Bleacher Report - Articles by Kevan Lee

The MLS Season Preview of Ignorance

Kevan Lee — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 09:41:38 -0400

Kevan Lee is not qualified to do a soccer column. He is an NFL fan with a narrow world view and a strong distaste for sports that don’t involve use of hands. Nevertheless, he thought doing MLS power rankings would be a fun idea. He is probably confusing fun with either masochism or irrelevance.

There are three myths about soccer that need debunking.

1. Soccer is entertaining.

2. America is good at soccer.

3. The MLS is a crock.

Let’s start from the top.

Soccer is not entertaining. I have watched two hours of 0-0 soccer action, and I can honestly say that I did not walk away from that viewing experience wanting more. On the contrary, I wanted to murder the game of soccer.

Some might say that my bad experience could be partially blamed on watching MLS soccer on Fox Soccer Channel. That’s a discussion for another time. But what I have found is that soccer is not consistently, memorably entertaining. If it was, I would own a Frankie Hejduk jersey and know who Frankie Hejduk is.

America is not good at soccer. We are good at democracy, competitive eating, and making up reasons to go to war, but when it comes to the beautiful game (which, in MLS, is up for debate), we are simply above average. Our deep run in the 2002 World Cup is mostly to blame for the discrepancy between reality and imagination, as we played beyond our means in reaching the quarterfinals. Since then, we have continued building a strong foundation that should yield benefits sometime around World Cup 2022 (or so says this Facebook group).

The MLS is not a crock. At least, it is not a crock in the way the XFL was. For a league going into its 13th season, the MLS is doing quite fine actually, despite the constant criticism from mainstream media and ignorant sports fans.

For the longest time, I was one of those ignorant sports fans. I made jokes about poor attendance and Cobi Jones’ haircut because I could have cared less about whether or not soccer succeeded in the US. I had my NFL and my Pretender reruns, and I was happy.

Then a strange thing happened. I got hooked by the US’s World Cup appearance in 2002, and I started following the players long after the Cup had ended. Naturally, I was drawn to MLS, considering so many players call it home. The action wasn’t half bad. The build-up to a goal was exciting, and the personalities of the players were fun to watch.

Still, I am no expert on the game. Far from it. If I hope to achieve anything from this column, it is to entertain die-hard soccer fans with my naïve comments and to document the journey of a mainstream fan to the fringe of American sports. Should I learn something along the way, then great. Should I flame out in a bitter post toward the insufficiencies of soccer, then I apologize in advance.

I really don’t know what I’m getting myself into.

MLS Power Rankings

1. Houston Dynamo. The two-time defending champions deserve to start the season at the top. And I deserve a medal for knowing that they are two-time defending champions.

2. DC United. The team with the best regular season record tanked in the playoffs. Mavericks fans, the MLS was made for you!

3. New England Revolution. Taylor Twellman is the Carson Palmer of MLS.

4. Chivas USA. Brad Guzan is my favorite goalkeeper. I could not tell you why.

5. FC Dallas. I support any team that plays in a Pizza Hut Park…or a Carl’s Jr. Coliseum, for that matter.

6. Chicago Fire. The inappropriateness of this team nickname continues to startle me.

7. LA Galaxy. Will a healthy David Beckham make a difference? Will exponentially less media attention?

8. NY Red Bulls. Jozy Altidore should be fun to watch…for a soccer player.

9. Columbus Crew. The Crew’s Argentinian striker Schelotto must feel so terribly far from home in Columbus.

10. Kansas City Wizards. I know literally nothing about this team.

11. Real Salt Lake. With no Freddy Adu, it will be hard to tell just how many teenage girls to expect at home games.

12. Toronto FC. My goodness. How many of these teams are there?!

13. Colorado Rapids. Rapidly sucking.

14. San Jose Earthquakes. The expansion ‘Quakes will have a tough time staying competitive in their first year. Fortunately, relegation does not exist in MLS.

Kevan Lee is a freelance writer and author of www.kevanlee.com and www.obnug.com.

David Rules: How Boise State Changed College Football

Kevan Lee — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 08:00:36 -0500

The current state of college football (i.e. chaos, anarchy, fear) is all Boise State’s fault.

Sorry, BCS conference teams. Apologies to you, Myles Brand. Deepest condolences, LSU, USC, and especially, Oklahoma. But the world you all live in now has no caste system, pecking order, or hierarchy thanks to the heroics of the Broncos.

