his competition.  I also look for the injury to Dion Lewis to be a tough one for the Patriots who now become a bit more one dimensional.  The Giants are also home and you know Metlife will be rockin!

4) Carolina Panthers (-3) over Tennessee Titans 

I’ll tell ya when the line was 5.5, I really liked the Titans in this one.  A really stout defense (especially against the run) coupled with a team feeling really good about their new coach and their rookie Quarterback who just got a win at New Orleans and their is reason to think the Titans may end the Panthers undefeated run.  That said, getting the Panthers by a field goal?  I’m willing to bite on this sucker bet.  The Panthers haven’t only been on such a good run but they’ve done it against some really good teams.  In the last four weeks, they beat the Colts, the Eagles, at Seattle and just last week they beat Aaron Rodgers.  Sorry but I’m not willing to count this team out against the Tennessee Titans especially when they haven’t won a game at home.

5) Minnesota Vikings (+3) over Oakland Raiders

Real good one here at the 6-2 Vikings head to Oakland to take on the 4-4 Raiders who came about as close as you could last week to really taking control of their destiny in the AFC playoff race.  A lot of people like the Raiders but I’m actually going the other way, especially after hearing that Teddy Bridgewater is a go.  The Vikings have to be feeling good about themselves and know that if they can find a way to win in Oakland, they will be really pushing the Packers in that division race.  I like the Raiders but they haven’t beaten a winning team yet besides the Jets and they were without their quarterback that week.  That won’t change this week as the Vikings will win this one outright.

6) IF YOUR DESPERATE: Kansas City Chiefs (+6) at Denver Broncos

Do you see the big caps letter up above?  Proceed with caution here as this pick is more a product of feeling a bit uneasy about picking the other games and wanting to give the Sunday Night game it’s own post.  This one is more of a product f how unhealthy the Broncos are as opposed to how much i believe in the Chiefs.  The Broncos will be without Aqib Talib and Demarcus Ware and may be without Emmanuel Sanders (who is a game time decision).  Peyton Manning will break some records this week but will do so with a bad rib cage injury and if he gets hit, the Broncos may be in more trouble.  The Chiefs will be without Jamaal Charles but at this point they know that and have had time to adjust.  They’re also coming off of a bye and are bad team doing so, this means they’ve been preparing and practicing that whole time for this game.  KC also knows that if they someone can find a way to steal one in Denver (which won’t be easy), they’re right back in a mediocre wildcard race in the AFC. The Chiefs had the Broncos beat the last time and can compete with them.

7) LOCK OF THE Week : New Orleans Saints (pk) over Washington Redskins

The Redskins get their play maker back this week in Desean Jackson and they’re back hoe where they are 3-1 so this one wont; be a slam dunk but if I’m getting the Saints in a pickem, I have to go with them, even on the road where they are 1-3.  The Saints are coming off of a brutal loss at home to a rookie quarterback but this is a chance for Drew Brees and Sean Payton to right the ship and I don’t think they’ll fall in Washington.  I always say that when I get a choice to go against Kirk Cousins in a close game, I’ll do it every time and this week is no exception.  The Saints defense is awful but if it’s up to Cousins to take advantage of that defense, I say no thanks.  The Saints are the Lock of the week and I haven’t lost one of those all season.

That’s going to do it for me but follow along with me on twitter @TommyOnTheSpot as I’ll be live tweeting throughout the day, despite attending an engagement party.  I’ll also be back with my Sunday Night Football pick a little later on, until then have fun and go make some money!

The Spotlight On UFC 193

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Well I just got back from a nice time over at Dave & Busters where we viewed UFC 193 and let me tell you I’m still in shock after that finish.  I’m not going to claim to be a UFC enthusiast.  As a matter of fact, I’m not even going to talk about any of the other fights on the card here tonight.  It’s not that I don’t like UFC, I actually became a pretty big fan when I started watching the shows for Brock Lesnar when he starting fighting for them in February 2008.  But I’ll be honest, many of the personalities in UFC just didn’t catch my attention after Brock left in 2011.  I liked GSP but he really toned down his schedule, I liked Rashad Evans but then he got hurt.  Then in late 2012, Dana White announced that Ronda Rousey had signed with the promotion and was going to be the promotion’s first ever women’s champion, as the Bantamweight champion, and I was immediately intrigued.

