He tried everything but he'd run out of tricks.

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. They probably say that simply to avoid application of copyright and plagiarism laws. Still, I'll take compliments wherever I can get them.

That's why I'm not upset that ESPN has decided to follow my lead and start tracking the football teams with the best chance to go 0-16; my readers know that for years, I've not only watched NFL football and hoped that a team would go 0-for-Everything, but that I started then writing about why it would be such a good thing-- more than a year ago.

ESPN knows a good idea when they see one -- a year later. That's why I was... flattered to see that they'd decided to... sincerely flatter me with their poll yesterday, as shown at the right.

So -- my opinions on TBOE are Righter Than Yours -- and my opinions on Nonsportsmanlike Conduct! are righter, and a year ahead of, ESPN's.

If you want to have a great time reading about sports, if you like funny and thoughtful sports articles, read Nonsportsmanlike Conduct! (Or, you could wait a year and read the same thing on ESPN.)