The 2007 college football season was one of the wildest in recent memory. Starting with Appalachian State’s win over Michigan and not stopping until Pittsburgh was through with West Virginia, no team was safe from an unexpected loss. National champion LSU had two such encounters: overtime L’s to Kentucky and Arkansas. Runner-up Ohio State stumbled at home against Illinois.

Across the country big-name schools felt the bite of underdogs, and the results were telling: College football has changed…for the better.

All of this upheaval created palpable excitement every week of the season as fans couldn’t wait to see which Goliath was next to fall. The Davids were not necessarily small-conference schools, but they might as well have been considering how much respect and opportunity they were given beforehand.

Sure, Stanford plays in the Pac-10, but not even some Mountain West schools would have been 41-point underdogs.

The results screamed for equality, and the mounting losses of BCS schools only seemed to have increased the inevitable march toward a fairer championship system. If a team like Hawaii—having defeated everyone who had the guts to play them in the regular season—was not given a chance to play for a national title, in a year when a national champion participant came in with two losses, then it will never happen.

But with enough wins like App State over Michigan and Louisiana-Monroe over Alabama, things are bound to change.

This seismic shift would not have been possible without the Boise State Broncos. A little more than a year ago, they changed college football’s landscape for good with an improbable victory over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. No one took small conference schools seriously before the game, but afterwards, everyone saw the Boise States of the world differently.

They were dangerous. They were plucky. But most importantly, they were equals.

Several months later, as the 2007 college football season was just underway, the changing atmosphere was evident when the Broncos traveled to play the Washington Huskies. In years past, Husky fans would have considered the game a warm-up to the Pac-10 schedule, believing BSU to be nothing more than a speed bump on the way to an easy win.

But last year, winning was far from a sure thing in the minds of many.

The Broncos carried respect and admiration for what they had done and what they were capable of doing, and Washington was wise not to take them lightly.

The same scene played out across college campuses all year. There were no more “easy” games for big schools. Each week was a battle. The pride of the bigger programs raised the stakes because they did not want to become the next Oklahoma or let their opponent walk out of town as the next BSU.

Now, this is the reality that we live in. When Appalachian State opens the season against LSU, the fact that the two schools don’t even play in the same division will hardly matter.

In previous years, BCS conferences considered the non-conference schedule to be largely a preseason affair, assuming victory over opponents was in the bag. Not anymore.

Boise State opened the door for the little guy, but it also kicked in the door for progress. College football needed shaking up. The excitement and unpredictability of amateur athletics is part of the beauty of the sport, but too much of those attributes were lost amidst boosters and money and success.

The rules have changed thanks to the Broncos, and they left behind a blueprint that any school can follow to success:

1. Great Coaching

Having the right staff can make up for a lot of insufficiencies elsewhere, and the right gameplans and preparations can turn the tide in a game. Any school can find a young, eager coach to lead a program, and there are many great minds out there who just need a chance.

2. Hungry Athletes

Small schools cannot recruit the biggest, fastest, strongest athletes, but they will always have a chance to grab kids who have something to prove. Many Boise State athletes were passed over by bigger programs, and their success on the field is due in large part to their motivation to prove their worth.

3. Belief in a System

Teams like Boise State often have to turn to within for inspiration when outsiders are not giving them a chance. Therefore, belief in what the team is setting out to do is important, and if everyone buys in, a unified group can go places they never thought possible.

4. Fan Culture

Boise State’s success has created quite the fan following, both from locals and from outsiders. The support of the team helps immensely at home games, and a large traveling group can make quite a difference on the road.

There is no doubt that the upset trend in college football will continue for years to come. Hopefully it will bring much-needed changes to a system that could use them, but in the meantime, enjoying the unpredictability of it all is reward enough.

Week in and week out, analysts and fans will look forward to discovering who will pull the big upset, who will wreak havoc on the polls, who will come from nowhere to surprise the country…

Who will be the next Boise State.

Kevan Lee is a contributor to One Bronco Nation Under God, a blog devoted to college football and the Boise State Broncos.

Super Baloney: Plaxico Burress Takes on the New England Receivers

Kevan Lee — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 05:28:09 -0500

Plaxico Burress seems to think the Giants receivers are better than the Patriots wide receivers.

