Back by popular demand, or perhaps by blatant indifference, it’s Throwing Tomatoes.

It’s been a busy stretch in the world of sports lately, leaving plenty of opportunities to show displeasure at people in the world of sports, whether it be directed at baseball’s offseason, the NBA or NHL seasons, College Football, or the NFL as it nears its finale.

So as the sports world turns, the stories pile up and more sports frustration emerges.  Don’t sweat it, The Wife Hates Sports has them all covered – in lycopene, that is.

Throwing Tomatoes: January 19, 2012

Target: The New York Jets

It feels like the negative Jets headlines are coming out faster than Rob Lowe can break sports news.  First, it was New York’s subpar season, followed by Santonio Holmes.  But that was only the beginning…

Sub-Target: Mark Sanchez

The artist formerly known as “Sanchise” has taken the brunt of it, first being referred to as “lazy” by some unnamed teammates, who also endorsed the acqusition of Peyton Manning.

Then again, it’s hard to argue the history, what with GQ and other pretty boy ads coming out of the woodwork, plus an open video on the sidelines featuring Sanchez eating a hot dog.  Those stories never had legs when the team was winning games.

Sub-Target: Rex Ryan

The New York head coach chimed in, stating that “the majority of our football team” had confidence in Sanchez.  Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but…

Sub-Target: LaDainian Tomlinson

LT opened up on Showtime’s “Inside the NFL” show, tossing shots at nearly everyone.  But while Tomlinson could have found a way to take the heat off the Jets, he instead threw gas in the fire.  The better move would have been to keep everything behind closed doors.

Sub-Target: Woody Johnson

That’s not all on Sanchez.  Jets owner Woody Johnson said that “we think he’s our guy”, but also wouldn’t dismiss the idea of Peyton Manning wearing green.  For those that are counting, that’s another ringing endorsement for Sanchez.

Sub-Target: The Final Word on the Jets – “The D”

In the end, the majority of the criticism has been against offensive players like Sanchez, LT, Holmes, plus the departed Brian Schottenheimer.  Somehow avoiding the heat is the Jets defense, who deserves its fair share.  A clear strength in past seasons, the Jets did manage to finish 5^th in yards per game and 5^th in pass yards allowed.  However, the run D was in the middle of the pack, and the team defense also allowed 22.7 points per game, good for 20^th in the NFL.

Target: Rob Lowe

For those that hadn’t heard, Rob Lowe recently tweeted that Peyton Manning would retire.

Keep in mind, a guy that played a character known as “#2” can easily be full of crap.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_A8bFsBKTs

Joe Biden

In front of a San Francisco crowd, Biden said that the Giants are “on their way to the Super Bowl”.

Don’t worry… he didn’t follow that by predicting that Tim Lincecum would be the Super Bowl MVP.  Still, ouch.  Poor guy.

Target: Aaron Rodgers

Recently crowned Miss America Laura Kaeppeler gave a recent shout-out to Rodgers, asking him to call her.  Rodgers saw the broadcast, and has yet to drop her a line.

While the rest of the world is doing a “discount double take” on Kaeppeler, the Green Bay quarterback is clearly still fuming over the team’s recent loss to the Giants.

(h/t Shutdown Corner)

Innocent Bystander: Laura Kaeppeler

A woman this beautiful (below) is likely not used to rejection.  Eh, she’ll get over it.

While many men are giving Kaeppeler "discount double takes", Aaron Rodgers is not biting.

Target: Matt Antonelli

Signing with the Baltimore Orioles during the offseason, Matt Antonelli is basically an unknown in baseball, but he does tweet a whole heck of a lot – including this recent nugget:

MattAntonelli9 Matt Antonelli

“Day one in the books and still haven’t been beat up for wearing my Brady jersey around Baltimore”

Now, it’s my turn.  Hi, I’m Matt Antonelli.  I’m new to Baltimore.  This new fanbase is very disgruntled, and before I came here, no one had ever heard of me.  I know how passionate this city is about its football team, yet I’m going to wear a Tom Brady jersey during AFC Championship week.  Oh, and if you didn’t see me wearing it, I’m also going to tweet about it.  Bravo, Matt… BRAVO.

