// BEGIN editorial data var i = 0; var spt_trash_talk = new Array(); spt_trash_talk.ID = "spt_trash_talk"; spt_trash_talk.ID_WB = 14400667; spt_trash_talk.sPubDate = "2/9/2010 8:28:20 PM GMT"; spt_trash_talk.navsectionID = "3032112" spt_trash_talk.appFmt = 2; spt_trash_talk.itemsPerPage = 1; spt_trash_talk.appWidth = 624; spt_trash_talk.mainArt = ""; spt_trash_talk.appNavStyle = 3; spt_trash_talk.navCols = 6; spt_trash_talk.sNavLinkStyle = "font size=12"; spt_trash_talk.bDhtml = 0; spt_trash_talk.appLayout = 1; spt_trash_talk.copyWidth = 624; spt_trash_talk.copyMargin = 9; spt_trash_talk.nCellpad = 10; spt_trash_talk[i++] = new Array("","Manning, Colts could be Braves of NFL","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/0208-manning-story.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "MIKE SEGAR", "Reuters", "273", "193", "#000000", "", "", "", ""); spt_trash_talk[i-1].body = "

So what’s next for Peyton Manning?

First off, more commercials. Don’t think he’ll go into hiding as a pitchman just because he lost the Super Bowl. If anything, he’ll find a way to capitalize on his flop just as Brett Favre has done by poking fun at his penchant for indecision.

As far as football is concerned, if you thought his brow look furrowed before, wait until you see him in the coming seasons.

If Sunday’s 31-17 Saints victory over the Colts did anything for the future of NFL football, it placed a giant “Who Dis?” sign on Manning, as in “Who is this really: the greatest quarterback of all time, or the biggest disappointment?”

Remember the Atlanta Braves of the ‘90s? Loaded with talent. Great pitching staff. One of the best managers in the game. One World Series title.

Manning is in danger of becoming known as the Atlanta Braves of the NFL. In fact, when it’s all told, he might not even be the most successful quarterback in his own family. Right now, for all his ballyhoo, he has as many Super Bowl rings as Eli.

I believe Peyton Manning is tough-minded. But he’s also going to hear about how he’s only 9-9 in the postseason, and how his pick six against the Saints sealed his team’s fate. That’s a lot of pressure to put on anybody, no matter how polished and professional he seems.

How Peyton Manning deals with that burden next year, and in the seasons that follow, will determine whether he has a chance to salvage his “greatest ever” label."; spt_trash_talk[i++] = new Array("","Ovechkin, Caps give D.C. a little pride","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/apmegasports/201002071428521358739-pf.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Luis Alvarez", "AP", "273", "362", "#000000", "", "", "", ""); spt_trash_talk[i-1].body = "

Somehow, amid the crush of Super Bowl coverage, one unrelated score managed to wiggle its way through the madness and onto my radar:

Washington Capitals 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 4 (OT).

That victory by the Caps on Sunday represented their 14th straight. They are in first place in the Eastern Conference, have the best record in the NHL and are nearly unbeatable at home. Also, they boast the game’s finest player in Alex Ovechkin, who had a hat trick against Sidney Crosby’s Pens.

Washington, D.C. isn’t anything like New Orleans. The folks in The Big Easy were hit with a serious threat to their existence with Hurricane Katrina, and Sunday’s Saints victory represents a lesson in perseverance and character by those citizens and by those players.

But D.C. has its own disaster. It’s called government – thanks to both major parties. Washington has become a symbol for dysfunction.

Washington, D.C. also has some mini-disasters to consider. They’re called the Redskins, the Nationals and the Wizards. The Redskins have become a sad spectacle under Daniel Snyder’s stewardship, although that might change with Mike Shanahan in charge. The Nationals are awful. And although the Wizards are nobodies when it comes to the NBA playoff picture, they’re easily the stars of any gun show.

The Capitals never have won the Stanley Cup, although they reached the finals in 1998, only to be swept by the Detroit Red Wings. If the Caps go on to win the Cup this season, it will help restore some civic pride to a beleaguered town.

Perhaps New Orleans can lend the Caps some leftover Mardi Gras beads, just for luck."; spt_trash_talk[i++] = new Array("","Going with Vikings-Steelers in 2011","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/ap/vikings%20the%20favre%20effect%20football--330338256.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "Paul Sancya", "AP", "273", "185", "#000000", "", "", "", ""); spt_trash_talk[i-1].body = "

The rule of thumb for when it is acceptable to start predicting which team will capture next year’s Super Bowl is to wait until the hangovers wear off from this year’s winners.

