After two years of waiting to see what happens, we will finally find out, once and for all, if LeBron James will choose to bring his act to Broadway, stay in Cleveland, or head to South Beach and joins fellow All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

But for Knicks fans, after enduring two lost seasons waiting for this summer to arrive, the question now, whether James comes or not, is if their team will make the playoffs next spring for the first time since 2005.

Let’s start with the scenario all Knicks fans are praying for, despite reports to the contrary overnight: that James joins Amar’e Stoudemire in Madison Square Garden next season.

Clearly adding the league’s most talented player, along with it’s most dynamic power forward, to Mike D’Antoni’s fast-paced offense would make the Knicks one of the league’s most exciting teams. But how much better would they be?

The way I chose to break it down was by using a stat called Estimated Wins Added, or EWA. In short, it’s the amount of wins a player would add to a team’s record if he was inserted into the lineup for a ‘replacement player.’ According to this stat, which can be found as part of John Hollinger’s player stats on ESPN.com, James led the league with 30.5, and Stoudemire was 10th with 15.8, good for a total of 46.3 wins.

Then you have to take into account the EWA’s from all of the players the Knicks stand to lose in free agency: David Lee (17.5), Al Harrington (5.8), Sergio Rodriguez (1.0), Tracy McGrady (0.5), Eddie House (-0.3) and Chris Duhon (-0.3), which comes to a total of 24.2 (and yes, that number means House and Duhon both played below the level of a ‘replacement player’). The combined EWA of those six players comes to 24.2.

So once you do the math – without factoring in any improvement from young players like Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Toney Douglas and Bill Walker, or any contributions from draft acquisitions Andy Rautins, Landry Fields, Jerome Jordan or any filler roster players (not including lifeless Eddy Curry) – the Knicks would end up with a gain of 22 wins.

That would improving their to 51-31, the franchise’s best since 1996-97. That kind of record would vault the Knicks into the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference, where they would likely be on roughly equal footing with the other top teams in the conference – the Magic, Celtics, Heat, Bulls and Hawks.

But what happens if the Knicks don’t get James? Obviously they wouldn’t have quite as much success, but the results may not be nearly as bad as some may believe.

Multiple sources reported last night that if James chose not to play for the Knicks, the first move would be to deal Lee in a sign-and-trade with the Warriors. The Knicks would likely get, in return, young, dynamic 6-foot-10 power forward Anthony Randolph, big man Ronny Turiaf, and possibly small forward Kelenna Azubuike.

At that point, the Knicks are also said to be the leaders to sign point guard Luke Ridnour, formerly of the Milwaukee Bucks, and shooting guard Mike Miller, who played with the Wizards last season.

The combination of Stoudemire (15.8), Ridnour (6.0), Azubuike (5.0, which came in 2008-09, as he spent much of last season injured), Miller (3.1), Randolph (2.7) and Turiaf (0.9) would result in a total EWA of 33.5.

After doing the math (including the same discounting of any improved performance from any of the team’s young players, which seems unlikely), the Knicks would improve by nine wins, to 38-44. Would that be good enough to make the playoffs?

In the Eastern Conference, possibly. Assuming James does go to the Heat, as reports suggest, the Magic, Heat, Celtics, Bulls, Hawks and Bucks would be all-but locks to make the playoffs, leaving two open spots available. But even with a record six games below .500, the Knicks could find their way into the playoffs.

If James leaves Cleveland, it’s hard to see the Cavaliers being anything but awful – they would have no player better than Stoudemire, and after Antawn Jamison, you could argue they won’t have a player better than Miller, Chandler or Gallinari. Toronto will be in a similar situation after losing Chris Bosh, and they should do better than the rest of the teams in the East – the Nets, Pacers, Wizards, 76ers and Pistons.

These moves would also leave the Knicks in great position for free agency next summer. Curry’s contract, combined with Azubuike’s expiring deal, would allow the Knicks to have enough room for a maximum salary deal next summer for Carmelo Anthony.

The other bright spot for Knicks fans, compared to what the team looked like in recent years, would be the makeup of the team’s roster. Instead of being full of bloated contracts for overpaid or disgruntled players like, for instance, Jalen Rose, Steve Francis, Al Harrington, Zach Randolph, Larry Hughes, Stephon Marbury, Jerome James, Tim Thomas and Jared Jeffries, the Knicks would instead have several young, talented pieces to build around.

Along with the team’s clear star in Stoudemire, the Knicks would have three promising young players in 22-year-old Gallinari, 23-year-old Chandler and 21-year-old Randolph, who was rated by many draft pundits as a top-five talent in the 2008 draft before slipping to the Warriors at No. 14. Knicks fans also would have some other interesting young players to watch like Walker, a former top prospect who will be 23 this season and seems to finally be over his knee problems, Rautins and Jordan that could potentially surprise.