Target: Glen Davis

“Big Baby” Davis was called for a technical foul after dropping his drawers after a call that frustrated him.  Fortunately, there was no resulting visual where we’d have to call him for traveling, too.  If you didn’t catch that joke, then don’t ask me to explain it.

(h/t Game On!)

And finally, the current faces of team frustration in sports:

Boston Celtics – A slow 5-8 start is stirring up trade rumors in Beantown

Buffalo Sabres – Four straight losses and a 2-6-2 record over its last ten games

Columbus Blue Jackets – The team’s 31 points is seven fewer than any other NHL team.

This has been Throwing Tomatoes, where we practice the “discount double chuck”.

Check off Jimmy Fallon as the latest to join in on the Tim Tebow craze, or “Tebowmania” as many have chosen to call it.

Fallon wearing Tebow jersey and spoofing David Bowie

The sports world has clearly embraced Tebow, voted as America’s most popular athlete, via a recent ESPN Sports Poll.

Late night television hosts are now jumping on the wagon.

Enter Fallon, who on his late night show, featured a comic bit where the host hit the stage as “Tebowie”, a hybrid mix of David Bowie and Tim Tebow.  Sporting a Tim Tebow jersey and an old-school Bowie look, Fallon spoofed Bowie’s classic hit “Space Oddity”, dropping numerous funny lines at the expense of the Denver Broncos quarterback and former first round pick.

The episode and this music video, which aired on January 12, 2012, finished with what else, but Jimmy Fallon “Tebowing”.

To show just how impressive the spoof was, check out the “Tebowie” video below from Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, followed by a YouTube video featuring David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” for comparison.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhSYbRiYwTY

Jimmy Fallon's spoof "Tebowie" finished with Fallon doing what else, but "Tebowing"

It’s days after Alabama’s 21-0 BCS Championship victory over the LSU Tigers, and fans of the Crimson Tide are still finding unique ways to celebrate its title.

Specifically, the Fairhope Animal Clinic in Fairhope, AL, which posted a playful jab at LSU star Tyrann Mathieu on its outdoor billboard.

Mathieu, also popularly known around the country as “The Honey Badger”, was the perfect fit for an in-state animal clinic seeking to verbally celebrate a team’s BCS National Championship victory.

Posted to Twitter by ABC Sports Photographer Robert O’Shields, the image pretty much says it all (below).

Well, except for all the field goals.

Fairhope Animal Clinic billboard uniquely supporting Alabama's BCS National Championship victory, as posted to Twitter by ABC Sports Photographer Robert O'Shields (@BobbyO504)

It’s no secret that Charles Barkley has a strong opinion about almost everything that exists on Earth.

That’s why when “Sir Charles” makes an appearance on Saturday Night Live, entertainment ensues, especially when Barkley is given the opportunity to toss out a few zings at members of the sports world.

Such as what happened in the most recent episode of SNL, specifically during the skit where Barkley presented the world with his “Charles Barkley Postgame Translator App”.

As during most postgame press conferences, coaches or sports stars throw out cliches more than Drew Brees slings touchdowns, ranging from “take it one game at a time”, to “we tip our hats to our opponent”, and so on.

But with the “Charles Barkley Postgame Translator App”, you the sports fan gets presented with the real story behind every postgame line.

"Sir Charles" zinged sports stars during the SNL skit featuring the "Charles Barkley Postgame Translator App"

The skit itself featured some comical jabs pointed at the likes of Bill Belichick, Rex Ryan, Kobe Bryant, Mike Shanahan, Dwyane Wade, the Miami Heat and the New York Mets.

Personally, I felt that Barkley’s best shots were at Rex Ryan and the Miami Heat, but see for yourself, and perhaps you will feel differently.

I have a confession to make.

A few weeks back, THE WIFE and I each got our hands on a brand spankin’ new iPhone 4S, likely being among the final people in our age group to join the smart phone community.  It’s kind of strange actually, because I am usually the tech-savvy type, but for whatever reason, my desire to own every last gadget had yet to translate over to cell phones.  Perhaps it was all the charges, and the fact that I never thought that I would ever get my money’s worth.

