Let me preface the following by saying that I am fully aware that no athlete is perfect and the ones that appear to be the closest thing we've got to being perfect, are usually the ones who are the exact opposite.

Take for example, Michael Jordan. While Jordan was undeniably the best player I've ever seen and is regarded by many as the best to ever lace'em up, he was anything but a model citizen off the court. He had his share of extra-marital affairs that ultimately cost him his marriage not to mention the hundreds of thousands he won and lost on illegal gambling ventures, but he knew how to play "the game."

The game I'm referring to basically boils down to surrounding yourself with image-restoring experts and advisers who can make sure your private affairs stay just that, and if some secrets do leak out, they provide you with a way to come across in the best light possible and move on. 

Another person who knows that mega-stardom comes with a hefty price tag is Tiger Woods. Arguably the best golfer ever, Woods might just be more adept off the links than he is on them. Anybody who thinks Tiger is as perfect as he comes across during post-round interviews has never seen him whip a club in frustration or curse out a camera-clicking member of the gallery. But instead of adding fuel to the fire and further tarnish his image after an incident like that, Tiger recalls the tips his advisors have drilled into his head since he was 12, and extinguishes the flames before they spread like a T.O. wildfire.

Tiger's longtime caddie Stevie Williams recently made some harsh remarks about Woods' rival Phil Mickelson. 

Williams was quoted as saying: "I wouldn't call Mickelson a great player, cause I hate the p---k."

It's well known that Tiger and Phil aren't the best of friends and while neither has made that a secret in the past, both are quick to pull out the superlatives when referring to the other and deflect any questions regarding their relationship along the way. In typical Woods fashion, and much like Jordan would do back in the day when asked about his relationships with Bird or Magic, he took the high road and quickly turned what could've turned into a media frenzy that would've likely been fanned at every PGA stop they participated in and put it out before it spread.

Woods reaction: "I was disappointed to read the comments attributed to Steve Williams about Phil Mickelson, a player that I respect. It was inappropriate. The matter has been discussed and dealt with."

Watch as the ever-present, non-relenting media will try and fan the flames again and again with this one, but also watch how Tiger is always quick to switch the topic back to golf and avoid any further damage. While I'm sure Tiger and Williams giggled behind closed doors about Stevie's comments, I'm also guessing Williams got a slap on the wrist for his comments.

Maybe in the future Jordan, Woods and a few of the other athletes who "get it" can hold a "Spin Doctoring 101" class and foot-in-the-mouth, speak-before-thinking specialists like T.O., Barry Bonds and Bobby Knight can sign up and learn a few tricks of the trade.

Some guys just get it and others don't and probably never will.

Beat The Blogger Results
Posted by Tuff stuff

It just keeps getting easier and easier to win in the Beat The Blogger contest and this week was no exception. The Blogger correctly picked a dismal 4 of 14 games correctly while "nancy" and "wildthing4vr" scored 9 of 14 (two games tied after point spreads factored in) to win the week. This week also produced our first multi-week winner, as "nancy" also won a few weeks back as well. For their efforts, "nancy" and "wildthing4vr" will receive an authentic signed 8-by-10 photo.

Here are the blogger's picks for the week so you know what you're up against. Don't forget you need to beat my total and post the highest number of correct picks of all the participants to win the authentic signed photo. Make sure you remember to factor in the point spreads when making your selections and make sure you post your picks before the start of the Thursday night game. Good luck.

Blogger Picks

New Orleans +3 over Chicago
Green Bay -2 over Jacksonville
Indianapolis -17 over Detroit
Washington -7 over Cincinnati
Atlanta -3 over Tampa Bay
Miami -6.5 over San Francisco
Seattle -3 over St. Louis
NY Jets -7 over Buffalo
Houston +3 over Tennessee
Baltimore -2 over Pittsburgh
Carolina -7.5 over Denver
San Diego -5 over Kansas City
Arizona -3 over Minnesota
New England -7 over Oakland
Dallas -3 over NY Giants
Cleveland +14 over Philadelphia

With just three weeks left in the regular season, the time is now to enter and win the Beat The Blogger contest. After struggling the last several weeks, the Blogger bounced back with 9 correct picks last week but it wasn't enough to take down "ejh" and his 12 of 16 total. Please remember to factor in the points spreads when making your picks and get them posted by 7 p.m. on Thursday night to be eligible to win. Good luck.

This week's Beat The Blogger matchups are below but for those of you who need your contest fix right now, click here to play our Expose The Experts contest where one lucky participant will walk away with a $500 prize package of sports memorabilia. It's the readers vs. the Experts in a battle of wits, as we all try to forecast the future of sports and the sports memorabilia industry in a scored survey. Enter as often as you wish and make sure you check back to the www.tuffstuff.com Home page often to see how you're doing.

OK Billy, your secret is finally out and I'm guessing you feel as though an enormous weight has been lifted from your back. It's probably been tough to keep up this charade for almost 20 years, but talk about locking it up in the vault. Very impressive. I'd feel safe making a mob hit with you riding shotgun because I know you wouldn't squeal until I was long gone.

For those not familiar with the story of the now infamous Billy Ripken "error" card, it goes something like this. Ripken's 1989 Fleer baseball card made its public debut that year with Ripken posed holding his bat, with the photo taken during pre-game warm-ups at Fenway Park. When the 1989 Fleer set hit the public, collectors quickly noticed that the knob on Ripken's bat displayed the words "F*@k Face" and many angry fans and collectors wanted to know why Ripken would be so disgraceful.

Feeling the heat and public backlash (remember this was 1989) Ripken denied any knowledge of the his new signature phrase, explaining that he must have been the victim of a prank by one of his teammates. Fleer reps put their best spin on the situation as well, saying because of time restraints, the image had slipped past its editors and into production with the phrase going undetected. While most within the hobby had little faith in Fleer's explanation (especially when the media got a hold of the story and it created quite a stir not to mention soaring values for the card) most of us did believe Ripken's original version of the story. Until now that is.

Although times were much different 20 years ago and few would bat an eyelash if the story leaked out today, it's hard for me to understand why it took this long for Ripken to come clean. Sure, what he wrote affended a few people and likely taught some youngsters a new word to add to their vocabulary, but isn't it just a funny story vs. being something to feel ashamed of? I guess Billy must have been out in the back yard when Cal senior was giving the "honesty is the best policy" lesson to his brother. Either that, or Billy is just a really slow learner. Either way, thanks for giving us something to chuckle about for the last 20 years.  

To read the entire story, click here.

While the Blogger got back on track with 9 correct picks, it wasn't enough to take down "ejh" who correctly picked 12 of 16 games to win this week's Beat The Blogger contest. For his efforts, "ejh" will receive an authentic signed 8-by-10 photo.

This week's matchups will be posted on Wednesday but for those of you who need your contest fix right now, click here to play our Expose The Experts contest where one lucky participant will walk away with a $500 prize package of sports memorabilia. It's the readers vs. the Experts in a battle of wits, as we all try to forecast the future of sports and the sports memorabilia industry in a scored survey. Enter as often as you wish and make sure you check back to the www.tuffstuff.com Home page often to see how you're doing.