Happy Labor Day,everybody!

Speaking of labor,The NFL needs to settle it’s differences with it’s officials now.

I don’t think it is a good idea to start the season this coming Wednesday with replacement officials. I’ve seen how bad they have been and I’ve heard about how badly the players miss them and want them back,claiming it is a safety issue. Roger Goodell has made a name for himself as the “safety commissioner” and if he wants to continue being the voice for safety in the violent game that football is then something should be done to get the officials a new deal.

While I agree that it is to an extent a safety issue having officials who have never done the job at that level continuing to do so, I don’t think NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith should be threatening a strike if they don’t come back. Please,that’s too far. No wonder I don’t like Smith in that job, he just tries to start too much trouble when it isn’t necessary to do so. I hope the players vote him out the next time around and put someone else in that job,but that’s another tale for another time.

The Jacksonville Jaguars need to figure out what to do with Maurice Jones-Drew and they need to do it fast. The star tailback, 27, led the league in rushing last season and held out of training camp in search of a new deal until Sunday. He has two years left on a five year, $31 million deal.

Last month, owner Shad Khan opened up the possibility of trading Jones-Drew and are not open to any talks of a new deal with him. I understand the team isn’t crazy about giving a tailback a new contract when his prime may not be lasting very long and that they also not made the postseason in his time as a starter, but if you’re not going to give him a new deal, the least you can do is get some value back for him. There are a lot of teams who would be lucky to have him if Jacksonville doesn’t,but the Jaguars do need him because the team doesn’t have that much talent as it is, he is pretty much their whole offense at this point.

If you ask me, he may pull a DeSean Jackson and under-perform all season. It worked for Jackson, just sayin…

What the hell is Allen Pinkett saying?

On Wednesday the former Notre Dame tailback and current color commentator for the team told a Chicago radio station that there is nothing wrong with having “criminals” on Notre Dame’s roster.

“I’ve always felt like, to have a successful team, you’ve got to have a few bad citizens on the team,” said Pinkett , “That’s how Ohio State used to win all the time. They would have two or three guys that were criminals and that just adds to the chemistry of the team. So I think Notre Dame is growing because maybe they have some guys that are doing something worthy of a suspension, which creates edge on the football team.”

Really, Mr. Pinkett? Really? That’s what gives a team an edge,some thugs? You have to be kidding me. That may be how some of us who are old enough know the University of Miami to be and have been in the past, but that’s not how I want to know Notre Dame, or any school for that matter. Why would anyone involved with any school or any team for that matter encourage something like that?

This is something nobody should encourage whether you’re Notre Dame, Miami, or whoever. It makes nobody look good. I’m sure these college presidents and athletic directors feel the same way.

Can the New York Giants please stop playing the New England Patriots,please?

I am sick of my team having to play them. They can never beat them. They can’t beat them in the Super Bowl or the regular season or even an exhibition game that doesn’t matter. This is just a team that they can never beat. The Giants are the Patriots’ kryptonite. I can almost bet that if these two teams played each other 16 times all year, the Giants would probably win every game.

If these two teams ever meet in the Super Bowl, I’m not even going to watch because I know who will win,and chances are it’s not the team in red,white,and blue that I root for. Up yours,Eli Manning!

Speaking of my beloved Pats, their beloved owner Robert Kraft has come out and said that Tom Brady is better than Joe Montana. Whoa! Bob, really?

Look, I love Tom Brady,in my four eyes he can’t do any wrong. He won three Super Bowls for my favorite team and he’s just a cool guy. But better than Montana? I don’t think so. Montana won four Super Bowls and never lost one. Brady has lost two. And I know the greatest quarterback debate rages on between different guys (Montana, Elway, Marino, Aikman, etc.) but for my money Joe Montana is the greatest quarterback who ever played the game.

I’d love to say Brady is the best and maybe if he wins one more Super Bowl I won’t hesitate to say so,but I know what Montana did during his career and he still deserves to be called that by me.

I know Bob Kraft has a very big affection for Brady and thinks of him as a son and that’s why he said it. I just don’t agree quite yet.

Proof that the Giants maybe should decide on a permanent road uniform happened last week against Houston. Marco Scutaro, who just joined the team last month, decided to change jerseys during the game due to the humidity that resides in Texas during the summer. However, instead of the normal one that reads San Francisco on the front, he grabbed the Sunday alternate with the interlocking SF on the left side of the jersey.

“I didn’t notice till I was in the dugout, but the pitcher (Vogelsong) was ready,” Scutaro said. “I thought, `Well, it’ll be one inning. Hopefully nobody will notice.’ ”

While I give Scutaro a pass for the gaffe, I need to give the Giants an ultimatum, pick a road uniform and stick with it. I like both of them but I prefer the usual San Francisco scripted one because it’s in line with all the other uniforms, just take the piping off of it. It’s a little too busy.

Can we stop having these top schools playing colleges that aren’t so elite the first week of the year?

Hawaii playing USC, Arkansas playing Jacksonville State, and Oklahoma State playing Savannah State are all unnecessary for Week One if you ask me. I know these schools that play these big teams get a large paycheck for doing so, but is it worth it to the players of Savannah State when they get embarrassed by Oklahoma State 84-0. That’s right, 84-0 is what Shannon Sharpe’s alma mater lost by on Saturday to the Cowboys of Oklahoma State.

These schools almost never have a chance playing these schools on the first week of the season, it’s fine if you want to play them and get a big payday out of it,but do some of us a favor and make it a game further down in the season or a game that doesn’t count in the standings so not to embarrass these kids like that.

By the way, you can catch me and my friend DJ Mappquest on Sports Madness, this Tuesday from 6-7pm Pacific Time on kssu.com, Sacramento State Student Radio.