All right, so I’m jumping the gun a bit on that.

In the NFC, the Vikings’ future is unclear until Brett Favre makes up his mind. If he does, they’re the favorites. The Saints have 29 free agents this offseason, so roster upheaval might spell doom for their repeat chances.

Green Bay, Dallas and the New York Giants also have a shot. Arizona will take a step back under Matt Leinart. Philadelphia will slip further into irrelevance.

In the AFC, the Steelers and Patriots will be back. The Jets and Texans will be improved. The Colts and Chargers will regress.

Right now, at this juncture, with the information currently available as far as personnel is concerned, I like the Vikings and the Steelers -– a rematch of Super Bowl IX (Jan. 12, 1975), won by Pittsburgh, 16-6.

I think Favre will return, and the Vikings will be that much hungrier. And I believe the Steelers will retake their place at the top of the AFC heap; last season they killed themselves with a five-game losing streak starting in mid November, and each setback was close, two in OT.

Enjoy the remaining minutes of the aftermath of this year’s Super Bowl. Speculation season has officially begun."; spt_trash_talk[i++] = new Array("","We obviously are very bored people","","http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/ap/pro%20bowl%20football--1929528246.hsmall.jpg","","", "", "", "", "", "right", "Eric Gay", "AP", "273", "243", "#000000", "", "", "", ""); spt_trash_talk[i-1].body = "

In case you didn’t notice, the Pro Bowl – held for the first time on the Sunday before the Super Bowl instead of the one after – was a ratings success. It pulled in 8.1 million households and 12.3 million viewers, and it outdrew last year’s telecast by 40 percent.

Personally, I still think it’s a stupid idea to stage an all-star game in which several high-profile players can’t participate because they’re getting ready for the Super Bowl, but that’s me. I like a little substance with my viewing.

What the Pro Bowl ratings tell you is that we live in such a sports-crazed society that people will sit home and watch a completely inconsequential game because there’s nothing else to do, or because they’re stuck at home in bad weather and, as Bruce Springsteen so eloquently points out, there’s “57 Channels (And Nothin’ On),” although he was a little conservative on the number of channels in which nothing’s on.

This brings us to the NBA All-Star Game on Sunday.

There won’t be any shortage of stars, but there will be a lack of meaning. Yet that shouldn’t stop folks from tuning in. Last year’s game on TNT was the most-watched telecast in the event’s history, drawing over 5.8 million total viewers, an increase of 12 percent from the previous year.

That tells me that for most people it isn’t about the quest for excitement, it’s the desperate effort to avoid boredom. It tells me that, when it comes to a sporting event -– any sporting event -– over an old movie, or a repeat of a “CSI” or “Law and Order” episode, the sporting event wins every time.

All-star games get more and more pointless. The bar keeps getting lowered. And viewers respond with record ratings.

So if you ever scratch your head and wonder why a rather average athlete is signing a preposterously large contract, you’ll know where the money is coming from."; spt_trash_talk[i++] = new Array("","A game of pepper","","","","", "", "", "", "", "left", "Mark Duncan", "AP", "273", "195", "", "", "", "", ""); spt_trash_talk[i-1].body = "

  • I love the shot of Drew Brees holding up his little son at the end of the Super Bowl. I thought the most touching moment was when Lane Kiffin offered the kid a scholarship.

  • If the NFL keeps this current trend of halftime acts, the early favorite for next year’s Super Bowl would be Gerry & the Pacemakers.

  • The Tim Tebow pro-life commercial seemed to go by quickly and without notice. Like his NFL career.

  • Say what you want about The Who. But those guys look younger than the Celtics.

  • The Milwaukee Brewers are erecting a statue of baseball commissioner Bud Selig -– whose family once owned the franchise -– outside of Miller Park. The statue will be more than 7 feet tall, and I’m assuming that’s supposed to represent his leadership during the steroids era.

  • Super Bowl XLIV surpassed the series finale of “M*A*S*H” as the most watched program in television history, bringing in over 106 million viewers. The original film of “M*A*S*H” featured a touch football game. Somewhere a savvy television executive is fantasizing about a ratings blockbuster.

  • Vancouver needs snow for the Olympics. Washington D.C. just got pummeled by a record snowstorm. Hmmm. Is there time for Congress to enact “Snow Cap And Trade” legislation?"; // END editorial data