SNY.tv: Online Home of All Things Sports

Boy, was Plaxico Burress holding court. He was seated at a table by himself and there was a major scrum just to get your microphone near his mouth. And understand this, Plax isn't a loud speaker. His audio level is somewhere between a soft whisper and a butterfly landing on a cotton ball. He may have a lot to say, but he doesn't do it loudly. Today the focus was on the prediction he gave of the Giants beating the Patriots 23-17. Tom Brady apparently took exception to the fact Burress was only giving the top-ranked offense in the NFL 17 points in this game. Burress stuck by his prediction, so I guess it's on the Giants defense to answer the bell.

I love listening to the questions being asked here -- from Steve Spagnuolo remembering days as coach at UCONN to David Deihl giving us the finer points of sustaining blocks. Ahmad Bradshaw was spent and slumped over his chair dreading the next question. He may have hit his rookie wall with the media. But he had to be there for 45 minutes because every player must be made available to the media.

That doesn't mean everyone is being interviewed; practice squad players Kay-Jay Harris, Na' Shan Goddard, Brandon Torrey and Marcus Freeman spent the 45 minutes playing spades. And it might not have been a fair game. While one reporter was distracting Goddard with an interview about the game, Torrey stacked the deck. It's a good thing we're in Phoenix and not Tombstone, Arizona.

The second half of the day was spent at a place called Radio Row. It's in the Phoenix Convention Center and where all the radio stations from around the nation broadcast their shows. Former players like Barry Sanders and Shannon Sharpe were there bouncing from table to table talking about the Super Bowl. I saw a guy who used to intern with us at CNN by the name of Dorsey Levens. I guess the internship paid off; he's now a broadcaster. I was desperately trying to figure out why Miss Nevada was there and how I could turn an interview with her into a sports conversation. Alas, I think the only connection is asking her what the latest line is in her home state, and we already have Al Demarco!

Larry Johnson was there in an eclectic outfit that would fit right in at 49 Grove or Little Branch or any other hipster bar in the city: three-piece grey suit and tie up top with a floral pocket square, black denim jeans and Doc Martens boots. The Jets' fashion guru, Chris Baker, would be jealous.

Madden '08 was set up there for anyone to play. I challenged Shannon Sharpe, but I think he heard about my drubbing of Eric Dickerson in that game at Times Square. He respectfully declined.

I'll be returning to Radio Row again tomorrow to hear what Maurice Jones-Drew thinks of the Giants running back tandem. We'll also try to nail down Todd Heap on any Grey Reugamer stories (they played together here at Arizona State). And maybe, just maybe we'll get the latest prop picks from Miss Nevada. A picture will be included.