No word yet on whether Eli Manning is better than Tom Brady, socialism is better than democracy, or the digital watch is better than wristband sundials.

Burress’ number factory must have been seriously outsourced to a place that doesn’t understand football because there is no way that his statement is correct. In fact, his avowal doesn’t even make sense.

Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth, Jabar Gaffney, and Ben Watson are the Picassos to the Giants’ emo art students.

Burress is a good receiver, Amani Toomer is an old receiver, Steve Smith is an unpolished receiver, and Kevin Boss is a backup. If a universe exists where this group is better than the Patriots’ receiving armada, it must be inhabited by people who are out of touch with reality.

My ranting may seem like the pained reaction of a diehard Patriots fan—and it certainly is. But I am not the only one taking umbrage to Burress’ comments. Our group is actually quite a large contingent of those in the know—mainly Rodney Harrison, the numbers, and common sense.

Take a look:

Rodney Harrison responded to Plaxico’s comments by claiming that the New England receivers are "the best group I’ve ever been around." He went on to say that the play on the field will be the best measure of which team has the better receivers. That Rodney Harrison is so smart.

And here are the numbers:

Burress was the leading receiver on the Giants with 70 catches for 1,025 yards. These numbers would have ranked third on the Patriots. None of Burress’ receiving teammates cracked 60 catches or more than three touchdowns. Four New England receivers had at least five scores.

I could go on and on about Amani Toomer’s drops, Steve Smith’s occasional production, and the fact that key players in the Giants passing game had fewer than 10 catches during the regular season, but I think these numbers say enough.

And now for common sense’s take:

Randy Moss enjoyed one of the greatest receiving seasons in NFL history and his career (minus the Oakland years) is Hall of Fame worthy. Wes Welker set a Patriots receiving record with 112 catches and tied for the league lead in receptions. Donte Stallworth was a free agent prize, yet he had only a minor impact because of the wealth of talent around him.

New England’s collection of receivers might have been the greatest group to hit the NFL in years. The Giants’ group of receivers? Possibly better than the Jets. Possibly.

You see, anyway you look at it, Plaxico is wrong.

Perhaps, his asinine assertion was simply meant to provide media fodder during the Super Bowl hype. If that is the case, then I cannot wait for his Media Day oratorical on the movable type versus stone etching.

Then again, if word of his embarrassing opinion grows, he can always blame it on the media.

Taking things out of context is what the media do best, at least if you ask players and coaches. He could chalk the whole thing up to that wretched Boston media and claim that what he was trying to say was Randy Moss is a demigod, Wes Welker is the business, and he and his fellow Giant receivers are straddling the line between acceptability and mediocrity. How dare those journalists say otherwise.

Of course, maybe this whole thing will just blow over and we’ll forget all about it by the time Super Bowl XLII kicks off. Michael Strahan and Antonio Pierce will probably say inappropriate things in the next few days, people will become focused on Tom Brady’s boot and whether or not it ever really existed, and Ryan Seacrest will capture our hearts with his red carpet pregame poise.

But really, the one thing that will make this whole one-sided debate turn silent forever will be that glorious moment when Randy Moss catches a beautiful, arcing spiral from Tom Brady to make the score 62-0.

Then the numbers, the common sense, and I will have a good, jolly laugh and sleep well in our Kevin Faulk replica jerseys.

For more, visit www.kevanlee.com.

Hindsight for Sore Eyes: A Look Back at NFL Preseason Predictions

Kevan Lee — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 15:20:19 -0500

With the NFL playoffs around the corner, I thought it might be fun to take a look back at my preseason predictions.

A lot has changed since those halcyon days of August, when the Dolphins thought John Beck was their quarterback of the future and when I wrote columns more regularly.

Picking winners and losers at such an early stage was idiotic—and I like to think idiotic is right up my alley.

Other NFL analysts like to play the same guessing-game before the season starts, but they often stick with the status quo...and conveniently forget to revisit their predictions at season’s end.

Not me.

I take full responsibility for my many miscalculations and baseless judgments. I might sound smart at the time when I’m chirping about Donovan McNabb’s resurgence and the awesomeness of the St. Louis Rams, but truth be told, I have no better sense than anyone else as to what is actually going to happen.

Take, for instance, those plucky Rams. I pegged St. Loo to finish atop the less-than-stellar NFC West—and they repaid me by not winning any of their first eight games and finishing with the No. 2 two pick in April’s draft.