It had been a long time coming for UFC and I was surprised it took that long for UFC to embrace female fighters.  I also noticed that my girlfriend was also intrigued as she asked to join me when I went to see UFC 157 with my friends, the event that had the first ever women’s fight in UFC history(Rousey vs.Carmouche).  Her interest in the entire sport really grew and I noticed that a lot more females I spoke to suddenly became fans of UFC, all thanks to Ronda. I also found myself pretty engulfed, again in UFC thanks to this new movement.  Fighters like Conor McGregor, Daniel Cromier and Hofstra’s own Chris Weidman became favorites of mine but nothing compared to Ronda Rousey.  My girlfriend and I made sure that no matter what we were doing, we went out of our way to catch every one of Ronda’s fights.  In particular, there was a time that we were both away on a snowboarding trip in the poconos and we traveled 30 miles in the snow to the one Buffalo Wild Wings in town showing Ronda’s fight.

Tonight was no different tonight as despite her working a 12 hour shift, I picked my girlfriend up from work at 8pm and we gathered a few friends and went to Dave and Busters to see the fight.  I’ll tell you that I was pretty nervous going into this one because of the fact that Ronda was going up against an undefeated fighter but, to be fair, she did the same with Bethe Correia and knocked her out in under a minute.  Holly Holm was much different though, she came in with a clear gameplan and right away you knew this fight wasn’t going to be one minute, or even one round.  Of course, I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted a second round knockout for Holm.  This was easily the most shocked I’ve been since Brock Lesnar beat Rany Couture or maybe when Chris Weidman knocked out Anderson Silva.  Holm deserves all of the credit in the world for not allowing herself to become intimidated by the aura that is Ronda Rousey and pulling off one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.

As for Ronda Rousey, you really got to wonder where she goes from here.  She is obviously a very driven individual and I know that she isn’t going to take this loss lightly.  I also believe that she has one more fight left on her contract and a rematch with Holm would make perfect sense.  That being said, Ronda is getting ready to star as the lead role in the new Roadhouse movie and it seems like she has plenty of offers in Hollywood.  I also know that Ronda is a huge WWE fan and has stated that she’ll be back at some point, which she won’t be able to do (at least in a match capacity) while under contract with UFC. So while tonight’s loss was heartbreaking, the fact remains that Ronda is currently sitting in a hospital bed for observation following her fight and has to have some thought if she’d like to continue risking all of these other opportunities, or her health, by continuing to fight.

So in the end, yes this loss was heartbreaking but it’s very hard for a fighter to go undefeated no matter how dominant you are (give the devil his due, what Floyd Mayweather has done is unprecedented).  While it was a shame to see someone who has revolutionized the entire UFC by spearheading the Women’s fighting movement go down in defeat, the loss doesn’t tarnish her legacy at all. Ronda really made history, as evidenced by UFC headlining and co-headling with two womens fights tonight.  In many ways, you can also make a strong case that Ronda is indirectly responsible for the Divas Revolution you currently see in WWE.

As for UFC, they should be commended for changing with the times and featuring women more prominently on the top of their cards.  It’ll be interesting to see if this continues without Ronda Rousey but I hope it does as their is obvious interest as evidenced by the 56,000+ that were in attendance tonight.  I can confirm that UFC will return to Austrailia on March 20th, this time running Brisbane.  If you would like more UFC 193 coverage might I suggest you check out f4wonline.com or the fight network as they both do a great job.  I’d also like to suggest you give @RobinBlackMMA a follow as he did a great breakdown of the Ronda-Holm fight.

That’s going to do it for after a history making night at UFC193 and the end of an era as it’s nearly 3AM here on the east coast.  Tomorrow is a Football sunday so I will be back bright and early, coffee cup in hand with my football picks and a lot more fun stuff right here on thedailyspotlight.com

The Spotlight On Disney On Ice: 100 Years Of Magic 

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 This past Wednesday evening, as I mentioned in the daily spotlight blog that day, I was able to check out Disney On Ice: 100 Years Of Magic at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. With the show running the Barclays Center over the weekend and around the US over the next couple of months, I thought it would be fun to give you guys some of the highlights of the show. Without any further ado, let’s get right into it.

