FOOTBALL

In the NFL, it was Monday Night Football between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals.  The Steelers have been playing extremely well this season, but are still somewhat enigmatic.  Last week, they lost to the Saints in a game they were expected to win.  They traveled to Cincy hoping to grab a win and get back on track.  Cincy, on the other hand, wanted nothing more than to turn their season around with an upset win over the Steelers.  Well, Pittsburgh got out to a big lead behind a solid rushing performance from Rashard Mendenhall.  They led 27-7 in the fourth quarter and the game appeared to be over.  But, Bengals QB Carson Palmer caught fire and led the Bengals to two quick scores.  He even put them in a position to win the game, as they had the ball in the red zone with just under a minute to play.  However, the Steelers defense was just too strong and they stopped the Bengals when it counted most.  Tough break, Cincy.  Pittsburgh 27, Cincinnati 21.

Elsewhere in the NFL, as predicted by many, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones fired coach Wade Phillips today.  The Cowboys are a horrendous 1-7, and in Dallas, that is simply not acceptable.  A smaller team like Jacksonville, Kansas City, or Detroit might wait till the end of the season to fire a coach, but in Dallas, they want solutions NOW.  If all the problems can be scapegoated on Wade Phillips, then it is Phillips that must go.  Jones just build a multi-billion dollar stadium, and NEEDS to fill those seats as much as possible.  A Super Bowl competitive Cowboys team is a must, and Phillips just wasn’t cutting it.  Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett will take over for now, but expect a major move in the off-season — potentially ex-Steelers coach Bill Cowher.

Finally, in college football, a major development in the investigation of Auburn superstar quarterback Cam Newton.  Newton was said to have possibly taken money to play at Auburn, and now that people are digging into his history, they’re finding out a whole bunch of stuff.  It appears that Newton was caught cheating 3 times while at the University of Florida.  Newton was at Florida 2 years before transferring to a community college in Texas.  While at Florida, Newton reportedly put his name on another student’s paper (without him knowing).  Later, when Newton was given a second chance, he turned in a paper that was found to be purchased off the internet.  He was kicked out of Florida for buying a computer that was reported stolen.  Now he’s at Auburn leading the Tigers to a National Championship, but these recent findings will surely affect the minds of Heisman voters.