I would have looked far smarter taking the easy way out and picking the Seahawks to repeat as division champs.

However, taking risks does have its benefits. My most attention-grabbing pick of the preseason was for the 49ers to finish with four wins. At the time, people called me crazy and gay and a bunch of four-letter words—and after San Fran started the season 2-0, I was starting to believe them (about the crazy part, not the rest).

As it turned out, though, I could not have been more right about the team.

Alex Smith’s injury led to a long-overdue Trent Dilfer sighting, which in turn led to an interminably long losing streak. Both sides of the ball turned out to be overrated, with neither playing very consistently at any point. Mike Nolan, praised as a head coach on the rise before the season, nearly lost his job over the debacle.

So while I wait patiently for written apologies from the 49er fans who wronged me, I take solace in knowing that at least I got one of my predictions right. Quantity over quality seems to be the best strategy when it comes to guessing what will happen in any particular NFL season.

That’s the way things work at ESPN, anyway.

The many wrongs still grossly outweigh the few rights, but that's to be expected. So much can happen in one NFL season, and there’s really no telling which way certain teams will go. That said, I will take full credit for being the first to sing the 49ers’ shortcomings, and I will try my best to forget that I made many of the following choices...

Preseason Pick for Breakout Player: RB Ronnie Brown

Had the season stopped after seven weeks, I would have been incredibly right.

Brown was coming into his own as a running back before a knee injury ended his year—and had he stayed healthy, a rushing title and Pro Bowl spot were very much within reach.

How Brown handles his return next year will be very interesting—not how he recovers from his injury, but more how he reacts to still being on the Miami Dolphins.

Preseason Pick for NFL MVP: Carson Palmer

This pick followed a disgusting trend of mine that involved giving the Bengals way too much credit.

I still think that Palmer is one of the top five quarterbacks in the league, but I no longer think that he's surrounded by capable teammates or coaches.

Preseason Pick for Defensive Player of the Year: Vikings DT Kevin Williams

Someone could certainly make the case for Williams to be considered for top defensive player awards (note his two interceptions returned for touchdowns as a defensive tackle).

Someone could also make the case that he's not even the best Williams on the Vikings’ defensive line.

Either way, I could have done a lot worse than picking Williams (i.e., picking Julius Peppers).

Preseason Pick for Rookie of the Year: Oakland RB Michael Bush

Admittedly, this pick was a reach.

I remembered how good Bush was in college, and I thought he could surprise a lot of people if he was healthy this year. The problem was that he wasn’t healthy.

His final stats were 0 yards in 0 games played—or, roughly, 1,341 fewer yards than Adrian Peterson.

Preseason Picks for Surprise Teams: Oakland (in a good way); Baltimore (in a bad way)

The only surprising thing about Oakland is that they didn't look completely outclassed in every game. Then again, they're still picking in the top five.

I was right on picking Baltimore to fail, although I didn’t see things getting as bad as they did. I was thinking Kyle-Boller-bad, not Troy-Smith-bad.

Preseason Picks for Teams that I Like: Eagles; Bears; Jaguars; Bengals

I meant for this to be a multiple choice. And the answer: C! Jags!

Preseason Pick for Teams that I Love: Patriots

I love them a perfect amount.

Preseason Picks for Teams That I Don’t Like: Chiefs; Dolphins; Buccaneers; CBS pregame studio crew

I still don’t like the Buccaneers, but obviously they don’t care what I think. Who knew Jeff Garcia and the Buc defense still had anything left?

People who know more than I do, that’s who.

As for the CBS crew, I actually found them mildly tolerable this year, with the exception of Shannon Sharpe. And Bill Cowher. And James Brown.

Preseason Pick for AFC Division Winners: Patriots; Bengals; Colts; Broncos

I got the two easy ones correct, but blew the others pretty badly. That’s what I get for thinking outside the box.

Preseason Pick for AFC Wild Cards: Jaguars; Chargers

Overall, I got four of the six AFC playoff teams right. And since I don’t really consider the Titans to be a playoff team, my odds are actually better than they appear.

Preseason Pick for NFC Division Winners: Eagles; Bears; Panthers; Rams

Preseason Pick for NFC Wild Cards: Cowboys; Saints

The perennial crapshoot that is the NFC did a number on me this year. I got the Cowboys right and nothing else.