Highlights:
1) The Disney Experience In Your Neck of The Woods- I had a chance to chat with one of the ladies on line with her family at the concession stand and she mentioned how her and the family come see Disney On Ice every year. She explained that it’s a bit pricey for the whole family to get down to Florida or California every year and so this is a more affordable way for the family to still get some Disney on their life. I couldn’t agree more! Being as big of a fan of Disney as I am, it really felt that for the two hours that this show was going on that the Barclays Center was transformed into Disney World. There were photo ops, souvenirs, Disney themed desserts and people wearing costumes (Mickey ears and mini princesses were everywhere) filling the lobby of the Barclays Center. On top of that with over 50 classic Disney characters and 14 different stories, you really got a similar Disney experience that you would come to expect at the shows featured in the parks.   2) Fun For The Whole Family- I attended the event with my girlfriend and our 3 year old god daughter and while she enjoyed seeing the princesses and Frozen there was a lot there for my girlfriend and I to enjoy as well. The classic four Disney characters, Donald Duck, Goofy, Minnie and Mickey (where was my boy Pluto by the way?)  act as the narrators of the show and continue to appear in between the different stories to talk about Disney history and to introduce the different characters. From there many of the classic Disney stories from The Little Mermaid to Beauty and the Beast to even Pinocchio get their time to have their story told and we had our chance to feel like a kid in the process (there’s even a segment dedicated to “Its A Small World”). The finale featuring the Lion King is a sight to be seen and features all of the characters in a way that only Disney can do right.
 3) Frozen Fun- That’s right, for I believe possibly the first time ever Frozen is now a part of the “100 years of Magic” show. Not only is it featured but it has the most time dedicated to it with about 30 minutes including all of the classic characters and songs. It is quite the sight to see 16,000+ people at the Barclays Center singing “Let It Go” in unison. I will say that I think if you want to see Frozen included with all of the classics you should go sooner rather than later because Disney is as smart as they come and, if they haven’t done so already, it’s only a matter of time before Frozen gets its own “Disney On Ice”.

Closing Thoughts: 
 Overall this was a lot of fun and I would definitely recommend it to any fan of Disney.  There were definitely a few times where I had to remind myself that the performers were all on skates as they were incredible in how much they could do without a stumble, they were simply flawless. One thing that did surprise me was that there wasn’t a classic character or two available for photos. They did have the classic Disney sets where you can take take a picture with Anna, Cinderella or Mickey & Minnie butt they were all cardboard cutouts. I can tell you that I would have gladly paid for a photo had it been the “real” characters. That’s just a small constructive criticism though because in the end this was definitely worth it and 2 hours flew by and kept our 2 year old goddaughter engaged the whole time. If you’re in the New York City area, Disney On Ice: 100 Years Of Magic runs the Barclays Center through November 16th!

If you have specific questions feel free to leave them in the comment section below or hit me up on twitter @TommyOnTheSpot.

The Spotlight On Billy Gunn’s Firing From WWE

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Well,  unfortunately I’m not coming to you with happy news to end the week in WWE but as reported by f4wonline.com earlier today, “Monty “Kip” Sopp, better known as Billy Gunn, was fired today as a trainer by WWE due to testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone in a powerlifting meet from July 25.”According to the report, “Sopp’s drug test  came up with a 37-1 testosterone/epitestosterone ratio, well over the 4-1 limit, and he was suspended from powerlifting for four years.”

At 52 years of age, it is unlikely that Sopp will be able t compete in powerlifting again.  This is obviously unfortunate as Sopp had been working both an agent and a trainer down in NXT over the past few years.  With Sopp being chosen to be a trainer on the most recent season of Tough Enough, coupled with how prominently he’s featured on Breaking Ground (the new docuseries on the WWE Network), it would be reasonable to assume that Sopp was one of the more trusted people down at the performance center and within WWE auspices.

