Here’s what went down with Gambo & Burnsy on a Football Friday…

Diverting Attention… The story was Pedro Martinez, but the victor was AJ Burnett. A lot was made about Pedro Martinez starting in another World Series in New York, and Pedro’s line was impressive: 6+ IP, 6 Hits, 3 ER, 8 K. Burnett’s performance, however, was even more dominant. In 7 innings, the Yankees’ $82 million man struck out 9 while giving up only 4 hits and 1 earned run. Burnsy says that last night was likely the first time Yankees fans felt like AJ Burnett was worth that much money, while Gambo (the resident Yankee fan) says Yankees fans don’t care as much about contracts as they do about winning. Burnett’s performance is even more impressive given ace CC Sabathia’s loss in Game 1; for the first time since becoming a Yankee, Burnett is at least temporarily out of CC’s shadow.

First Things First… The Arizona Cardinals take on the Carolina Panthers Sunday in what should be an easy Cards victory. However, this game may qualify as a “trap game” for the 4-2 Cards, who may already be looking forward to their away game at Chicago in Week 9. While Carolina is just 2-4, with wins over the lowly Redskins and Buccaneers, the Panthers were in the playoffs last season and possess one of the league’s most potent running attacks with DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart.

Going Back Home… Brett Favre is headed back to Lambeau Field, this time on the visitor’s sideline. Minnesota’s Hall of Fame quarterback has the Vikings at 6-1, with their lone loss to the defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Green Bay’s 4-2 record is impressive, as well, but a loss to the Vikings would put the NFC North race in the freezer, as the Vikings would have a 2 ½ game lead and 2 wins over the Packers with just 8 games to go. Gambo thinks the Vikings were big favorites in the game in Minnesota earlier this season but that the Packers have a chance in this game.

The Next Steve Nash?… Stephen Curry made a huge impression at Davidson, averaging 28.6 PPG, but he is off to a similarly impressive start for the Golden State Warriors. The 7th pick in last season’s draft shot 7 of 12 and stole 4 passes in his opening night start at shooting guard for the Warriors. Tonight Curry takes on the Suns and 2-time MVP Steve Nash, and some are even comparing the two. Curry himself has even referenced Nash when asked about the game tonight, “It will be fun to play against an All-Star caliber point guard who I’ve studied a lot.”

Amare’s Future… Amar’ecan Idol. In every game this season, the Gambo & Ash Show will tally whether or not Amar’e Stoudemire’s game was worthy of a max contract. They will add the plusses to the minuses, and the final tally will tell us whether or not Amar’e will be worth a max contract if he opts out of his contract at the end of the 2009-2010 season. Burnsy thinks that Amar’e will exercise his option for next season and be a Phoenix Sun for exactly one more season before signing elsewhere in the summer of 2011.

The Glue Guy… Mariano Rivera has been a great closer for the Yankees since 1997 and has been just as good the last couple of seasons. Rivera owns a career 2.25 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in the regular season, but an even more impressive 0.76 ERA and 0.78 WHIP in his postseason career. Rivera has even defied the typical closer profile of just pitching one inning at a time. In fact, since 1996, Rivera has 14 2-inning saves in the postseason. What’s even more impressive… all the other closers in the postseason combined over that stretch have just 11.

One Game, Big Ramifications… The January playoff game between the Cardinals and Panthers proved to be a turning point for the two teams. The Cardinals went on to the Super Bowl and have started 4-2 in 2010, while the Panthers loss was the first of many upsetting and embarrassing losses for Carolina.

One and done… Backup Eagles QB Michael Vick is proving that his time away from the NFL was more costly than he and many others thought. Speed is the first thing you lose with age, and Vick turns 30 in the offseason, meaning his biggest strength is hardly a weapon anymore. Gambo says Vick will never be the same quarterback that he once was. His numbers this season—2/6 for 6 yards, 9 rushes for 22 yards—are hardly inspiring.

Phoenix Suns Managing Partner ROBERT SARVER stopped by to share his expectations for the upcoming season as the club prepares for their regular season home opener later tonight against the Warriors.

World renowned sports handicapper BRANDON LANG joined us on this Football Friday to break down all the big matchups in what should be very entertaining weekend of football in the pro and college ranks. Among the games B Lang likes: the Browns plus 13, the Dolphins plus 3, Green Bay minus 3, Dallas minus 9 ½, and Indy minus 12.

We were joined by our ESPN NFL analyst Mark Schlereth from ESPN who reflected back on the Cards big Sunday Night Football win over the Giants, and shared what he expects to see Sunday against the Panthers in Glendale. He also previewed Brett Favre’s return to Lambeau Field.

 

 Robert Sarver [11:14m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (21)

 

 Brandon Lang [7:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (17)