Is it as good as getting James? Of course not. But if the Knicks are able to get Randolph and another piece or two from Golden State, along with a couple of solid free agent signings, it won’t be armageddon, either, and they’ll have a real shot to land Anthony or a similar star next summer.

So where does Gilbert goes from here? Frankly, he goes nowhere. Not because he wants to wait to hire a coach, but clearly because no one is going to coach the Cavs while LeBron James is still a free agent.

King James is the kingmaker in this equation, and, unfortunately for Gilbert, he isn’t making a decision anytime soon.

The only surprising thing about Izzo’s decision, in the end, was that it took him quite so long to make it. Anyone looking at this situation develop over the past two years or so should have known immediately that James wants to be a free agent. He clearly craves all of the attention and courtship that will obviously go into the ridiculous chase for his services next month.

So why did Izzo think it would be any different for him? Why did he think that James would pledge, to him, that he would be coming to the Cavaliers? Perhaps his hubris after years and years of unequaled success in East Lansing made Izzo think he had more stature than he actually does, at least within the NBA community.

But while no one questions the fact that Izzo is a terrific coach, nothing is going to keep James from his free agency recruiting frenzy, with the Bulls, Knicks, Nets, Clippers and Cavaliers all begging him to come to their respective teams. And, because of that, it’s just the latest injustice that James is sticking to his hometown team.

In the past few weeks, Cleveland has cleaned house, getting rid of both head coach Mike Brown and general manager Danny Ferry. While no one necessarily thought either move was the wrong way to go, they left Gilbert completely at the mercy of his free agent-to-be superstar.

It’s just further proof that the Cavaliers are hopeless unless James returns to the team. Even with James, even with the money that Gilbert is clearly willing to splash in order to bring in a big name coach, how many big-name coaches are going to be willing to settle down in Cleveland? You’re not getting Phil Jackson to coach this team, nor Mike Krzyzewski. Instead, you’re likely going to get another Mike Brown-type, or a John Calipari or a Byron Scott. And does anyone really think that any of these coaches will do a better job with James than Brown did?

Instead, with an aging roster and a further disgruntled superstar, the Cavaliers will likely continue to disappoint, year after year after year. It’s another reason why it seems more likely than ever that James will choose a different home, starting this fall.

And then no one will want to be in Cleveland at all – not the players, not the fans, and certainly not Dan Gilbert, who will be left with a very hefty list of salaries to go along with an even more hefty pile of losses.

For the past seven years, everyone in basketball has envied the position Gilbert has been in, having LeBron James on his roster. But now, with James on the market and unable to get a decent coach to accept a job, the times are different now.

After seven years of living the life, of having the world’s greatest player and biggest attraction, Dan Gilbert has nothing now except empty promises from his star, and sheer hope that after his recruiting tour ends, LeBron James decides there is no place like home.

But that still doesn’t justify the ridiculous $7,500 fine the league handed down to rookie sensation Brandon Jennings in the wake of a tweet he posted after a game last week against Portland.

Jennings, who is the early front-runner for Rookie of the Year, posted this on his Twitter account after his team, the Milwaukee Bucks, beat the Trail Blazers 108-101 in double-overtime: “Back to 500. Yess!!! ‘500’ means where doing good. Way to Play Hard Guys.”

Now Jennings clearly could use some lessons in grammar (as many people who use social networking sites could; for instance, spelling people’s names correctly in posts would be a good idea for people to do), but something like that is really deserving of a fine when the game is already over?

As I said, I think Stern was right in setting up a structure in order to keep players from tweeting at halftime and before games – it doesn’t exactly make the sport look good to have players tweeting from the locker room or bench. But to fine guys for being excited after a double-overtime win is a little over-the-top.

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The draw for the Final 16 of the UEFA Champions League was announced yesterday, and soccer fans should be delighted by the results. There are plenty of exciting matchups – as there always are at this stage of the competition – but two clearly stand above the rest: Manchester United vs. AC Milan, and Chelsea vs. Inter Milan.

While it normally would be an enticing matchup for fans, given the fact that they are two of the biggest clubs in the entire world, United-Milan will draw enormous interest because of the potential return of former Manchester hero David Beckham to Old Trafford for the first time since he was sold to Real Madrid in 2003.

It’s been a roller-coaster ride for Beckham since then, going from Madrid to the MLS’ Los Angeles Galaxy before his complicated loan deal last winter with Milan – and that doesn’t even begin to take into account his time with England’s national team, in which he resigned his captaincy following the 2006 World Cup in Germany and was dropped from the squad, only to now seemingly have a place in the team for next summer’s World Cup in South Africa.