Sopp had one of the more accomplished careers as a member of WWE, and member of D-Generation X during the Attitude Era, as a former 2 time hardcore champion, a former king of the ring winner, a former intercontinental champion and a former (unprecedented) 11 time WWE Hardcore champion.  Sopp even had a run with the tag titles as a member of the New Age Outlaws as most recently as 2013 in a run that culminated in a six man tag with Corporate Kane against the Shield at WrestleMania 30.

As of this writing, Sopp is still listed on the superstars section of WWE.com and no official statement has been released by WWE.  As mentioned earlier, Sopp had been featured time to time of the new Breaking Ground series on the WWE Network, so it will be interesting to see if he is edited out of any further material that’s been taped for that series moving forward.  It should be noted that while Sopp did fail that test for powerlifting back on July 25th, WWE was not made aware of it until very recently. You really have to give WWE a lot of credit for releasing Sopp immediately upon this being discovered and showing zero tolerance amongst their trainers as it pertains to PEDs.  At the end of the day, Sopp is training the future of WWE down in NXT and should be a role model for these trainees.  It would be setting a bad example to keep Sopp on as a trainer, despite his accomplishments, so WWE’s hands were tied in that regard.

Hopefully, if this is an issue in which Sopp has a problem, and I’m not one to judge, he’s able to get the help that needs to overcome the problem.  If any further details are released on this matter, we’ll have them for you right here on thedailyspotlight.com

The Spotlight On The Biggest Game Of The Season For the New York Jets-Thursday Night Football Preview

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Normally on Thursday afternoons, I post my Thursday Night Football Pick Against The Spread. Honestly it’s hard for me to do that today with the Jets involved and, well, with me having no confidence in this game whatsoever. Rex Ryan returns to MetLife Stadium for the first time since taking over as the coach of the Buffalo Bills to take on his old team, the New York Jets. If you don’t think that Rex has had week 10 circled on his calendar since his first day on the job, then I’m not sure what you’re thinking. I’ve been fired before and whenever I see my old employer, I want to make them look bad and look my best, it’s human nature. Rex hasn’t taken the high road either in naming IK Enemkpali a team captain for the Bills tonight for the sole reason of him breaking Geno Smith’s jaw.

Aside from Rex, this is a tale of two teams going in opposite directions in terms of health. The Bills had both Tyrod Taylor & Sammy Watkins return last week and they are just a different team with those two players healthy. It also appears that the Bills will have Lesean McCoy healthy for tonight’s game and if they can ever get Shady McCoy going, they can be one of the most explosive offenses in football. 

On the other side of the ball, the Jets seem completely ravaged by injuries everytime I turn on the TV. Our top three running backs are banged up (Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell, & Stevan Ridley), both of our top wide recievers (Brandon Marshall & Eric Decker) are banged up & our quarterback (Ryan Fitzpatrick) is playing with a torn ligament in his non throwing hand. If that wasn’t bad enough, look at our defense: Dee Milliner- Out, Calvin Pryor- Doubtful, Antonio Cromartie- doubtful, Dion Bailey- Doubtful, Buster Skrine-Questionable. To make matters even worse the Jets will be without 2 cornerstones of their Offensive Line in Nick Mangold (who can’t stay healthy) and Willie Colon who was shut down for the season. The cherry on the top of this doom and gloom injury report is of course that the Jets will be without their Even Steven kicker, Nick Folk, and had to dust mothballs off of Randy Bullock with only four days to prepare. 

Looking at all of those injuries I’m pretty pessimistic about tonight’s game for the Jets. The 4-4 Bills are right there in the playoff race and the Jets are just barely ahead of this mishmash of mediocrity battling it out for wildcard spots in the AFC, with a 5-3 record. Now if the Jets can somehow ride that hometown crowd to a victory well then 6-3 looks a lot better then 5-3 and the Jets could be 10-3 before you can say “Merry Christmas”. After the Bills game tonight,  the Jets travel to Houston and then are back at MetLife to face the Dolphins, Giants and Titans. All four of those games are winnable and may have to be for the Jets to get that precious 5th seed as they end the season heading to Tony Romo & the Cowboys, welcoming the Patriots and at these Buffalo Bills. 

Thus, tonights game can really be season-defining for the Jets. Will gang green be able to give us fans a little breathing room? Or will Rex Ryan be the guy to ruin this promising season for Jets…just like he’s been for the last three years.