Why so serious?

Steve Johnson, wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills, made an original and funny attempt on Sunday at poking fun at Cincinnati's T.Ocho, a.k.a Batman and Robin. After scoring the first of his three touchdowns, Johnson showed off the Joker's famous quote from Batman: The Dark Knight, "Why so serious?" While this was comedy at it's best, it also got me thinking, why is everything so serious? From the elections, to the TSA screenings, to Dancing with the Stars, to Facebook and Twitter, why is everything so serious? I can even point the finger at myself. After having a wretched pick 'em Week 9, I took a step back from calling games in Week 10. I took picking games and getting those picks way too seriously.
But, I'm back this week and I can thank Steve Johnson for giving me a moment of clarity and allowing me to enjoy doing what I love, writing and talking about sports. Before I get into the picks for this week, a few sports topics.

The NY Yankees offer to Derek Jeter is beyond reasonable. $45mil over three years is more than fair for an aging shortstop who hasn't been as clutch over the past few years. Yes, Jeter is and has been the face of the Yankees and during the years that he was delivering titles, the Yankees rewarded him handsomely. Now that he's approaching 40, he can't demand the highest salary and fail to bring the team additional titles. The Yankees want Jeter to retire in pinstripes - just not at the expense of bankrupting the club.

Cam Newton and Auburn are doing the right thing by continuing the play the QB. Sure, the allegations are swirling and given his reported theft of a computer, Newton is no angel. But at this time, you have to leave it to the NCAA to sort out the details and issue their ruling. Whether they determine that Newton is ineligible after the season is somewhat moot. They can take away any awards or titles but they won't be able to take away his performance and folks, we are witnessing something special from Cam Newton.

Should colleges pay athletes for their play? In a word, yes. I'm actually surprised that so many individuals who attended college would be against this idea. Athletes, particularly at top schools, bring those schools billions of dollars/year. Through merchandising, ticket sales, boosters, advertising and bowl games/tournaments, colleges and universities are on the national stage and are using (exploiting) athletes to reap in these astronomical figures. And let's be honest, how can students really be focused on their education when they are flying across the country, playing multiple games/week, practicing 3-5 days/week and seeing themselves almost daily on ESPN? And let's be clear, Cam Newton and Reggie Bush are not isolated incidents. There are plenty of athletes at universities that either are not as prominent or not as successful, who are receiving benefits for their play. Whether that's an apartment, a trip home for the holidays, a cushy internship or even financial assistance,   student athletes are getting benefits for their play. The NCAA should seriously explore the option to offer students compensation for putting dollars in the pockets of university presidents.

For the first time in several years, I'm actually interested in the NBA. There's an emerging crop of young, exciting players to watch and while the Lakers, Boston, Orlando, San Antonio and all have a legitimate shot at the title, Utah, New Orleans, Oklahoma City and Atlanta will have a say in who goes him with the trophy this year. Speaking of young players, have you seen Blake Griffin this year? His play has been amazing and all that you can say is "Wow!"

My last item is for my Redskins fans. If you didn't catch the City Paper last week, they had a great article that outlined the MANY mistakes that Dan Snyder has made since he took ownership of the Washington Redskins. As an employee, any one of these mistakes would get you fired. As an owner, you get to make the fans pay for your incompetence. It's good to know that the business world works opposite of common sense.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy the time with family and friends. Now, on to this week's picks:

NE @ Det., Thu. 12:30PM: Even though they're coming off of a short week and an emotional win against Indy, the Patriots get Thanksgiving off to a great start with a win in Detroit.

NO @ Dal., Thu. 4:15PM: What would have been a blowout three weeks ago is now an intriguing match-up. The Cowboys seem to be the last ones to realize that Dez Bryant is a beast and they are unleashing his talents on opposing defenses. Even with their two week resurgence, their pass defense is suspect and I don't think Dallas can handle a shootout with the Saints.

Cin. @ NYJ, Thu. 8:20PM: Sure, the Jets have been living on the edge, with overtime wins over Cleveland and Houston. However, Cincinnati has been living under the edge after blowing a huge lead against Buffalo. The Bengals continue to be the under-performing team in the NFL this year.

GB @ Atl., Sun. 1:00PM: This is a pick 'em game with Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan playing great ball right now. This will likely be a back and forth battle with the Packers making the defensive plays to pull this one out.

Pit. @ Buf., Sun. 1:00PM: Buffalo is playing better ball of late but they beat two suspect teams in the Lions and the Bengals. Pittsburgh is a different animal and I expect the Steelers to win this one easily.

Car. @ Cle., Sun. 1:00PM: Carolina's season doesn't get any easier this week. Assuming that Colt McCoy is healthy, this is a win for the Brown. Expect to see a heavy dosage of Peyton Hillis this week.

Jac. @ NYG, Sun. 1:00PM: A match-up between two teams who are up and down week to week. Jacksonville comes in having won in a row and the Giants have lost two straight. Something has to give and the Giants' losing streak ends here.

Min. @ Wsh., Sun. 1:00PM: In what should be a close, yet ugly game, the Redskins will see a lot of Adrian Peterson. Unlike Brad Childress, Leslie Frazier will lean on the running game instead of Brett Favre and with a decrease in turnovers, the defense can get after McNabb and the Redskins' porous offensive line.

Ten. @ Hou., Sun. 1:00PM: With a defense as week as Houston's, how can you pick them to win any games? Their only saving grace this week is that the Titans are starting a rookie quarterback and Rusty Smith won't be ready for a shootout with Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson. This game could go either way and I'm leaning towards the home team pulling this one out.

Mia. @ Oak., Sun. 4:05PM: I liked what I've seen out of the Dolphins until they ran into Chicago last week. Oakland received a smack down from Pittsburgh last week so there's no telling which team has the best chance this week. Win goes to the team that can run the ball effectively and Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams will do so on Sunday.

KC @ Sea., Sun. 4:05PM: Another match-up featuring mediocre teams. KC needs a win to stay ahead of the resurgent Chargers and Seattle controls their own destiny in the putrid NFC West.

Phi. @ Chi., Sun. 4:15PM: Chicago's defense is scary when clicking on all cylinders and that aggressiveness could cost them against an opportunistic Eagles offense. Andy Reid and Michael Vick are in a great rhythm and this will be a huge test. While Chicago may keep the Eagles from putting up a lot of points, Jay Cutler makes a critical mistake that costs the Bears the game.

StL @ Den., Sun. 4:15PM: Sam Bradford is having a great season and what better opponent to help him forget about that costly shovel pass interception than the Broncos. Bradford has a good game but Denver does just enough of the right things to pull this one out.

TB @ Bal., Sun. 4:15PM: Josh Freeman takes advantage of a suspect Baltimore defense but the Ravens, via Ray Rice, control the clock and gut out another victory.

SD @ Ind., Sun. 8:20PM: Another classic battle pits Manning against Rivers. San Diego is hot right now and Indy is hurting. Peyton keeps it close but a lack of a running game and the return of Vincent Jackson makes this a long game for the Colts.

SF @ Ari., Mon. 8:30PM: Troy Smith keeps the 49ers in the playoff chase and Arizona continues to struggle.