Then you have Chelsea and Inter Milan, which will showcase the return of another legend, as former Chelsea coach Jose Mourinho will return to Stamford Bridge for the first time since he left after the 2006-07 season. Mourinho, who brought Chelsea its first title in England’s top division in 50 years with back-to-back titles in 2005 and ’06, left under sour circumstances after spending much of his time with the Blues clashing with the club’s billionaire Russian owner, Roman Abramovich.

Another factor that will bear watching in the matchup is Mourinho’s personal rivalry with Chelsea’s current boss, former AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti. The two men didn’t get along at all during their time coaching the other’s bitter rivals, and it must bother Mourinho to see the Italian getting plenty of plaudits for having Chelsea currently at the top of the table.

Either way, it should be a fascinating round of fixtures, which will take place in late February and early March, giving the European journalists plenty of time to gear up for what should be some fascinating games.

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Bob Knight, who never has been shy about giving his opinion on anything, proved that again Thursday at a fundraiser for the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.

This time, his fire was directed at Kentucky coach John Calipari, which Knight questioning how a man who has coached at two schools (Massachusetts and Memphis) – with both landing in NCAA probation after he left, and having to vacate Final Four appearances – could still be coaching.

“We’ve gotten into this situation where integrity is really lacking and that’s why I’m glad I’m not coaching,” Knight said. “You see we’ve got a coach at Kentucky who put two schools on probation and he’s still coaching. I really don’t understand that.”

It’s good to see someone questioning how someone like Calipari can continually get away with some of the things he’s managed to skate on in his past. But the bottom line is that college basketball, for the most part, has devolved into a dirty business, and no one knows how to work the sport’s back rooms like Coach Cal. With what surely will be a win today against Austin Peay, Calipari will break Adolph Rupp’s school record for wins to begin a coach’s career at the school, and is quickly getting Kentucky basketball back to its rightful place – at least in the eyes of its fans – at the top of the college basketball world.

The thing that will be different for Calipari at Kentucky is that everyone will be watching his every move. Memphis and UMass aren’t exactly North Carolina or Kansas; there are things you could possibly manage to slip under the radar at a place like UMass that you can’t at a place like Kentucky. And if he leaves Kentucky in the same manner he’s left Memphis and UMass, there almost certainly won’t be another job waiting for him – no matter how great a coach he has been.

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Urban Meyer has routinely done whatever was in his own best interest, rather than what is the right thing to do, as this incident involving star linebacker Brandon Spikes earlier this year proved. But with their loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship game, Meyer had a chance to send a statement by sitting defensive end Carlos Dunlap for the Florida’s matchup with Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl.

Dunlap, a big-time talent who could be one of the first 10 or 15 players off the board in this spring’s NFL Draft, was suspended for the SEC title game after getting a DUI in the week leading up to the game. But Meyer, instead of suspending Dunlap for the Sugar Bowl, as well, in an attempt to send some kind of message to his team, announced yesterday that he will, in fact, play.

Once again, all that matters is whether a guy has the talent to get the job done on the field; anything else that happens really is only a hinderance to the coaches, not a teachable moment. It’s all the more reason why the idea that a college football playoff would be detrimental to the “student-athletes” is laughable. Schools don’t care about their players – they just care about the product that they produce on the field.

College football programs don’t think at all about building better people; instead, their only goal is to build better teams.

But as the happiness faded, and once Theron unfortunately faded from view, the stark truth of the situation the U.S. found itself in was unavoidable. Without question, the first three games of next summer’s World Cup will be the most important 270 minutes of soccer in this country’s history.

Americans love a winner, and love rooting for the best. They love the Yankees for this reason. They love Tiger Woods for this reason (at least, they loved Tiger Woods until this past week for that reason; now they love him for giving them a daily thing to gossip about with their friends and at the water cooler and around the dinner table at night). They loved Michael Jordan for this reason. They love Tom Brady and the New England Patriots for this reason. They love Michael Phelps for this reason.

And this reason, in the end, is why soccer has struggled to catch on here in the United States. Our men’s national team, while competitive on the international level, is considered by no one to be one of the world’s top four or five teams (for instance: Brazil, Spain, England, Netherlands and Italy). Because of that, the American sporting public has never completely embraced the sport. Every four years, there is a surge of nationalistic feelings to support the team wearing the nation’s colors, but once the Americans are knocked out of the tournament, interest immediately wanes to nothing. Only adding to soccer’s troubles here is the fact that the sport is unequivocally the biggest thing in the rest of the world. Americans, as ego-centric as they can often be, have trouble recognizing something that’s bigger and better other places.

