NFL Training (Camp) Wheels: A Photo Essay

Right, Reggie. Back to work. We get it.

I love NFL training camp, not because football is upon us again (if it’s still hot, it’s still baseball season, in my mind) but because of the sheer entertainment value of the photos.   Reggie Wayne showing up to training camp in a dump truck, dressed as a construction worker?  Obvious publicity grab, sure, but funny in a look-at-the-rich-and-talented-athlete-being-a-cheesy-goofball sort of way.

Strangely enough, Reggie’s transportation related stunt reflected a similar theme in many of the less staged photos of training camps across the league : the many unusual ways in which the athletes travel to and around their team’s facilities.

Hump Day Hotties: AFC & NFC North

Some of us Ladies have been looking forward to football season, so I thought what better way to get everyone hyped than to feature a hottie from every NFL team.  Each week for the next four weeks, we’ll be featuring lesser-known hotties from an AFC and NFC division.

Follow me after the jump to get a peek at the AFC and NFC North.

Ben Roethlisberger…fix your TV? That’s the best you’ve got?

The charges* filed against Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger this weekend are serious, and in no way do the Ladies… condone such acts. Sexual violence is disgusting and pathetic, and should not be committed by anyone at any time. We doubt many of you would disagree.

One could also file a lawsuit against that shirt.

*If you haven’t heard, Big Ben faces counts of assault, sexual assault and batter, false imprisonment, false pretenses, fraud, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Story here. If true…not cool, Ben.

HOWEVER, I couldn’t help but smirk at the line he allegedly laid down on the Harrah’s employee who filed the suit.

Misery Loves Company

With the exception of very few major league teams, more likely than not your season consistently ends in tears.  Sitting in a bar this past Saturday, looking at the faces of those around me wearing Cavs jerseys, I was reminded once again of the ultimate reality of Ohio teams in the post season, and the heart break that lies therein.

The more I thought about it, we are not alone. You know who you are, kings and queens of “there’s always next year,” or preseason shouters of, “this is our year!”  And you can be found across this great nation.

So here begins my little journey across country, to highlight our defeats, but most importantly, the beauty that comes from being a fan, and the hope that maybe, just maybe, this really is our year!

Theme Thursday Strikes Back

As promised last week, Theme Thursday has returned with a new batch of mysteriously connected hotties.  This week’s trio was suggested by gretchenarchangel after she was the first to successfully guess the inaugural Theme Thursday puzzle.

Once again, the first person to correctly guess the theme in the comments gets to suggest a future Theme Thursday post.

This week’s guys certainly seem like an eclectic bunch at first glance — and you may want to take a couple of extra glances, you know, just to make sure you’ve gathered all the necessary information.

Get your own stuff!

I was all set to write my first post as a love letter to Josh Beckett’s fastball. (Look, if it was possible to make out with a pitch, I would do so with that one, happily, and without regard for leaving lipstick prints on the leather.) But then my cousin sent me a text message from her seats at Citi Field last week. “Maggie,’ she wrote. ‘They’re doing it again.’

The ‘it’ in question? Playing ‘Sweet Caroline’ in the eighth inning.

Post-Bowl High Fives: Congrats to the Steelers

While I agree with Miss Minda, I am sad that the Cardinals didn’t win the Superbowl as I was rooting for them and they made a teriffic showing, I still think that we here at Ladies… need to give recognition to the Steelers. After the break, some fun celebration photos to help wipe away the sad.

Post-Bowl Antiparty: Sad Cardinals

So, the Steelers won the Super Bowl. It was a pretty frickin’ crazy game. Congrats to them, I suppose.

I do not appreciate the way this Cardinal is looking at me.

I present to you these Sad Cardinals with no further comment.

The Ladies … Super Bowl Party Preview, or Preview Party, Your Choice

I hope the game is more exciting than this logo.

We are now a little over 48 hours away from the culmination of the entire 2008-09 NFL season.  Just like the World Series, this championship features a team making its unlikely first appearance in the big game and … a team from Pennsylvania.  Plus they are playing it in Tampa.  It’s certainly not the first time a city has hosted both a World Series and a Super Bowl, but it may be the first time a city outside of California has done it. So there’s your (unverified) Super Bowl fact of the day.

As this is a sports blog, written by sports fans, most of us Ladies have plans to watch the game. Some of us are neutral, some of us have a particular team, some of us are just obsessed with Kurt Warner, but we’ll all be parked in front of a television somewhere at game time.  Further details after the jump, but first:

POP (AND ALCOHOL)  QUIZ

Can you match the beverages below with the Lady who will be drinking it during the game? (Options: Lady Andrea, SA, Minda, Games Mistress, and Cinnamon Girl)

In Which I Use NFL Team Merchandise to Predict the Super Bowl Matchup

In my short tenure here at Ladies …, I have picked an Angels-Cubs World Series, and managed to finish last in our Bowl Pick ‘Em Pool (technically second to last, but that’s only because Cinn forgot to actually pick the games).  So it’s pretty clear I have no business whatsoever picking winners of this Sunday’s NFC and AFC championship games.  Like any good sports blogger, this is not going to stop me.

