Recently, the New York Jets traded draft picks with the San Diego Chargers for their extremely talented cornerback, Antonio Cromartie. One of the reasons San Diego parted ways with Cromartie was because of his off-the-field issues.

In case you hadn't heard, let me refresh your memory. He has, get this, seven children from six different women in five different states. I don't think I've BEEN to five different states in my life. This guy has planted his seed in five. Not to mention, he's only 25 years old. And currently, he's been named in five paternity suits in the past two years. In short, he's denying at least five of his children. Classy.

When the Jets acquired Cromartie, they fronted him $500,000 to take care of said suits.

So the question remains, would you sacrifice the the "character" of your team in an effort to improve on the field? Now granted, Cromartie did not commit a crime (yet) and isn't exactly a bad guy. He's just stupid. But where do you draw the line as to who you will get to acquire talent?

Listening to sports talk radio in New York, it seems that Jet fans are split 50-50 regarding the trade. On the one hand, some believe that getting Cromartie vastly improves the Jets secondary and he bookends nicely with All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis (no children). Although they don't condone his behavior, talent is talent and it shouldn't be a problem if it doesn't affect his performance.

The opposition feels much differently. They feel that the Jets are a class organization and bringing on Cromartie compromises the character of the franchise and his talent does not make up for that.

Each side makes fine points. But personally, I agree with the former. Look, it's clear that Mr. Cromartie has a vendetta against all types of birth control and has become the deadbeat dad version of Johnny Appleseed, but many have done far worse. The Jets acquired him to cover wide receivers, not mentor inner-city kids. It's not as if his children take up seven more roster spots.

People need to stop acting holier-than-thou when it comes to their favorite teams. In the end, Cromartie is just an idiot. Someone who didn't think past his dick's needs. But just remember this, if he picks off Tom Brady in Week Whatever to win the game, all will be forgiven. Fans care about wins. Not character.

HEY EVERYBODY! HERE COMES THE CHOO-CHOO!

JUST LOOK AT IT!

We've seen something similar to this in the McGriddle by McDonalds. It's essentially the same sandwich but with pancakes instead of waffles.

I myself try to start every morning with two eggs with pepper on a whole wheat roll with a medium coffee (milk, two sugars). And honestly, I consider THAT a bit indulgent. I would really like to meet the man or woman who starts their day with a Waffle Breakfast Sandwich or McGriddle. Isn't it all downhill for them after polishing off one of them? It would be for me. Nothing like starting your day with a 1,200 calorie heart attack.

I weep for the animals used in the making of these sandwiches. Even the cows used to make the cheese.

How do people come to the conclusion that they even want one of those? "Hmm, I kind of want eggs. But waffles sound good too. I really haven't had bacon in a while. And forks have become too much work. I would eat all of that if I could fit it in my hand". Thank you, Waffle Breakfast Sandwich!

/grabs keys. Heads over to Dunkin' Donuts.

It's been a real long while since I've discussed the Yankees at all. To be honest, I'm still reveling in their championship. Still feels good. So as much as I want the 2010 season to begin, I know on April 4th at 8:00, the Yankees will automatically become "defending" World Series Champions. And that's a lot of pressure. Especially for me. Because I take on all of the emotional support for the team while contributing nothing to the outcome of games. It's an uneasy position to be in.

I've stated this before, but when I write about the Yankees, my thoughts become jumbled and I can barely form proper sentences. That's why I reserve the right to write in bullet points so this post doesn't appear like it came from the diary of a psychopath. I'll do my best to leave blatant homerism out of this, but I can't promise anything.

