Welcome back to craziness, as my thoughts are in full gear on the sports world. It’s time to move ahead, which means looking back and learning from the past.

digging upthe fossils

Michael Jordan, the “great one” of basketball lore, will be wearing a jersey of his current team, the Washington Wizards come the start of the NBA season.

I know that the NBA is always looking for an angle to get more fans to watch their games, and this is an “oh-so-juicy” opportunity for the league to benefit. However, there is a trend I see occurring, especially in the last year.

As I look over the hills of Iowa (an oxymoron of huge proportions), I see creatures trudging over the horizon. They’re large, but they can’t be the old dinosaurs of the Mesozoic era. Oh, OK, it’s the old retired players of professional sports coming back to life.

For years, I’ve noticed the breed of athletes that go well past their prime. They usually die slowly and painfully, finally fading into extinction. But I hadn’t been aware of professional sports athletes regenerating from the ashes to revive their honored careers.

Reggie White did it and was ineffective in his return. Magic Johnson attempted a comeback and flat out failed. Troy Aikman wanted to, but couldn’t remember what time zone he was in.

With the resurgence of Mario Lemieux in his second comeback attempt, it seems that more attention is being focused on getting celebrated athletes back to their place in the spotlight.

The ultimate, of course, is Jordan, who is making his second attempt at life in the pros. His first comeback, I can understand. He had been going through the difficulties of his father’s death and thought it was time for a change.

In this day and age (and I stress age), he doesn’t have the skills or the scope to dominate as he once did. His presence will make an impact, but showing up doesn’t win games or trophies. To think that he can make the Wizards compete, as well as compete himself night in and night out, means that you’re not playing with a full deck.

I can’t wait for the first game that Allen Iverson or Baron Davis outplays him, not schools, just outplays. Hopefully, this will be the start of the end for anyone thinking about coming back to a game that has passed them by.

Don’t get me wrong. The stats, along with the intangibles, back up the claim that most people put on him as the best pro basketball player ever. However, the stats don’t matter anymore. It’s a new day, and we’ll see whether evolution is still in progress.

absurdpredictions

Welcome to the NFL’s new trend, where the meek will inherit the fields of green. Can you believe what’s going on?

Just two games into the 2001 season, the Cincinnati Bengals and San Diego Chargers are tied for their respective division leads.

Tennessee, Dallas, Minnesota and Buffalo are all 0-2. What’s going on here?

Actually, I believe that there is a solution that is similar to what is happening in baseball this year. The year 2001 must be the year of the perennial loser in the sports calendar. That’s gotta be it.

Since the first couple of weeks have been completed, I guess I should chime in for my grand Super Bowl picks. Now realize that this prediction will be split, with one analysis now and another at the beginning of the playoffs.

With that out of the way, let’s get crackin’.

In the AFC, Miami and Denver have come out of the gate strong.

The Dolphins defense came up large in their escape act against Oakland, while Denver has drubbed the Giants and Cardinals with offensive explosion. But that doesn’t impress me.

As much of a Raider Hater as I am, the silver and black will be back to glory this season. The Raiders will beat Indianapolis, whose offensive attack has more prongs right now than the Broncos, in the AFC Championship Game.

The NFC has the St. Louis Rams (or Point Pilers). The offense is back to full speed with Kurt Warner running the ship, but if he goes down, the Arch-dwellers have a good shot at limping to the finish.

The newcomer in town in the Wild West of the conference is New Orleans. With Aaron Brooks at starting quarterback and Jeff Blake behind him, the Saints have two experienced leaders to fall back on.

The other team to watch out for is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the NFL stalwart for defense these days. They will get revenge against the Eagles in the playoffs, but won’t get past the French Quarter to the Super Bowl.

When all is settled, watch the Saints sink the Raiders on heavenly high to win the grandest game of them all.

Jonathan Lowe is a senior in meterorology from Kansas City, Mo.