But here I am, hangin’ with my new BFF, Siri – and she’s pretty sweet.

Naturally, with my new toy in hand, I set to the web to try and find apps that would fit my persona.  My first search was for sports apps – I know, I know, you’re absolutely shocked.

THE WIFE clearly wasn’t.  But she wasn’t frustrated enough to put me on dish duty.

As I scrolled down the list faster than a group of kids can get busted for “Tebowing”, I landed on – and downloaded – the usual suspects, from ESPN Scorecenter, to NFL Mobile, to Fox Sports and much, much more.

Continuing my search for sports news or Fantasy sports apps, I suddenly stumbled upon Tim Tebow’s smiling face.

For just 99 cents, you can see Tim Tebow's smiling face daily on your iPhone

Yes, “there’s an app for that”, too.

Why should I be surprised?  After all, Tim Tebow is THE NFL STORY this season, whether we like it or not – and for a good number of casual sports fans, that answer is clearly pushing its way towards “not”.

It’s becoming quite clear that Tebow – this year’s media darling – is challenging a number of gag reflexes. For some, Tebow is the five-letter word that is being muttered consistently throughout the sports world this year, replacing last year’s five-letter word, “Favre”.

It’s not entirely his fault, and to be upfront and honest, the whole Tebow story is quite fascinating to me, but clearly the media is diving in just a little bit too deep.

But an app dedicated just to Tebow?  Really?

It’s a little much, and borderline ridiculous in my opinion.

As described via the iTunes store, for just 99 cents, I can “get Tim Tebow’s tweets, Facebook updates, pictures, videos, news and so much more with just one single tap!  Plus a “Tebowing” tab filled with lots of fans ‘tebowing’”.

Screenshot from the Tebow app, created by Jachava LLC (Image via the Apple iTunes App Store)

I think I’d rather spend my dollar on a pack of Orbitz gum.

While the Tebow jerseys can’t stay on the shelves, it appeared clear to me that judging by the lack of ratings and comments (two to be exact), the Tim Tebow app was collecting dust.

Clearly, there are a number of ways in which we could make this app more appealing – and with just a few short minutes of brainstorming, here’s how the Tebow app could go from zero to hero:

– Separate into categories, for the “Tebow Lover” and the “Tebow Loather” – don’t worry, Tim will not mind.  It’ll just motivate him.

– The Tebow Lover section can feature a lot of the current attributes, including his tweets, Facebook updates, pictures and videos.  It can also include highlights, famous quotes, famous speeches, fourth quarter comeback statistics and more.

– The Tebow Loather section can feature negative statistics, information and highlights, such as tweets from all of Tebow’s critics, highlights of his key mistakes, video clips of his mechanics, or moments that bitter fans will enjoy seeing him struggle or fail.

– An app could also be jam-packed with counters, from a Tebow “J.C. counter”, to other means for data collection such as fumbles, sacks, motivational speeches, fans “Tebowing”, victories, charity details, comeback wins, SI covers, jersey sales and much, much more.

Take the following specific examples that could spice up this app:

Tebow playfully encourages NBA stars to join the Broncos (via Twitter)…

@TimTebow

“And btw @DwightHoward if the lockout continues, you & @KingJames need to come get fitted for your Broncos uni’s!”

Tebow gets blasted by the Bills during Week 16…

The final stat line: 13-29, 185 passing yards, 1 TD, 3 INT, 2 fumbles (1 lost), sacked four times, 10 carries, 34 yards and 1 rushing TD

Tebow’s famous “Promise Speech” when at the University of Florida…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sGv2Zw-WQw

And last, but most certainly not least…

Promotions and information about the Tim Tebow Foundation, such as:

@tebowfoundation

“With your help, we have raised $410,000 of the $700,000 needed to complete the @TimTebow CURE hospital. THANK YOU! timtebowfoundation.org“

Then again, even with an extra kick of personality – both for the fan and non-fan – this version of the Tebow app likely wouldn’t fly either, but one thing’s certain, I have no plans to ask Bill Maher for his opinion about it.

Anyone got a dollar I can borrow?