• Today, Joba Chamberlain allowed five runs, three hits, and three walks in 1.1 innings. Mmmmm, don't you just love it? I certainly do. It's so great that he's struggling. You know why? Because he shouldn't be a starter! Not now! Not ever! Can the Yankees please stop with this charade? Phil Hughes is the fifth starter. Joba is the set-up guy. Done! Finished! Let's go get a drink! I hope Joba never gets out of the first inning at all this month. He should be in the bullpen where he belongs. A place where he can properly gather all his rage and take it out in the form of chin-high fastballs and knee-buckling sliders. Chamberlain doesn't have the mental make-up to start games. Hughes, on the other hand, does. Very much so actually. He's calm, cool, smart, and patient. Those attributes don't necessarily apply to Joba. It's a no-brainer Yankees. Do the right thing.
• During the off-season, I was undecided on whether or not I wanted Johnny Damon to sign a new contract with the Yankees. I like to root to for the Yankees under the illusion that they play within the confines of some sort of budget. So when Damon and Boras were asking for 4 years, I scoffed. "Heck no!", I said. Then the Yankees signed Nick Johnson to DH and probably bat second. Damon and Boras realized there were no takers, and Johnny inevitable struck a 1-year deal with the Tigers. Up until today, I was indifferent. I like Nick Johnson. I think he's a great hitter. Works pitchers to death and gets on base, bottomline. That's when he's healthy. So here we are 3 days into Spring Training and Nick Johnson is sitting with a bad back. Johnny? Where are you? Come back! Please, come back! Ugh, did Johnson have a bad back all off-season? Nope. Apparently he wore spikes on the artificial turf patch that covers the dirt in the batter's box and subsequently hurt it. Johnny Damon may be a little simple, but he's not that stupid, or injury prone. I bet Damon has a huge year for Detroit and rubs it in our face. Can't wait.

I'll update with these types of posts as Spring Training continues. The regular season can't come soon enough.

That all being said, I thought we did a half-way decent job. And I had some fun. As I stated in an earlier post, I said I was to begin a podcasting series with my friend Luigi. Anyway, we decided that tonight would be our first show. In Episode 1, we discuss an array of topics, ranging from the gym, the Olympics, drinking, and things of that nature (whatever that means).

I tried not to curse, or mention names, or get too specific. But mistakes were made. I greatly underestimated how tough it is to speak endlessly for an extended period of time. I only have so many thoughts and I usually like to form them in my head and write them down. Avoiding awkward pauses was a lot difficult than I expected, even with the editing.

It gets pretty boring at times, I'll admit it. Luigi and I tried our best to keep it fresh and interesting. Hopefully it didn't boil down to 90% inside jokes. And even though we're friends, our interests don't necessarily overlap, so we end up explaining a lot to each other.

The name of the podcast is "Let it Marinate", because I said "Let it Marinate" once and thought that was enough of a reason to make it the name. Satisfied?

I couldn't embed it on this site due to Wordpress's crappy file size limit, so I had to upload it to my Tumblr and just give you the link here. Here it is: Let it Marinate: Episode 1

And remember, take it with a grain of salt. It's a beginner's attempt at something. It's never as good as it will be. Enjoy.

Boy, isn't this just a shameless attempt to increase my traffic? Why yes, yes it is. Because this is hardly news.

Erin Andrews of ESPN and peep-hole video fame has been included in the lineup for the upcoming season of "Dancing With The Stars". Personally, I have never watched this show. I have better things to do. Like see how fast I can twiddle my thumbs or how intently I can stare at a wall. However this season, I may actually tune in. Because she's fun to look at. And if I watch, I'll review each episode and then write posts about it. The end being an insane jump in my page views and overall traffic.

But seriously, earlier today I saw that my unique visitors was jumping exponentially, so I decided to do some investigating. And after analyzing my StatPress, I realized that all of these views were being directed via "Erin Andrews" Google searches and image referrals. All because of the news that she was to be on "Dancing With The Stars". I really should just put the "Erin Andrews Peephole Video" tag on every single one of my posts. I'd get more hits than Google.

I'm not exactly sure how many times I've written about Stephen Curry. But I think it's about one. One time. I guess one time makes me important enough to be his agent.

I received this e-mail today. In it, a woman named Amanda claims to have found Stephen Curry's ATM Card outside of a night club in San Francisco. According to her she has already contacted the bank and is now informing me, his agent.

Of course this could all be a joke, but it's just too specific. I'm sure Stephen has already taken the proper steps to remedy the situation. But it was worth a funny post.

February is over! Thank God. I'm really thinking about starting a petition to eliminate the month entirely. Pretty certain I would get about 6 billion signatures. Can't we just switch to an 11-month calendar? Or can't I just be put in a coma from February 1st to the 28th? I'd sign off on that. Anyway, here is a terrific song to ring in the ending days of Winter and beginning days of Spring. It's "Amber" by 311.