Jessica Simpson Reportedly Pregnant!!!

Remember, you heard it here first!!!

Oh, the rumor mill is buzzing with this one.

According to Pop On The Pop, Jessica Simpson may be pregnant! The photograph at this site does show a bit of a bulge in the tummy area, as well as what appears to be larger than her normal breasts. The site says:

"Jessica Simpson has gained at least 10 pounds and we finally know why. Jessica Simpson is pregnant with Tony Romo's baby. Ashlee's pregnant, Jessica had to have a baby of her own too."

According to PR-Inside.com:

Jessica Simpson has sparked rumours she is pregnant. The 'Come on Over' singer was photographed with an apparent baby bump as she celebrated her 28th birthday in Sherman Oaks, California, yesterday (10.07.08). Wearing a flowing, short-sleeved brown and white dress, topped off with a cowboy hat, Jessica grinned broadly as she walked along with friends, but appeared to have larger breasts and arms than usual. An onlooker said: "She definitely looked bigger than she usually does, and her breasts seemed to have swollen too. It could have just been down to a big lunch, but it looked like more than that. She also kept holding a grey jumper in front of her stomach, as if she was trying to hide something." Jessica - who is divorced from singer Nick Lachey - has reportedly been finding it hard to disguise her jealousy about her 23-year-old sister Ashlee's news she is expecting her first child with husband Pete Wentz. A source said: "Jessica has yearned for a baby for years. She's told friends that she can't wait to be a mom and has even joked that if she has to, she'll resort to making her hairstylist pal Ken Paves the adoptive daddy. Jessica never imagined that her tomboy younger sister would have a baby first. It would be very hard for her not to be jealous."

PopCrunch.com says:

“She definitely looked bigger than she usually does, and her breasts seemed to have swollen too,” an onlooker says. “She also kept holding a grey jumper in front of her stomach, as if she was trying to hide something.”

And according to AndhraNews.net:

Jessica Simpson has sparked rumours that she too may be expecting after being with a 'baby bump' on her 28th birthday party in Sherman Oaks, California.

Jessica, who celebrated her birthday with her beau Tony Romo sporting a free flowing short sleeved, looking curvier than ever.

Nick Lachey's ex-wife appeared to have larger breasts and arms than usual with a slight bump on her tummy, which she was trying to hide with a grey jumper, reports news.com.au.

"She definitely looked bigger than she usually does, and her breasts seemed to have swollen too ... She also kept holding a grey jumper in front of her stomach, as if she was trying to hide something," an onlooker revealed.

If the reports are true, then Jessica's parents will become grandparents twice over, what with younger daughter Ashlee Simpson also expecting her first child with hubby Pete Wentz.

Is all this stuff true? Time will tell. If it isn't, we'll know soon enough. If it is, will it affect Tony Romo's performance on the field?

Just what we needed.

Rod

The Unmentionables - July '08 Edition

Training camp is here, with preseason knocking on the door and a mere 38 days before the first game of the season arrives. There is little doubt that on paper this Cowboys team should be a serious contender. All of this hinges on the word "if", though.

There are some key players on the team that are quite simply critical for the success of the Dallas Cowboys. Losing one of these players changes the dynamics of the team and their ability to compete, which could turn the team from a serious contender to a "could have been" in a heartbeat.

The first and most obvious is Tony Romo. The expectation is that Romo will be a better, more competent, more confident quarterback. The hope is that he's as elusive and as durable as he's shown himself to be so far. But, if the unmentionable happens and he's injured, what do the Cowboys have in their arsenal for backup? Johnson and Bartel? A has-been kinda sorta and a kid. Gone are the elusive, "make it happen anyway" plays that Romo creates out of thin air often. No matter how good the offensive line is, they won't be able to stop the rush enough to make Johnson look competent. And Bartel so far in training camp has not left us with the warm fuzzies.

There's been talk about trading for Chris Simms, although the asking price at this point seems too high. Health concerns are a dark cloud over Simms at the moment. There's a lot of discussion about this subject at Blogging the Boys. I agree with the general opinion that Brad isn't the answer and that Simms is too expensive of an option at the moment. One thing I do believe, though, is that if Romo goes down, the Cowboys are in serious trouble.

The next obvious one is Terrell Owens. He is such a threat on offense that teams spend a week preparing to defend against him and still he burns them. But he has a history of injuries and missed games. If the unmentionable happens and Owens is injured the Cowboys offense changes immediately and becomes much easier to defend against.

At dallascowboys.com, Jonathan Hazel of Glen Allen, VI asked a question regarding the depth at the wide receiver position. Mickey, Rob and Nick all gave various reasons why the Cowboys didn't grab a wide receiver during the offseason or the draft. Frankly, I believe the Cowboys should have put a higher priority on the situation and hope that their lack of movement on this issue doesn't bite the team in the rear this season. Losing Owens could be a disaster.

The loss of either of those players could potentially be a threat to the season, depending on when it occurs. The loss of both would be monumentally damaging.