But all of that began to change this past summer, when the United States made their shock run to the final of the Confederations Cup, including a win over current European champion Spain, even taking a 2-0 lead over the greatest team in the world, Brazil, before eventually losing 3-2. However, the fact that, even in a minor tournament, the United States was able to compete with the best of the best lifted the sport to a higher level than it may have ever reached here, with the possible exception of Pele and the New York Cosmos back in the 1970s.

All of that factors into the importance of a good showing in next summer’s World Cup. It would have been one thing if the U.S. had been drawn into a group with, say, Brazil, Portugal and the Ivory Coast. At that point, a decent showing from the American team would have been enough to placate supporters back home, as well as to keep the interest in the sport moving in the right direction.

But now, a decent showing the first round isn’t enough for the Americans; anything less than a trip to the knockout phase of the tournament would be a tremendous disappointment to the general American sports fan. For the next six months, all anyone who hears anything about the World Cup in America will hear is that the U.S. is favored to advance from the group, along with England.

After decades of longing to be at the center of the American sporting landscape, soccer in the United States has its greatest platform ever. The combination of a favorable draw and the 24-hour coverage on ESPN’s family of networks will give the sport the kind of exposure it has never come close to receiving here.

Next summer, soccer will be front-and-center in the America, and everyone will be paying attention to how the U.S. fares in South Africa. If they make it to the knockout phase, they will continue the momentum they have gained in the past year, and the sport will continue to gain traction in this country in ways it never has before.

But if they fail, if they are unable to escape from a group in which they easily are the second-best team, their good showing in the Confederations Cup, the exposure the sport gets from being on ESPN, it will all be for naught. If they fail to advance, soccer will once again recede to the back edges of the sports consciousness in this country.

The choice is simple for the members of the U.S. national team: either lift their sport to new heights, or drop the ball on the biggest stage the sport has ever had in this country.

No pressure, boys.

But all of those moves were secondary to the Clippers winning the NBA’s Draft Lottery in May and getting the chance to select the clear top talent in June’s draft, Blake Griffin. The former Oklahoma power forward scored 22 points and grabbed 14 rebounds a game last season for the Sooners, and seemed like as close to a guarantee as one can find in the draft. Some went so far as to compare him to Karl Malone.

But, after all, this is the Clippers … so, like last offseason when they thought they were going to get both Davis and Elton Brand, only for Brand to ditch them and sign with the Philadelphia 76ers, everyone was waiting for the other shoe to drop. And it did this week, when we learned that Griffin is going to be out for at least six weeks with a fractured kneecap.

Bill Simmons has pushed the theory that the absolute perfect situation for LeBron James to go to isn’t with the Cavaliers, and it isn’t with the Knicks or Nets. Instead, it is with the Clippers. And, on paper, you can see why he would think that. Between Davis, Gordon and Griffin, among others, he would find himself with a wealth of talent around him for the next few seasons.

But LeBron is a smart guy. Why would he submit himself to the horrors that have befallen the Clippers over the past 30 years? In that span of time, they have had two winning seasons, and have had only one playoff series win. If LeBron wants to win championships, no matter the talent around him, there’s little chance he will choose to go to the Other Team in L.A.

No, the Clippers will have to find the way out of their permanent malaise without LeBron. And maybe they will be able to do it. There is a good number of NBA teams who would trade their three best players for Davis, Gordon and Griffin, and with another smart move or two, maybe the Clippers could even become a legitimate title contender.

But, first thing’s first. They need to get Griffin healthy. Then, they need to cross their fingers and hope that, finally, after what seems like a lifetime of failure, ineptitude and misery, the Clippers may finally be headed in the right direction.

Of course, those predictions will likely go up in smoke almost immediately after I post them, but so be it. Someone has to be willing to make them – I might as well put myself out there and endure the ridicule.

With that out of the way, its on to the predictions:

National League:

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Colorado Rockies:

The Phillies come into the playoffs with a few question marks – most importantly in their bullpen, which was the reason, ironically, that they won the World Series last year. The Rockies, on the other hand, have rocketed through the final weeks of the season – much like they did back in 2007 when they stormed to the World Series.

Despite losing talented starter Jorge De La Rosa for this series because of a groin injury, I like the Rockies to make it through this series. Despite the powerful Phillies lineup and the 1-2 punch of Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels, I think the Rockies have enough depth through their lineup and bullpen to find a way to win the series. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that they’re hot.

Winner: Rockies

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals:

The Dodgers have scuffled mightily down the stretch, and have as many questions as anyone at this point. Chad Billingsley has had a rough few weeks, and their offense has also had question marks up and down it.

