I heard Michael Jackson died at approximately 5:30 PM ET. Hours later, I still don't think it's fully hit me. This was the man I idolized growing up as a kid ... I watched Moonwalker about 80 times on VHS (Joe Pesci was the villain). I once furiously outbid someone $159 for a replica Beat It jacket with 13 zippers. I actually have an 8x10 glossy of Billie Jean Michael taped next to my bedroom door.
Everyone -- from celebrities to sports stars to ordinary people -- had their way of trying to feel connected to the King of Pop. In his mere presence, fans have fainted and needed medical attention. So when news broke that Jackson had passed away, the reverberations on social media sites like Twitter were immense. Outspoken wide receiver Chad Ochocinco even went on to tweet "this is just as sad as 9/11" and then tried to play damage control after his offensive comment.
After the jump, read the emotional reactions from current and former athletes.
Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.
By dealing up into the last part of the first round for Clay Matthews, Ted Thompson may have forever changed his image in Green Bay. He went from being consistently ripped for his trade-downs and seemingly passive nature during the draft to being branded a genius. Of course, if either of his first-round selections fail, he'll be back to being an idiot again.
When Nolan took the job in Denver, the talk turned to former Redskins and Jaguars coordinator Gregg Williams. He ended up going to New Orleans, leaving McCarthy to what was presumably his third choice for a coordinator.
The third choice for McCarthy is a veteran coach with a ton of credibility around the NFL. Former Carolina and Houston head coach Dom Capers, a very successful defensive coach, is going to take over the Packers' defense.
53.9 million people tuned in to watch the New York Giants defeat the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship game, but if you are one of the few who was watching something else, here's what you missed:
Outside of Earl Campbell, has there ever been another running back that lays the lumber quite like Brandon Jacobs? That shot on Charles Woodson may be one of the most impressive I have ever seen from an offensive player.
As if that wasn't enough, Jacobs goes on to make linebacker Nick Barnett look completely foolish. And don't get me wrong, Barnett is a fantastic linebacker, but you cannot attempt to tackle Jacobs that high -- it will never work.
The league clearly thought Quirk crossed the line there -- getting docked 1/17 of your pay is significant -- but the league also apparently thought Quirk did a pretty good job this year, because he's working tonight's Steelers-Jaguars game.
The NFL assigns officials to playoff games based on their performance during the regular season, so Quirk must have graded out pretty well on the duties of an umpire, which include calling false start and holding penalties. Let's just hope he learns to keep his hands off the players.
The NFL has fined official Jim Quirk a game check -- $8,150 -- for inappropriate contact with Green Bay Packers linebacker Nick Barnett on Sunday.
Quirk was summoned to NFL offices Friday to meet with commissioner Roger Goodell and NFL senior vice president of football operations Ray Anderson. In determining the penalty, the league took into account previous incidents, including Quirk's contact Dec. 16 with Atlanta Falcons fullback Jason Snelling on a kickoff return.
See, NFL officials don't have carte blanche to do as they please; there are consequences for their actions. But does anybody see the discrepancy in fining players $10,000 and $15,000 for cheap shots, and fining an official $8,150? You think taking 1/100 of some guy's salary is as big a deterrent as 1/16? No, me neither.
I can understand Quirk wanting to keep the peace, but as MDS pointed out, there are less physical ways of doing it. Whatever, Barnett didn't find the humor in getting body slammed by an old-timer on regional television, so he's filing a grievance with the league:
"We're going to put our complaint in writing through a grievance, even if the league has warned the official," said Chuck Price, who represents Barnett. "This guy puts his arm around Nick's throat...he should get more than a warning. If Nick pushes [Quirk] to the ground just as a response, he'd be suspended and fined a couple of hundred grand."
ESPN's Chris Mortensen is reporting that, "umpire Jim Quirk, has been told he went 'over the line' in restraining Barnett. A source said that NFL officiating director Mike Pereira warned Quirk by telephone that he should refrain from similar techniques when trying to break up a potential skirmish. No disciplinary action will be taken against Quirk, a source said, but that won't appease Barnett."
Packers 33, Rams 14 Vikings 20, Bears 13 When the Packers have the ball: Green Bay's first choice is to attack through the air but they aren't totally reliant on the pass. Ryan Grant has the second-most yards in the league since Week Eight and has found great success running behind a very good Packer line. With Tommie Harris and Darwin Walker ailing, the middle of the Bears defensive line should yield good gains for Grant and force the Bears to adjust their defense forward. When they do that Favre can take advantage. Tight end Donald Lee is a force in play action and Donald Driver, James Jones and Greg Jennings down the field. Nathan Vasher played for the first time in ages last week and made some plays in Minnesota, but he's missed practice all week and Tarvaris Jackson isn't exactly of Favre's caliber.
There was one positive to be found in the Rams' loss to the Packers, even though it was a ninth away game. Whenever players come back from an injury, there's a tendency to be tentative about how the body will respond. After missing a couple of weeks with a concussion, the Packers (and the Rams' shoddy offensive line) gave Marc Bulger plenty of opportunities to prove that he can take a hit again.
"I was hoping to get the first hit out of the way," he said. He didn't have to wait long: On the second play of the Rams' first series Sunday, Green Bay linebacker Nick Barnett burst through for a sack.
"I felt fine," Bulger reported.
The Packers added another three sacks, just to give Bulger a large enough sample size to accurately gauge his mental state (that was nice of them), but it looks like The Bulge responded.
Unless he begins hallucinating midday or begins talking to inanimate objects, it looks like he's OK. He even played well (by adjusted standards) -- 219 yards and a touchdown -- it was the rest of the team who failed him. His receivers dropped two passes, both of which turned into interceptions, and special teams made Brett Favre's job a lot easier; the Packers' average starting point was the Rams' 48-yard line.
But yeah, Bulger's back in time for the meaningless end to the season -- I'm sure the 15 Rams fans at the Edward James Dome this Thursday will be thrilled.
Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 
Perhaps it took longer than expected for 
To get you ready for Week 16, 
There was one positive to be found in the Rams' loss to the Packers, 
