Monday, December 31, 2018

Skipping The Game


We always hear that cliché in football that you play for the guy next to you. That works if everyone is one the same page.

Potentially high draft picks are leery about playing in a meaningless bowl game with the risk of potential injury. We have seen that over the years when players have been hurt, impacting their standing in the draft.

Michigan had four starters skip the Peach Bowl. It might have been a factor in the team's 41-15 rout by Florida.

A freak injury can cost a player millions down the road. You can't blame them for looking out for themselves.


Sunday, December 30, 2018

The End of 2018


Today is the last game of the regular season for all teams. For some, it's a bitter end to a campaign that never worked out.

A number of coaches will be fired on Monday. Some will get another head coaching job, but others will either take a step down or never make it back to the NFL.

Assistants will be forced to relocate one more time if they are able to find a job.

Some players have already decided to retire. For others, they don't even know that they have played their last game.

Saturday, December 29, 2018

Playing Odell


Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr will miss the season finale at home against the Cowboys. It will be his fourth consecutive week on the sidelines because of his quadricep injury.

For a guy with a $95 million contract, Beckham has now missed 21 of his 81 total games. The Giants are 25-35 when he has played.

He is only 26 with this future ahead. He wants to break the records of Jerry Rice.

Some players get hit with an injury jinx. Their career is often cut short because of it.

Rob Gronkowski has certainly had his issues with injuries and missed games.

Friday, December 28, 2018

The No-Show Bowl


Two things that college bowl games have in common are strange names due to sponsorship and fake attendance numbers.

The 13th edition of the Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl was no exception.

It's great to see companies step up and pay for naming rights, but they do come up with some strange names.

I watched parts of the game. There was no way 51,000+ people were watching it at NRG Stadium in Houston. Too many empty seats were in view.





Thursday, December 27, 2018

The Bowl Was Never Played


It was very unfortunate that Boston College and Boise State were forced to end their game in the 1st Responder Bowl because of lightning in the Dallas area.

The initial one hour delay ended the game because of more lightning strikes.

Nobody ever thought this could happen. Seniors on both teams will never get a chance to close out their career with a win or loss.

Bowl games are made for television. Could they have waited longer and played the game before only the fans in the stadium? Do they buy insurance against catastrophic events that can influence the game?

It's probably never a good idea to make players, coaches and fans to wait for two hours for a football game. You can do it in baseball. It seems to work.




Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Brady Going Forward


Tom Brady said he will play the 2019 season. He will be a year older, but it doesn't really matter at this point.

TB will play to the end of his career, whenever that is. His passion is so great to see.

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

Go Raiders


The Pats and their fans got a great holiday gift when the Chiefs and Texans lost their games.

If the Pats beat the Jets, they will be the #2 seed and get a first round bye. They can get the #1 if the Chiefs lose to the Raiders.

Everyone should be focused on the Pats winning Sunday. Can't worry about the Chiefs.



Sunday, December 23, 2018

Jason's First


The Pats finally clinched the AFC Eastern Division today with a 24-12 win over the Bills. It was their tenth consecutive year of winning the title.

As Coach Belichick would say, it's just a step along the way. Once the playoffs start, it's a one game season for all teams.

It was a big day for Jason McCourty. He not only had an interception, but will be going to his first playoff game in his ten year career.


Saturday, December 22, 2018

No More Gore This Season


Dolphins RB Frank Gore has been an ironman throughout his NFL career while playing in 126 consecutive games.

It will all come to an end on Sunday due to a season-ending foot sprain suffered in the game against the Vikings.

Gore has played 14 seasons and at the age of 35 has no plans to retire.

He ranks 4th all-time in career rushing yards with 14,734. He has a chance to pass Barry Sanders with 15,269.


Friday, December 21, 2018

Turning The Coaches Over


Over the last two weeks, the fate of several coaches will be determined. Their staffs will be greatly impacted.

Every year, the NFL shuffles the deck with some coaching staffs. People end up at all sorts of other places.

The whole idea is to have another job next season. It might involve another move, but they do it.

Thursday, December 20, 2018

Josh Gordan


Pats fans and everyone else were shocked to hear of the indefinite suspension of WR Josh Gordan for violating his agreement with the NFL regarding substance abuse.

It remains to be seen if he ever plays again. It's a sad story because he is so gifted and talented.

The response from the media and sports talk radio was very disappointing. So many are throwing him under the bus for not being able to finish the season.

A guy like Lawrence Taylor never would have remained in the NFL with his well documented troubles throughout his career, but that was during a different time.





Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Maybe One Wearing


The Pats will have another chance on Sunday to clinch the Eastern Division when they host the Bills.

Their two prior attempts for a "hat and t-shirt day" have been met with losses.

At this point, Coach Belichick probably doesn't even want to see this stuff. If they make an early exit in the playoffs, nobody will ever wear this stuff again.

Tuesday, December 18, 2018

The Pro Bowl Farce


The Pro Bowl selections were announced today. The same thing happens every year. Players that deserve don't make it while others are there because of the voting process.

Fans enjoy being part of the selection, but I don't think it's the best way to do it.

Legacies are defined by honors such as this.


Monday, December 17, 2018

How Many Are There?


The Saints and Panthers had a great game tonight on MNF.

Whenever they showed the crowd, I wondered about the Panther fans. They didn't show up. So many empty seats.

In the end, tickets were sold or distributed. That's all that really matters.