The Cardinals, meanwhile, are armed with two great players anchoring their lineup in Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, and they have three excellent starting pitchers with Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter and Joel Piniero. The one Achilles heel that they have, however, is the back of their bullpen, where closer Ryan Franklin has been a train wreck lately.

I’m still going to take the Cardinals, though, because I don’t want to be on the other side of Pujols and that starting rotation.

Winner: Cardinals

American League:

Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels:

The Red Sox have seen their pitching staff round into form of late, with Jon Lester, Josh Beckett and Clay Buchholz pitching as well as any group in baseball. Combine that with a reinvigorated David Ortiz and midseason acquisition Victor Martinez, and the Red Sox are again ready to contend in October.

The Angels also have a strong team once again, with John Lackey and Ervin Santana anchoring their rotation and Cuban revelation Kendry Morales anchoring their lineup. They do, however, have a much weaker bullpen than in the past, starting with Brian Fuentes, their closer, who isn’t nearly as good as the departed Francisco Rodriguez, whether he had over 40 saves this season or not.

These two teams seem to meet every year in the playoffs in the division series, with the same results – the Red Sox knocking off the Angels. I think that’s going to happen again this year.

Winner: Red Sox

Minnesota Twins vs. New York Yankees

The Twins have stormed into the playoffs, winning 17 of their last 21 games (including last night’s win) – all without their second-best player, first baseman Justin Morneau. But they’ve gotten huge contributions from players like Jason Kubel, Denard Span and Michale Cuddyer that have helped carry them in Morneau’s absence, and, as always, the pitching staff is consistent.

The Yankees, on the other hand, are well rested and confident, as they probably should be. But there’s no doubt that they have some serious problems. Their starting pitching could be a mess – CC Sabathia has been more than shaky in the postseason, A.J. Burnett is already getting into his own head, as the Yankees revealed when they took one of their better hitters out of the lineup in Jorge Posada to allow Jose Molina to catch Burnett in Game Two, and Andy Pettitte is fighting a balky shoulder. Plus, the Yankees bullpen is very shaky outside of the great Mariano Rivera.

With all of that being said, it’s still probably the smart pick to take the Yankees. But I think the Twins, like several other wild card teams in years past, are riding a hot streak right now, and I think they can jump their past history against the Yankees and topple Goliath.

Winner: Twins

World Series pick: Cardinals over Red Sox

That process led me to decide I needed to create a list of all of the quarterbacks in the league, who I ranked into nine tiers. Here is my list, starting with No. 32 and progressing up to No. 1:

No. 32: JaMarcus Russell

No. 31: Josh Johnson

No. 30: Kyle Orton

This tier is made up of quarterbacks who would be backups if there was a competent quarterback on their team. Unfortunately for the Raiders and Buccaneers and Broncos, there are no better options on each of these teams to play instead. And no, just because the Broncos have won three games to start the year doesn’t mean Orton deserves to be higher up the list – it just means the Broncos have had one of the easiest schedules to start the year in the history of the league.

No. 29: Matthew Stafford

No. 28: Brady Quinn

No. 27: Jason Campbell

No. 26: Matt Cassel

No. 25: Mark Sanchez

No. 24: Trent Edwards

This group is made up of several players who all can be defined in the same context: we have no idea what they are going to be in the long run. Each of these guys has plenty of talent, and have proven it on different levels. Stafford has the prototypical quarterback’s body and arm and did enough at Georgia to merit being the No. 1 pick in April’s draft by the Lions, but clearly is a work in progress. Quinn shattered about every record he could while at Notre Dame, but hasn’t had much of a chance to play so far with the Browns.

Campbell engineered an undefeated season while at Auburn, but will likely have to produce this season or else he’s going to lose his job. And Cassel was celebrated last season for starting 15 games and nearly guiding the Patriots to the playoffs after not starting a game since high school, but now has moved on to the Chiefs and has to prove he’s a legitimate QB when throwing to guys who aren’t named Randy Moss and Wes Welker. Then there is Sanchez, who has gotten off to a fantastic start to his professional career but is going to have to do it for a little longer than three games to prove to me that he’s a guy who can be called “Sanchize”.

Edwards has gotten off to a nice start this season, replicating his start from last year. But he also has suffered through prolonged stretches where he has struggled, and he failed to come up big in a key spot in Week One, when he failed to get the Bills in position to win the game against the Patriots when he was given the ball with 50 seconds left and two timeouts remaining, down one.

