It’s About People Today …

Kudos today to Derek Jeter and Larry Walker.  They will be inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in 2020.  Jeter missed a unanimous vote by one; I am not sure what that voter thought might be missing from Jeter’s curriculum vitae and I prefer not to ask.  Larry Walker’s statistics do not damage the fabric of the Hall of Fame leading me to wonder why it took more than a decade of voting to recognize his achievements.  No matter: they are both in…

Over in the NBA, the “news” is that the Nets’ Kyrie Irving is hurt yet one more time.  He already missed 7 weeks of this season with a shoulder injury; and soon after he returned from that set back, he torched many of his teammates saying that the team needed significant upgrades at various positions in order to be a contender.  Obviously, his current injury has not disabled his tongue and larynx because this is part of what he had to say on Monday of this week:

“When I was out for those seven weeks and not saying anything and still people are still saying things about me. It’s inevitable. They crucified Martin Luther King for speaking about peace and social integration.“

Indeed, on the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Kyrie Irving put himself in the same paragraph with Dr. King.  I don’t know abut you, but I think that deserves a facepalm.  Nonetheless, Irving went on to say that fans who criticize him need to realize that basketball is just a game and that it should not be taken with the same seriousness as real life struggles.  At that point in the interview, my reaction was:

• If it is just a game and you feel that you are subjected to criticism and vilification beyond what the game is worth, why do you continue to play?  You can’t possibly need the money; so, why not take your family and go do something else where – if you receive criticism – it is in the pursuit of something worthy of critique.

Moving on…  The Atlanta Hawks are at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings at 10-34.  The Golden State Warriors are at the bottom of the Western Conference standings at 10-35.  I wonder if the players on the 1973 Philadelphia 76ers popped open any champagne bottles when every team in the league achieved its 10^th win of the season.  After all, that perpetuates the legacy of the 1973 Sixers as the team with the worst record in NBA history at 9-73.

Recently there were reports that Chad Johnson was going to audition with the XFL as a placekicker.  He had posted a video of himself kicking a 60-yard field goal on a field by himself.  The time for the tryout/workout came and Johnson was a no-show; if there has been an explanation for that, I have not found it.

If you peruse the various Internet sports sites these days or if you listen to your local sports radio programming, you are almost certain to encounter a topic that is space-filling (on the Internet) and time-filling on sports radio.  That topic could be titled:

• Quo vadis Tom Brady?

This topic is juicy because it involves one of the most visible sports figures of the times and it has all sorts of tea leaves waiting to be read.  The problem is that none of the Internet pieces nor any of the sports radio segments begins with this disclaimer:

• What follows here is pure speculation with no insights based in fact.  Moreover, may of the ideas here are recycled from other accounts.  And by the way, the folks who will make the ultimate decision on where Tom Brady plays football next year – if he plays at all – are not going to seek my opinion on the deal.

The “stock answers” to the question of where Tom Brady will play next year seem to condense to 3 scenarios:

1. He stays with the Patriots
2. He goes to the Chargers – and with Philip Rivers moving his family to Florida last week that put some energy into that realm of speculation.
3. He goes to the Titans to play for his former teammate Mike Vrabel.

I would like to suggest a different landing spot for tom Brady next year.  Like all the other bits on this topic, it has no basis in fact.  It is however something that a rational decision maker might give a second thought.  I believe that Tom Brady should seriously consider playing for the Indianapolis Colts.  Here’s why:

• I assume that he would want to play for a team that could contend for a Super Bowl title – meaning that half the league is off the table from the beginning.
• I assume that he would only go to a team where he was the starter.  That eliminates a whole bunch of teams that are contenders but already have good young QBs on their roster.
• The Colts have the sorts of assets that could maximize Tom Brady’s skills.  They have a very good running back (Marlon Mack); they have a good offensive line (allowed only 2 sacks per game last season); they have good pass catchers, but they only ranked 30^th in the league in passing yards per game last season.
• The Colts’ defense gave up fewer yards per game than 4 teams that made the playoffs this season (Texans, Seahawks, Packers, Chiefs).
• The incumbent QB in Indy is Jacoby Brisset.  He and Tom Brady were teammates in New England for a year and presumably they have a constructive relationship.

There is a downside of course.  For the entirety of his career, Tom Brady has played for an organization with a calm and guiding hand at the top in owner Robert Kraft.  Let me just say that every adjective one might use to describe the Colts’ ownership might not be completely laudatory.

• Quo vadis Tom Brady?
• I really don’t know – – but I think he might want to consider the Colts…

Finally, my “advice” to Tom Brady is free so its value is immediately evident.  In addition, let me leave you with this entry from The Official Dictionary of Sarcasm:

“Advice:  The only thing in the world more unwelcome than a baby in a movie theater.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………