Happy Day After Thanksgiving, everybody! Hope that food hangover isn’t too bad. Or the regular hangover. Neither were as bad for me as the atrocious slate of games the NFL provided for us yesterday. And I'm not even going to mention the Jonas brothers. Let's just say, I expect a formal letter of apology from the league office.

But there are a lot of things in the NFL I am thankful for this year, and right at the top of that list is the best highlight show on TV, ‘Inside the NFL'. That's why I want to thank Showtime for saving it from cancellation, giving it a second life, and even managing to improve it.

I don't know how many of you watch, but I've been a loyal viewer of “The show the pros watch” since the early days with Nick Buonoconti and Len Dawson. After 31 years at HBO, it was cancelled early in the year, before being rescued by Showtime. They replaced host Bob Costas with James Brown and analyst Dan Marino with Phil Simms, which has given the show a little more more fun and casual feel. The spirited arguments between Collinsworth and Simms are good TV, but better is watching JB go out of his way to laugh off the tension between them and repeat “These guys really like each other, I swear.”

But the big change has come from Warren Sapp, the breakout TV star of this year’s NFL season. In fact, he might be the breakout star of the season, period, considering he also does pre and post-game work on the NFL Network, and was a hit on ‘Dancing with then Stars’. Or so I heard. I don’t watch the show. Honest. And while I don’t know much about dancing, considering Sapp was up against a chick and a gay guy and finished second, I’d say he did damn well for himself.

When it comes to NFL analysis, he's more than just some fat guy cracking jokes for comic relief. Warren has always been glib, and spent much of his career making surprising and shocking statements. But he’s quickly made a name for himself this year, by using insider knowledge to add substance to those statements. 

First, a few weeks back, Sapp gave the audience a rare look behind the dysfunction of the Al Vader Davis Raiders, telling of times the Emperor of the Dark Side Raider owner meddled in team affairs, including changing game plans just hours before the game. Then, Sapp made things a little more personal, calling out old teammate Keyshawn Johnson as a “bitch”. Everybody tried to play it off the best they could, but it was pretty awkward, and I don't think that clip would've made it on the air last season. Sapp took a moment last week and apologized to Keyshawn, saying his mother told him he had to. 

Last week, he spilled another insider treat -- that Kevin Mawae used to poke him in the eye just to try and get an edge. It’s this kind of inside dirt, along with his humor and insight, that makes watching Sapp fun -- unlike whatever vanilla ex-player spewing the same old cliches ESPN is shoving down our throat this week. 

They’ve also sexed up the show a bit, bringing on infrequent correspondant -- too infrequent if you ask me -- Jenn Brown (pictured at right), who immediately enters the Hottest Female Sportscaster on the Planet conversation (I have her somewhere in between Erin Andrews and Charissa Thompson). Check out her web site, you’ll thank me later.

Who knew the show had to move away from the network which airs 'Cathouse' and 'G-String Divas' before it could get a hot chick on the show?

Okay, enough foreplay, let’s get to the previews... 

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Before we get to this week’s round-up of the odds, ends and trends around NFL in Week 12, we have the update you’ve all been waiting for...

SAFETYWATCH ‘08: Yet another safety this week, as Dallas blocked an Andy Lee punt through the end zone against the Niners. That’s four weeks in a row with a safety. Our long national curiosity continues. 

More updates as the situation progresses. We now return you to your regularly scheduled post:

I’ve got to be honest, I’m feeling pretty good about myself after Week 12. Last week, I wrote about how badly Donovan McNabb looked last week, and rumors he’s be benched for Kevin Kolb, and this weekend it happened. Last week, I predicted the Jets would upset the Titans, and on Sunday they did. I even had another good week with my picks. That's a lot to be thankful for right there. Of course, I did pick the Niners to win, and we all know how that turned out. But things could always be worse -- I could be a Lions fan.

THE LATER IT GETS, THE BETTER YOU LOOK: A few weeks ago, Boston fans were whining (I know, I was shocked too) that their season was over because Tom Brady was out and Matt Cassel sucked. Suddenly, they’re not only talking playoffs, but wondering if they’re not poised to make a run behind one of the hottest QB’s in the league -- some guy named Matt Cassel.

If Cassel was a stock, he’d be going in the opposite direction of all the other stocks -- up. Sunday, Cassel’s numbers reminded one of Brady’s: 30/43, 415 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT. While Randy Moss had a lot to do with those stats, Cassel has always thrown well on the run, is looking better in the pocket, and even hit on some deep passes (two 20+ yard TD), which has been his weakness. It was the second straight tough division game in which he’s thrown for 400+ yards. It’s also he first time any QB has had back-to-back 400 yard games in the NFL since 2000. Sobering reminder: That QB was Billy Volek.

The question of Cassel’s availability this off-season has been raised here. I’ve been taking the position that the dollar figures being thrown around are too high, and the smart move would be to pass, but if Cassel keeps lighting up teams (especially teams which shut him down only a couple of months ago), I may have to reconsider.

To keep Cassel from free agency, New England can always franchise him, but CBS's Charley Casserley reported today that would cost them $14+ million, which they can't afford -- even if Brady’s injury lingers. And they cannot, as some have asserted, tag him with the franchise label just so they can trade him to the highest bidder -- at least, not exactly. According to NBC’s Peter King NFL rules forbid that. But it’s not that you can’t trade a franchise player, it’s that you can’t franchise them with the intent of trading them. Intent is an awfully hard thing to prove, but Bill Belichick doesn’t seem like the type of guy to try to pull a fast one and skirt league rules.

However it breaks down, it appears two things will probably change for Matt Cassel in 2009: He will play for a new team, and his salary will grow exponentially.

MEET THE NEW BOSS, SAME AS THE OLD BOSS: In 2001, the Patriots were a rag-tag squad of scrappy underdogs when they stunned the Rams, a team looking to establish a dynasty, in the Super Bowl. It seemed like a major upset at the time, but history now remembers more as a changing of the guard -- the Patriots taking their right place on the throne as next dominant team.

Seven years later, the Pats were the team looking to further cement its dynasty, and the Giants were the rag-tag squad of scrappers who capped a crazy playoff run by shocking them. But will history remember it that way? Considering how the Giants are playing this season, I’d have to guess the answer is no.

New York looks every bit as dominant now as they did throughout last January -- maybe more so. And just like during their playoff run, they don’t seem to mind losing a key contributor. In the playoffs, rookie TE Kevin Boss stepped in for an injured Jeremy Shockey, and the offense didn’t miss a beat. On Sunday, they were without starting RB Brandon Jacobs (inactive) and WR Plaxico Burress (injured early on), and still put up 37 points on the road against a playoff team. Why? Because they always get understudies to step up. Whether it’s RB’s Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw, or WR’s Domenik Hixon, Amani Toomer and company, somebody always seems to make the play they need. 

Eli Manning has become a rock they can count on, as has the offensive line, and the pass rush (again, despite the loss of stars -- Strahan and Umenyiora). What’s more, if they are healthy come playoff time, these backups will have the experience and confidence from already playing important minutes. That, and the invaluable experience gained during last year’s run, I believe makes the Giants the odds-on favorite to repeat. 

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