No. 23: Shaun Hill

No. 22: David Gerrard
No. 21: Kerry Collins

No. 20: Chad Pennington

These guys are the definition of game-managers – guys who make few mistakes that cost their teams ball games, but also aren’t likely to give you 350 yards and three touchdown passes. Hill has settled in nicely as the 49ers quarterback, proving to be just the kind of guy coach Mike Singletary is looking for: one who isn’t going to have a problem handing the ball to Frank Gore and staying out of the spotlight. Garrard has developed into a similar player in Jacksonville, though more dangerous because of his scrambling ability. He may have the potential to be higher on this list, but doesn’t show it because the Jaguars have been unable to surround him with any talent.

Collins has had a surprisingly good career, when you consider all of the things that  have befallen him over the years since he was drafted by the Carolina Panthers. That said, he’s now more of a caretaker for the Titans than anything else. Then you have the prototypical game manager in Pennington, who arguably is the most accurate passer in the league but lacks the true arm strength to give defenses problems past about 20 yards downfield.

No. 19: Marc Bulger

No. 18: Jake Delhomme

No. 17: Matt Hasselbeck

No. 16: Brett Favre

No. 15: Matt Schaub

No. 14: Carson Palmer

These guys are defined by two things: the fact that they have proven to be talented quarterbacks in the NFL, and the fact that they have at least one significant thing holding them back from advancing to the next level. For many of the quarterbacks on this list, that thing is injuries. For Bulger, that would be one thing, with the other being a lack of weapons. Bulger has constantly found himself injured over the past few seasons as the Rams have sputtered, but has also seen the likes of Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt grow old and leave as the “Greatest Show on Turf” has been replaced by one of the most bland offenses in the NFL – at least outside of running back Steven Jackson.

For Jake Delhomme, it’s not injuries but ineffectiveness that has caused his drop down this list. At times last season he could have been considered one of the 10 best quarterbacks in the league, but following his meltdown against the Cardinals in the playoffs last year, combined with an equally big one against the Eagles in Week One, and one has to wonder whether the Panthers’ made a huge mistake in signing him to a big contract extension in the offseason.

It’s a little ironic that Hasselbeck and his former mentor in Green Bay, Favre, are next to each other on this list. For Hasselbeck, the reason is simply that he can’t stay on the field. When healthy he’s one of the more productive quarterbacks in the league. As for Favre, after his multiple retirements he’s too much of a question mark to be trusted completely – though he’s doing his best to win people over with heroics like yesterday, when his pass to Greg Lewis in the back of the end zone handed the Vikings a thrilling 24-20 come-from-behind victory.

Schaub and Palmer both have the potential to be operating at the helm of high-impact offenses in Houston and Cincinnati, respectively, but both have struggled to be consistent due to injury. Schaub has been brittle ever since he came to Houston from the Falcons, but has shown plenty of flashes of brilliance to give the Texans and their fans hope he could turn into something down the road. As for Palmer, he’s never been the same since his horrific knee injury against the Steelers in the 2006 playoffs. He’s gotten off to a decent start this season, including a great game in Green Bay last week, and could be poised to make a big leap up lists like this if he can regain his old form.

No. 13: Jay Cutler

No. 12: Tony Romo

No. 11: Aaron Rodgers

This group has the potential to wildly fluctuate either up or down this list in the coming weeks, months and years. All of these guys have the potential to put up 350 yards and three touchdowns or 150 yards and three picks in any game, as Romo has done in the first two weeks of the season.

Cutler, Romo and Rodgers couldn’t be more alike; they each have huge arms, they each have both great games and awful games, and they each have zero playoff wins. Cutler has rebounded from a disastrous opening game with the Bears against Rodgers and the Packers to lead Chicago to two straight late-game comeback victories against the Steelers and Seahawks. Although Rodgers and the Packers struggled last week against Cincinnati, he and the Packers beat an awful Rams team this week to get to 2-1 heading into a kind of noteworthy game this week against some guy named Favre in Minnesota.

No. 10: Joe Flacco

No. 9: Matt Ryan

These two may have only played in the league one season, but both have clearly proven they have something special in them. Ryan took over the Falcons last year, a team totally decimated by the aftermath of both Michael Vick’s dog-fighting charges and the destruction caused by the short-lived Bobby Petrino Era, and led Atlanta to a shocking playoff berth as a rookie. Flacco, meanwhile, not only helped lead the Ravens to the playoffs last season – also as a rookie – but he won two road playoff games and nearly led Baltimore to the Super Bowl.

They both should be near the top of this list for a long time, and it’d come as a surprise to no one if they have at least a Super Bowl each before their careers are over.

