I was watching Friday Night Lights again the other day and couldn’t help but notice the presence of a one James “Boobie” Miles in the film.

For those who haven’t seen the film, Miles is the brash, trash talking running back who gives the Permian Panthers’ hope to win a state football title in Texas.

As far as entertainment value goes, I’d like to nominate Miles as the best athlete in movie history as he is a force from start to finish.

Early on we learn what Miles is all about when we see multiple Division I scouts at Permian’s first practice. We also learn Miles’ attitude towards school as he boldly declares that his favorite class is ‘football’ and he gets great grades because he plays football.

Glad to see he has his priorities straight.

His arrogance is lifted even further when he is seen in the weight room laughing at his teammates working out while he claims that he doesn’t have to work out because “God made Boobie beautiful.”

In his first game, we see the swagger of Deion Sanders and the substance of Emmit Smith in Miles as he runs around defenders like they were little boys. He throws out stiff arms and openly taunts his opponents while scoring, much to the delight of the Permian crowd.

But things take a turn for the worse for Boobie when the backup running back forgets his helmet and Miles has to keep playing in a blowout. As fate would have it, Miles injures his knee and is never the same player again.

From that point, we see Miles accusing a doctor of lying on an examination so his hometown’s team will have an advantage when they play Permian. We also see Miles break down and cry after bidding his teammates goodbye and asking his uncle “what are we gonna do without football? I can’t do nothing else.”

It’s a gripping testament of athletes who put too much stock in their performance on the field and not enough in the classroom. In the end, Miles supports his team at in the state football title game and he seems to have learned his lesson.

While Miles has all the athletic ability in the world, his attitude is not one most coaches would want on their team. Still, his saga, which is based on a true story, shows all of the highs and lows of high school sports and its captured wonderfully in Friday Night Lights.

Here are this week’s NFL Picks:

Seattle at Pittsburgh

A weak Seahawks team walking into Pittsburgh against a Steelers team that just got embarrassed by the Baltimore Ravens – this could get ugly fast.

Pick: STEELERS 34, SEAHAWKS 6

Oakland at Buffalo

The Bills surprised me by dominating the Chiefs and the Raiders had to squeeze by a mediocre Denver team. If Ryan Fitzpatrick plays as well as he did last week (4 TD passes), this could be two in a row for the Bills.

Pick: BILLS 27, RAIDERS 24

Arizona at Washington

Apparently the New York Giants are down this year, but I was impressed with Washington’s defense in their win over the G-Men. They provided pressure all day long and rarely missed a tackle. Maybe they’re that team that sneaks up on everyone.

Pick: REDSKINS 23, CARDINALS 13

Tampa Bay at Minnesota

The Vikings looked good in some aspects against the Chargers, but Donovan McNabb threw for just 39 yards. If you can’t pass the ball in today’s NFL, you aren’t going to win games.

Pick: BUCS 20, VIKINGS 17

Jacksonville at New York Jets

The Jets showed some kinks in their armor as Dallas nearly knocked them off at home, but the Jags still have Luke McCown at quarterback and that’s not a good thing.

Pick: JETS 30, JAGS 10

Chicago at New Orleans

These teams are both great in their own ways, but the Saints had an extra couple of days to prepare for the contest and they’re at home.

Pick: SAINTS 34, BEARS 28

Green Bay at Carolina

These are the games the Super Bowl defending champs need to watch out for. On paper, they should win big, but Cam Newton showed he can make NFL throws last week and the Panther fans will be pumped to see their No. 1 pick in for the first time.

Still, the Panthers’ defense looked shaky at best against Arizona and the Packers have a high powered offense.

Pick: PACKERS 38, PANTHERS 24

Baltimore at Tennessee

The Ravens looked great on Sunday and the Titans are going to struggle to stay in games this year.

Pick: RAVENS 24, TITANS 3

Kansas City at Detroit

The Lions were looking good on Sunday until one of their players committed a mind-numbing 15-yard penalty that helped the Bucs score quicker late in the game. But unlike Detroit teams of the past, the Lions prevailed and hung for a tough road win.

The Chiefs looked pathetic in a home loss to the Bills.

Pick: LIONS 26, CHIEFS 13

Cleveland at Indianapolis

The Colts probably won’t see the playoffs without Peyton Manning, but they should still beat the lowly Browns.

Pick: COLTS 13, BROWNS 10

Dallas at San Francisco

This is the type of game the Cowboys have been known to give away over the last few years. They’re coming off a tough loss against a quality opponent and now they have to go out West to play a feisty 49ers team.

Pick: 49ERS 24, COWBOYS 21

Cincinnati at Denver

If Kyle Orton doesn’t randomly drop the ball before throwing a pass, which led to a huge lost fumble, the Broncos probably would’ve beat the Raiders.

Pick: BRONCOS 20, BENGALS 10

San Diego at New England

While the Patriots’ offense was unstoppable, their defense also allowed Chad Henne to throw for over 400 yards and they made Reggie Bush look like an every down running back. Could be a lot of shootouts for the Pats this year.

Pick: PATRIOTS 40, CHARGERS 27

Houston at Miami

The Texans proved their worth by not just beating, but crushing Indy without Peyton Manning. The AFC South should be there’s to win.

Pick: TEXANS 17, DOLPHINS 14

Philadelphia at Atlanta

Michael Vick’s received plenty of positive coverage from the national media since last season and he’s been told how good he’s been quite often. Something tells me Atlanta fans won’t be happy to see him after he admitted that he didn’t work hard while with the Falcons.

If the boo-birds get to Vick, this one could get out of hand.

Atlanta, which is coming off an embarrassing loss to the Bears, rarely loses at home.

Pick: FALCONS 29, EAGLES 24

St. Louis at New York Giants

With both teams dealing with injuries, this could be a scrappy affair. When in doubt, go against the NFC West, so it’s the Giants by default.

Pick: GIANTS 17, RAMS 13

Last week: 10-6 overall