(most of the Ray Lewis pics on Google image search are kind of dull, so Patrick Bateman suggested this one of Huey, instead)

Just when I was thinking Prince’s decision to cover Dave Grohl rather than perform his own “Sexy Motherfucker” would deny us The Most Obvious Phil Mushnick Column of all time, the New York Post’s self-appointed protector of all that is good and noble turned on the idiot box much earlier than I did yesterday.

Throughout this NFL season, ESPN made shame-shame at the Bengals. Seven Bengals arrested, one four times. Then an eighth, and now nine.

But yesterday, on its Super Bowl pregame, ESPN was proud to introduce its “special guest analyst,” Ray Lewis. That’s Ray Lewis, the Ravens linebacker who copped an obstruction plea in a still unsolved double murder.

After all, Lewis was the MVP of Supe 35. But Lewis made news at Supe 34, too. That one was in Atlanta. That was where and when those two men were shot dead.

Yep, Ray Lewis, a fellow who impeded the investigation of a still unsolved double murder, was chosen by ESPN as yesterday’s guest analyst. But, oh, those bad, bad Bengals.

I don’t recall Phil expressing nearly as much outrage over ESPN’s employ of Bill Romanowski during the network’s NFL draft coverage, but then again, Romo’s not actually killed anyone. Not for a lack of trying, however.