No. 8: Donovan McNabb

No. 7: Kurt Warner

No. 6: Eli Manning

No. 5: Philip Rivers

This is a fascinating list. First you have McNabb, a player who has been criticized by everyone under the sun, but who has managed to be effective for a long time, and has reached five different NFC Championship Games and one Super Bowl. With the team the Eagles have assembled this season, one that’s expected to be in the playoffs, McNabb could easily make it six this year. Along a similar line is Warner, who has had two several-year stretches where he has been one of the best quarterbacks in the league. With three Super Bowl appearances, an MVP and a Super Bowl ring, it’s hard to argue that Warner isn’t a Hall of Famer. That, and the fact that he can still go out and throw 24-for-26 in a game like he did against the Jaguars last week, make Warner a special case.

Then you have the most controversial player on this list, Eli Manning. Being in New York, there are plenty of people who question just how good he is, and there are times when you see him bounce a pass and turn and trudge to the sidelines with his shoulders slumped and a bizarre look on his face and wonder how he is a NFL quarterback. But, at the same time, if you needed a score to win a game with two minutes left, there are few other quarterbacks I would rather have under center than him.

In another ironic twist, the player who was traded for Manning in the 20o4 draft, Philip Rivers, comes in just ahead of him on this list. While Rivers has yet to win a Super Bowl, let alone play in one, he has proven he has one of the best arms in the league, and has become the focal point of San Diego’s high-powered offense attack as LaDanian Tomlinson heads quickly towards the end of his career.

No. 4: Ben Roethlisberger

No. 3: Drew Brees

Roethlisberger, in his short time in the league, has won as much or more than any other quarterback in the NFL. He already has claimed two Super Bowl titles, and has won more games over the past six years than any other QB. He may not always end up with the flashiest numbers, but there are few players I’d prefer to have the ball in their hands if I needed a touchdown to win the game.

As for Brees, he has taken his game to a level much higher than anyone ever expected he could since leaving San Diego for New Orleans a few years ago, and becoming united with head coach and offensive guru Sean Payton. The Saints, despite having only one real threat at wide receiver (Marques Colston) and an inconsistent running game, have become the 2000’s version of the Chargers’ “Air Coryell” offense of the 80’s, with Brees doing a very good imitation of Hall of Famer Dan Fouts.

No. 2: Tom Brady

No. 1: Peyton Manning

For years these two have had a stranglehold on the top two spots on this list, and for good reason. Brady and Manning have both been the class of the league throughout this decade, have won a combined four Super Bowl titles and three MVP awards.

In the end, I’d say the reason to place Manning at the top comes down to the fact that he hasn’t missed a game this decade. While Brady’s injury last year was a fluke, with Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard rolling into his knee in the season’s opening game, it did cause him to miss the rest of the season, and it’s hard to say when he’s going to be back to his old self – if he ever will.

But you can sum up Manning and his ability from the last two weeks. The Colts had the ball for less than 15 minutes last week against the Dolphins, yet Manning found a way to score enough points – including three drives of less than a minute – to hand his team a victory despite having the ball less than any team has ever had in a win. Then, in last night’s game against the Cardinals, Manning was equally efficient, driving down the field time after time as they ended up bludgeoning Arizona, in a game that was both on the road and at the end of a short week.

It just seems that Manning always finds a way to get the job done. And, in the truest sense of this list, if you need one of these players to drive you down the field as the clock was winding down, who else would you rather have than him? I can’t think of a single person. And because of that, he’s the one who tops this list.

That was the case, of course, until the stunning report from Sports Illustrated that Alex Rodriguez – until that point the “clean” pursuer of the all-time home run mark that Barry Bonds currently holds – was on the list, and had used performance-enhancing drugs. In the months that have followed, further leaks have come from that list. First was Sammy Sosa, who, given his Popeye-like arms with the Cubs and ridiculous home run totals, came as little surprise to many. But then a bigger shock to the system came today, when the two biggest characters on the 2004 Boston Red Sox, David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez, were said to be on the list in a report by the New York Times.

This one hurts for baseball. Yankees fans may be rejoicing (and almost certainly are) in the misery of Red Sox Nation today, but Ortiz and Ramirez were two of the main figures (along with Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling) in one of the great dramas in the history of the sport. Boston’s epic comeback from down 3-0 in the 2004 American League Championship Series and down in the bottom of the ninth to Mariano Rivera in Game 4 to winning that game and the next seven to win their first World Series in 86 years is one of the greatest things I’ve had an opportunity to witness in my time as a sports fan.

But now that moment, like the home run chase between Sosa and Mark McGwire back in 1998 or Barry Bonds hitting No. 756 to pass Hank Aaron or Rodriguez hitting No. 500, has been tainted in an irreparable way by the ever-increasing number of players who have tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. It is yet another instance in which baseball is doing a lousy job of public relations – another thing that has never been its strongest suit.