Since picking based on my sports “knowledge” doesn’t seem to be working, I decided to use a random and arbitrary method, completely unrelated to how much big-game experience the quarterbacks have and whether a star player is not 100% healthy.  However, I wasn’t exactly sure how to come up with said randomness.  And then, while conducting a Google Image hunt for a picture of the Arizona Cardinals’ mascot, I found my muse :

Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison

The AP named its defensive player of the year: Pittsburgh Steelers’ James Harrison. I’m sure he’s good and all – however…

Our Year End Hump Day Hottie Spectacular!

Chances are you’ll be reading this in 2009. That’s okay. It’s a holiday and you were preparing yourself for the New Year’s Eve celebrations. But if you are reading this in 2008 then let’s go through a review of what happened this year. Specifically what happened every Wednesday of this year. Yes, we’re going to be taking a look back at the Hump Day Hotties that have graced our blog in the ’08. Why? Because how could you not want to take a trip down memory lane and remember Ryan Lochte?

So let’s go back through the year that was and enjoy our hotties one more time before we sing “Auld Lang Syne.” And if you’re reading this in 2009, remember when Lochte was so smoking in 2008 he made the Ladies… HDH? Yeah, that was awesome.

Hump Day Hottie: Willie Parker

During the Ladies… fantasy football draft, my computer went a little wonky, and froze right after my first pick. By the time I got everything working again, the computer had autodrafted Willie Parker for me. I didn’t want Willie Parker. No reason, really, it was more that I just wasn’t feelin’ it. Judging by his first two weeks (243 yds, 3 TDs), I was wrong. I’m sorry Willie. Please consider this collection of your hotness an official apology, and take me back with open arms.

When Athletes Blog…

I’ve uncovered a heretofore unannounced blog by Notre Dame and Cleveland’s QB 1, the heartthrob himself, Mr. Brady Quinn:

What can I say? I think he's cute.

Dear Blogary,

Golly, I can’t believe it’s been a whole year since I joined the NFL. The Browns are swell guys, especially Derek. We’re like total BFFs. I was so happy for him last year, what a great story! I mean, of course I really want to play. I gotta get out there and show everybody what I can do! Yeah! But I’m just thrilled for Dbear. Maybe this year we can find a way for us to share QBing duties. We already share so much, I’m sure it’d be awesome!

Hump Day Hottie: The Best of the Draft

As you may know, the Ladies… spent Saturday and Sunday watching and blogging the NFL Draft. Strapping young men in suits about to be come millionaires? Yes, please!

Football powers, activate!

After the jump, a look at some of the best and brightest of the draft. Keep in mind that this list is nowhere near comprehensive, as there were many, many hot men who got new jobs this weekend. These are some of my favorites. Please feel free to share your favorites in the comments.

Hump Day Hottie: Braylon Edwards

Braylon Edwards has been a victim of what I like to think of as the “Cleveland Effect”: if you play for a Cleveland team, your hotness is camoflaged by wearing a uniform with “CLEVELAND” on it somewhere. Braylon looked hot playing for Michigan, and he still looks hot playing for Cleveland– but a guy has to be extra specially hot to overcome the Cleveland Effect and get his own HDH (see: Sizemore, Grady). Everyone has been busy fawning over the new kid taking his shots for the Browns at QB, but I maintain that Braylon is the best looking guy on the team. He even has his own fan club (of sorts) – the Braylon Bunch… started by eight guys. Such is the hotness of Braylon, even straight men recognize.

But it was this picture in Sports Illustrated that finally convinced me to overlook the Cleveland Effect and make Braylon an HDH – because not only is he beautiful to look at, and talented on the field, but he pledged $1 million in scholarship money for 100 needy eighth-grade students in Cleveland. With that list of qualifications, who cares if he plays for the Browns?

How that group of eighth grade girls can look so bored with that pretty sitting so close by, I’ll never know. Oh, right- they live in Cleveland.

For lots more of Braylon, follow me after the jump…

Nolan Vs. Tomlin-Whose Team Do You Wanna Be On?

This Sunday in Pittsburgh the 49ers and the Steelers meet in an important early season match-up.

Not the teams. I’m talking about the coaches-Mike Nolan and Mike Tomlin.

I envy the woman who’ll be at Heinz Field. But the question is, who’s hotter? This was brought up last Wednesday when I said this is the Hit & Run:

Nolan > Tomlin

Needless to say, TheStarterWife didn’t agree. So we thought we’ll put it out there…

Nolan or Tomlin? Who ya got?

Brady Quinn

Brady Quinn was in fine form for the August cover of Men’s Health magazine. For a funny take on this (funnier than my take anyways), go on down to With Leather. But then, come back!

More pictures after the jump.  (FYI: I didn’t shrink the pics – I wanted to leave them in their splendid glory for you guys.)