Seriously, though, who saw the Packers, Bucs, and Redskins coming? And who cares about the Seahawks and Giants anymore?

I feel like my playoff scenario would have been infinitely more fun...and low-scoring.

Preseason Super Bowl Pick: Patriots

Does the fact that I pick them to win the Super Bowl every year make this season’s prediction seem any less clairvoyant?

I thought so.

For more, visit www.kevanlee.com.

NFL Week 14 Runaround: What's the Rush?

Kevan Lee — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 16:05:49 -0500

Adrian Peterson has undoubtedly set the NFL on fire this year.

Peterson led the league in rushing going into Week 14, despite having missed two games with an injured knee. Sunday, he was kind enough to give the rest of the league’s rushers a reprieve—by gaining only three yards in the Vikings’ win.

But where is everybody else?

LaDainian Tomlinson and Willie Parker are closing in, but they’ve had several extra games to play catch-up. Willis McGahee, Brian Westbrook, and Clinton Portis are set to breeze by 1,000 yards too.

After that?

The list of rushers gets much thinner, with the likes of little-known Justin Fargas and rundown Edgerrin James in the mix.

A big problem has been injuries. Steven Jackson and Larry Johnson were expected to have big seasons, but they've had a hard time staying on the field. Other running games have struggled to get going because of turnover in the backfield.

Tomlinson led the NFL with over 1,800 yards last year, and three other runners topped 1,600. With only three games left in the 2007 season, it'll be interesting to see who emerges as the league’s rushing king—and how far the bar continues to drop.

Team of the Week: Texans

Riding a four-game winning streak, the Buccaneers looked like a good bet to make Houston their fifth straight victim this weekend.

Sage Rosenfels had other ideas.

The backup quarterback threw for three touchdowns, and the Texans took advantage of Tampa’s ineffectiveness and carelessness. The win was a pleasant surprise in a season of progress—but the Texans' faint playoff hopes aren't helped by the dates with the Colts and Jaguars still looming on the schedule.

At least Houston has something to celebrate in the meantime.

Bad Team of the Week: Dolphins

Miami’s best chance to not finish winless came Sunday at Buffalo—and the Dolphins couldn't have blown it more spectacularly.

Buffalo jumped out to a 21-0 lead courtesy of bad defense and bad turnovers. And things didn’t get much better from there.

Cleo Lemon replaced starter John Beck in the first quarter, to no avail. The Dolphins trailed 31-7 at halftime. And two Buffalo running backs ran for over 100 yards.

With games against Baltimore and New England in the next two weeks, Miami’s last hope may lie with Cincinnati in Week 17.

If hope is what you want to call it.

Kevan Lee’s Beverage of the Week: Dr. Pepper

If someone were to ask me what Dr. Pepper tastes like, I would have no idea what to tell them.

Spices? Ginger? Pharmaceuticals?

Whatever it tastes like, it is good. And whoever thought it up is a genius.

Nap of the Week

The Steelers-Patriots game kept me awake all afternoon...which is more than I can say about Anthony Smith’s pass defense.

Playoff Contender: Bills

It seems to silly to call the Bills contenders—but they suddenly find themselves just one game out of the AFC Wild Card hunt.

Buffalo's chasing the Browns, and just happens to travel to Cleveland next week for an incredibly important game. If the Bills find a way to win, they still face two tough NFC East foes to finish the season.

Things look difficult, in other words, but that seems to be the modus operandi for this Buffalo team in 2007.

Playoff Pretender: Titans

Sunday’s collapse against the Chargers was hard to watch, but it will be even harder to stomach if it costs Tennessee a playoff spot.

Chances are good that the Titans can finish 9-7, but it may take a 10-6 record to make the postseason in the tough AFC.

Premature MVP Ballot

1. Tom Brady: Maybe he’s just more comfortable on Sunday afternoons (note: Super Bowl played on Sunday afternoon).

2. Tony Romo: A last-second win against the Lions would mean a lot more if it hadn’t come against the Lions.

3. Brett Favre: SI’s Sportsman of the Year award was just what Peter King asked Santa for Christmas.

Weekly Super Bowl Prediction: Colts vs. Vikings

Peyton Manning versus Tarvaris Jackson—now there’s a matchup for the ages.

For more, visit www.kevanlee.com.