In this instance, however, Bud Selig and new union head Michael Weiner need to come together and do the thing that is the best for all parties involved – the fans, the players, the owners and the game itself. All 104 names on that list need to be out in the public, and the sooner the better.

Nothing has killed baseball more over the past several years than the slow drip of names being leaked out as steroid users. From Bonds to Roger Clemens to Rodriguez to Ramirez and now Ortiz, baseball has been continually rocked as some of its most famous names have been singled out as cheaters. It might be painful for the sport to let these names out all at once and let people have a field day over them, but I can’t imagine it would be worse than letting a couple names leak out here and there over and over and over again in the coming days, weeks, months and years.

You, I and everyone else who follows the sport knows that those names are going to keep flowing out of that list until they all are in the public. It has to be better for everyone involved to rip the scab off completely and quickly, and let the wounds begin to heal. With the stronger testing and punishments that exist in the game today, combined with getting these 104 names out there and out of the way, there is hope that we could finally begin to move on from this stain on our National Pastime.

But until those names are out there, baseball fans will continue to experience days like today, as heroes and legends fall one by one to the wayside, leaving only shame where there was once adulation. That’s the way it’s been in baseball for some time now. Here’s hoping, for once, baseball can figure out how to get out of its own way.

I have no problem with his teammates saying he couldn’t have been a better friend and teammate throughout his career.

I have no problem with people saying he’s one of the most influential and important athletes from the past 20 years, both because of his impact on both the quarterback position as well as being successful coming from little Alcorn State, one of the Historically Black Colleges and Universities, or HBCU’s.

But what I have a problem with, and what I’ve had a problem with over the past few days in the wake of his tragic death Saturday, is repeatedly hearing just how great a human being Steve McNair was. Amidst all of the talk of McNair’s great qualities as a human being over the past few days, one incredibly important fact has been almost totally erased from the dialogue.

If Steve McNair had been with his wife and kids on July 4th, like countless other fathers were throughout the country, he would almost certainly be alive right now.

This fact, somehow, seems to have been totally forgotten within the voluminous coverage of McNair’s good works and qualities as a loving father and husband. But the fact of the matter is that McNair, by all accounts, had been running around with the woman found dead with him, Sahel Kazemi, for months. He co-owned a Cadillac Escalade with her, which she had been arrested for Driving Under the Influence in just two days before their deaths with him in the passenger seat.

In the wake of his death, his wife – and not to mention the mother of his four kids – had said that she hadn’t heard from him “for a couple of days”, despite the fact that a major holiday was coming up. Not too long ago, people were wondering what was happening with South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford when his wife and kids didn’t seem to know where he was on Father’s Day weekend.

I think we all know how that story has turned out. If somehow you don’t, you can always click here. People have destroyed Sanford in the days and weeks following the revelations, and rightly so. But because McNair had a truly unfortunate fate befall him this past weekend, no such calls have been made about him.

Is that right? Is it fair? How can McNair’s wife and children, as grief stricken as they must be, feel about their husband and father right now? Can they really go along with what Eddie George and others have said about him – that he is the greatest human being they have ever known? Somehow, despite that grief, I can’t imagine that is the answer that they would give right now.

But that didn’t stop Titans head coach Jeff Fisher from asking everyone to forget about how McNair had been killed – with, and possibly by, his mistress on a holiday instead of being with his family.

“My hope is that we can get past the circumstances and those go, OK, and dwell and stay focused on the type of player and person that he was,” Fisher said at a news conference Monday. McNair’s former left tackle, Brad Hopkins, more forcefully fought back at any coverage that put his friend in a negative light.

“It’s so attention getting, here now it’s not just a story about a man who’s been shot,” he said. “It’s now the saga, the soap opera which has lead up to his death. And yeah, that sounds sexy and that’s attractive and everybody wants to be a part of that, just finding out more and more dirt.”

Now I can understand what George, Fisher and Hopkins are all going through. I can understand why they would say the things they are saying about their friend and former teammate, how they would try and protect and defend his legacy as someone who was close to them. I have had friends die tragically, and I’m sure the vast majority of people who read this will have had that happen as well.

But that doesn’t change the facts in this case, or change the circumstances that led to McNair’s tragic death – and it truly was tragic. Steve McNair being a borderline Hall of Fame quarterback doesn’t give people, as Hopkins alleged, the right to simply try and dig up as much dirt as possible about him in the wake of his death. But whether Steve McNair was a borderline Hall of Fame quarterback or a doctor, the simple truth remains.

If Steve McNair had been with his family on July 4th, he’d be alive today. In the wake of his death, that’s one fact that should be impossible to ignore.