By ALEX MULHALL – STAFF WRITER
The sports world has been a very busy place since my last column, so I’d be remissed to not try to touch on every major sport, complete with my picks for the end of each season.
I’ll probably miss some things, so don’t be offended if I slip on something you think is important.
NFL: The Denver Broncos look like they might run away with the league this year. They beat a very good San Diego Chargers team 35-21 on Thu., Oct. 23, but the game was never as close as the score might indicate.
That being said, the Broncos were dominating the league at this point last year and Peyton Manning was putting on an absolute clinic for the league.
None of that mattered however, in the Super Bowl XLVIII, where they were destroyed by the Seattle Seahawks in one of the most lopsided Super Bowl victories in history. The difference between this year and last: there is no clear-cut contender in the National Football Conference.
The Arizona Cardinals have a fantastic defense, but are unproven on the offensive side of the ball, especially as far as their quarterbacks are concerned.
The Dallas Cowboys offense has been prolific and runningback DeMarco Murray is on pace to break the single season rushing record, but they are playing with a defense made of spare parts and a gimpy quarterback.
Way Too Early Picks: The Denver Broncos will face the Green Bay Packers in a Super Bowl shootout. Peyton Manning will win his second championship 41-35.
NBA: After an extremely turbulent offseason, the National Basketball Association regular season tipped off on Tues., Oct. 28.
The defending champion, San Antonio Spurs, will be facing the Dallas Mavericks in a matchup between two first ballot Hall of Famers in Tim Duncan, the best power forward ever, and power forward Dirk Nowitzki, the best foreign born player to grace the league since center Hakeem Olajuwon.
The other opening night game features the New Orleans Pelicans and star center Anthony Davis, one of the great young players in the league, versus the struggling Orlando Magic.
There are obviously many other exciting storylines around the league. Legendary guard Kobe Bryant will retire after this season, as will the Nets’ Power Forward Kevin Garnett (most likely).
Oh yeah, and Forward LeBron James headed back to Cleveland. You might have heard something about that.