Terrence Newman is already down with an injury and missing training camp because of it. Coach Phillips described it as "significant". If it's keeping Newman off the field, give that statement a "well, duhhhh". The Cowboys are ripe with talent at cornerback, so Newman's injury alone, while unwanted, wouldn't necessarily put an end to a great season. But remember, Anthony Henry, the #2 cornerback has a history of being brittle, also. If the unmentionable occurs and both of them go down at the same time, things don't look so ripe anymore. Remember, some of that depth at cornerback is already in jeopardy with an injury to Ball.

An injury to Andre Gurode would be significant. He missed a couple games in 2007. While the Cowboys survived, the concensus of opinion is that the offense is much better with Gurode at Center. I concur. Much of Tony Romo's success hinges on the play of Andre Gurode. If this unmentionable happens, the offense will struggle, at least for a few games.

The Cowboys have a new starting running back. Not new to the Cowboys, but new as starter. Marion "the Barbarian" Barber is currently expected to be the starting running back. The question is, "can he be the main man taking most of the snaps playing at the intensity that is so natural for him?" No doubt that Felix Jones is going to get a share of the snaps and rightfully so. But can Barber stay healthy for an entire season as the primary running back? And if the unmentionable happens and he doesn't stay healthy, can Jones step up to the plate and deliver an effective running attack at the NFL level?

Jason Witten has become to Romo what Jay Novacek was to Troy Aikman. With Terry Glenn missing in action for most of last season, Witten's job became more and more important as the season progressed. He was effectively the #2 wide receiver. The Cowboys haven't hired a wide receiver with the experience and talent Glenn had, so expect Witten's job to be equally important this season. Tony Curtis is Witten's backup. If this unmentionable occurs and Witten goes down, it's a different offense for the Cowboys.

Keeping guys healthy is a priority, as it should be, but it is even more vital this season when the injury to just a couple of key players can make the difference between seriously contending for a Superbowl championship and yet another year of disappointments. Just don't mention it. It's a secret.

I'm just mad as hell. . . .

And for a number of reasons which I'm going to elaborate on right now.

1. It makes me mad as hell that I'm embarassed about being a fan of a team that just tied their franchise record for season wins. They went 13-3 for the second time in the history of the team. Team records were set right and left last season. And what do we have to show for it? An entry in the record book and another one and done playoff record.

2. It makes me mad as hell that it's already training camp and for the first time in several seasons, we don't have fans on the Cowboys message boards touting how "this is the year" and "the Cowboys will win the Superbowl". It's deathly quiet out there. I see postings of articles written about Cowboys happenings, but those fans who are always ready to throw caution to the wind and declare this season's Cowboys as being the best team in the NFL are simply non-existant this year. Have the Cowboys gotten us to the point where we're sick of predicting great results only to see the same bad results year after year.

3. It makes me mad as hell to see someone say "America's Team" when if that were true, that simply means that when we get to where the rubber meets the road, America chokes and loses. If this is America's Team, it doesn't say much about America.

4. It makes me mad as hell that I can't get all fired up about the upcoming season when I know that none of it matters until we see whether they're going to choke, for the 13th year in a row, in December.

5. It makes me mad as hell that Jerry Jones managed during the offseason to accomplish most of the suggestions that I posted in my Cowboys blog (http://the-lightning-rod.blogspot.com/2008/01/ifs-and-december-and-lunacy.html) the morning after the Cowboys playoff loss in January including:

A. Draft a running back with one of the #1 picks

B. Julius Jones goes

C, Keep Barber, but as part of a "committee"

D. Re-sign Terrell Owens

E. Jacque Reeves and Roy Williams need to go (OK, he didn't get rid of Williams)

F. Crayton isn't good enough to be running his mouth (someone must have told him to shut up, he did)

G. Coach Phillips is and should remain the head coach.

H. Draft another good wide receiver. Or grab a good free agent. (OK, this one is still up for grabs)

Because Jerry Jones tended to most of these items, I'm now in the position where if the Cowboys have another one of those disappointing seasons, I'll look like I'm just another idiot out here spouting my mouth off about something I know little to nothing about. Thanks, Jerry.

6. I'm mad as hell about all the clouds certain personnel are having to operate under. Coach Phillips seems to get reminded daily that either he wins a Superbowl or he's gone. Or he's reminded that his replacement is right there down the hall, ready to take over at any moment. Tough way to live, if you ask me. Roy Williams with the cloud over him that he can't defend the pass. Perhaps if he'd simply defend passes that cloud would vanish. I know it's a strange concept, but hey, I'm mad as hell, remember. How about the cloud over the whole offense right now that says if Terrell Owens gets injured, the Cowboys offense becomes much easier to defend and their ability to move the ball drops drastically.

7. I'm mad as hell that the Cowboys continue yearly to be a disappointment, yet they're building the greatest sports venue in the world. Won't it be wonderful for us to look back and remember the Cowboys getting their collective asses handed to them in a huge loss in their first game at the new stadium? Fortunately, it won't be in December. Won't it be even more disappointing if you're one of the fans who has payed the high ticket prices only to watch your favorite team have another December Meltdown in their first season at the new stadium?

8. I'm mad as hell about being so damned mad as hell at the Cowboys.

Win some games in December. Win a playoff game. Win the division championship. Win the Superbowl. Dammit, do something to shut me the hell up.

Rod