People at the stadium are the "studio audience".

Sunday, December 16, 2018

Things Will Change


The Pats lost 17-10 to the Steelers today. They had so many chances to win that game, but it didn't happen.

Fans are in a panic because their record is 9-5. The Dolphins are two games behind them with two games to play.

Saturday, December 15, 2018

Kyler Murry


The star of Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray shines very bright. In addition to winning the Heisman Trophy, he was also the 9th overall pick in the MLB draft by the Oakland A's.

He has a $4.6 million signing bonus in his pocket and plans to attend spring training. He will also be leading his team in the playoffs for the National Championship.

He has talked about playing both sports. How will this effect his position in the draft? He is also listed at 5'9" which might effect his value.

No matter what happens, he is already a winner with all that cash.

Friday, December 14, 2018

Love The Steelers


As the Pats get ready to play the Steelers in Pittsburgh, there is a chance they could lose this game. That would complicate the playoffs for another week.

Who knows what will happen over the next three games.

The Steelers are such a great franchise.

Thursday, December 13, 2018

Time To Give Up Money


It remains to be seen whether QB Eli Manning is back with the Giants next season.

He is set to earn $23.9 million, an amount which might make him expendable.

He should take a page from the 2015 playbook of brother Peyton when he signed with the Broncos.

Peyton agreed to a $4 million pay cut from his $19 million salary. The team gave him incentives of $2 million each for winning the AFC Championship and Super Bowl. He was successful on both.

Eli needs to give up some money if he plans to stick around.




Wednesday, December 12, 2018

Lamar Time


It looks like time is running for Ravens QB Joe Flacco as Lamar Jackson has taken over the starting job after posting a 3-1 record during his absence.

Flacco will need to look for a new team next year as he enters free agency. There should be a number of possibilities out there, but it won't be in Baltimore as a starter.



Tuesday, December 11, 2018

No Time To Lose


Several teams that are out of the playoffs are trying to finish out the season on a positive note.

It's foolish to think that they should play to lose in order to get a better pick in the first round of the draft.

Future success of a player is never guaranteed. Fans deserve the best effort from their team and want to see wins.


Monday, December 10, 2018

A Great Footnote


Rob Gronkowski is such a part of the Pats legacy. He will be forever known as Gronk.

The light is shining brightly on him after yesterday's final play of the game loss to the Dolphins.

He was on the field as part of the "Hands Team", but he was forced to play defense.

It didn't work out and the Pats lost. That play will always be part of him.


Sunday, December 9, 2018

Three Weeks Left


Fans are in a panic after the Pats lost to the Dolphins on the final play of the game.

How will this impact their playoff hopes with three games left in the season?

Teams need to play their games. Let's see what happens to each of them.

Saturday, December 8, 2018

The Heisman


The Heisman Trophy gets awarded tonight. It has become a recognition for the top college quarterback. It doesn't even guarantee future success in the NFL.

The list of winners in recent years is filled with players who never lived up to their potential.

Friday, December 7, 2018

Miami Tradition


When the Pats play the Dolphins in Miami on Sunday, we know that Tom Brady has a 7-9 record and has lost four of the last five games there.

What does that mean? Can the Pats win? Who knows?

The team has a history of bad games in Miami in December. It goes back a long time.


Thursday, December 6, 2018

Bowling Like It's 2018


The college bowl season begins a week from Saturday with five games. There will be 39 of them leading up to New Year's Day.

The "Final Four" will play on December 29th, with the winners facing off for the National Championship on January 7th.

With a few exceptions, ESPN will televise all of them.

The whole idea of bowl games is to reward teams and throw some money at them. As long as everyone is doing well financially, the game is a winner.


Wednesday, December 5, 2018

The Intersection of Joe & Alex


Back on November 18th, Redskins QB Alex Smith was sacked in a game against the Texans. As his right leg was caught in the ground, he suffered a vicious fracture of his tibia and fibula.

It reminded Redskins fans of the ugly injury of former QB Joe Theismann against the Giants when he suffered a career ending broken leg after getting sacked by Lawrence Taylor.

It happened 33 years to the day, with the same losing score of 23-21 in both games.

Hopefully, Smith makes a full recovery.


Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Browner Gone


It was a surprise to hear that former DB Brandon Browner was arrested back in July for breaking into his girlfriend's house and attempted murder.

He pled guilty to reduced charges and received a prison sentence of eight years.

How did his life get to this point? In a five year career, he was part of the Seahawks "Legion of Boom" and won a Super Bowl with the Seahawks and Pats.

All that is gone now as his plea avoided him getting a life sentence.

Monday, December 3, 2018

Mike Done


I think everyone was shocked to hear of the firing of Packers coach Mike McCarthy after yesterday's loss to the Cardinals.

It happened so fast. Was this already in the works and only a matter of time? The team's 4-7-1 record didn't help.

McCarthy will have his choice of the upcoming coaching vacancies. He gave Green Bay 13 years, but it didn't end well for him.

Sunday, December 2, 2018

Ending For Some In 2018


The Pats beat the Vikings 24-10 today at Gillette Stadium.

The playoffs change week to week.

Teams end their seasons trying to the very end.

Saturday, December 1, 2018

College Playoffs


College football really owned this day with their playoffs. So many great games.

I watched some of the Mountain West Conference Championship game between Boise State and Fresno.

It was a very exciting game that went into overtime before Fresno won 19-16.