Gluttony …

Reports from yesterday said that Joey Chestnut will be barred from competing in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest this July 4^th because Chestnut accepted a “seven figure offer” from the company that makes “Impossible Burgers” – – fake meat – – to endorse that brand.  It turns out that Chestnut only got a $200K appearance fee last year to gorge himself on Nathan’s dogs on Coney Island.  An entity known as Major League Eating puts on the July 4^th extravaganza and was obviously saddened by the loss of the perennial champion hot dog eater; here is what Major League Eating had to say about the matter:

“We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs rather than competing in the 2024 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest.”

I see this as an evolutionary process and not some grand strategic shift of loyalties or anything of the sort.  Here is the path that comes to my mind:

• Gluttony as one of the Seven Deadly Sins morphed into a “sport” which has now retro-evolved into Greed as one of the other Seven Deadly Sins.

So, which of the Deadly Sins might be next – – Wrath or Lust?

Moving on …  The NFL Training camps are still a month off in the future; teams have recently conducted OTAs – – Official Team Activities – – and are into the shindigs known as mandatory minicamps.  Notwithstanding the early status of the upcoming season, it would appear as if the NY Jets were in mid-season form.  It never seems to matter if the Jets field a good team, a mediocre team or a bad team; in any circumstance the Jets provide NFL fans with bountiful drama.  And so, it begins in 2024:

• Aaron Rodgers – – the best QB in franchise history who has played all of one series for the team – – is absent without permission from mandatory minicamp.  Coach Robert Saleh explained that Rodgers was AWOL because he needed to attend an event that is “very important to him.”  Players can be fined for missing mandatory minicamp according to the CBA – – after all, there must be some deference given to the word “mandatory” – – but no one believes the Jets are going to fine Rodgers for his absence.  I will not be surprised if Rodgers does not make it known obliquely or directly that he considers it a breach of faith that the Jets did not excuse his absence – – the equivalent of giving him a Hall Pass for the minicamp.

And …

• Haasan Reddick is also nowhere to be found in the Jets’ mandatory minicamp.  Likewise, his absence is unexcused, and Coach Saleh said that Reddick is subject to fines for his absence.  The Jets acquired Reddick from the Eagles this offseason and inherited his $14M contract for this season.  Reddick wants more and he wants it for longer than the two years remaining on this deal, so that is the stare-down underway for the moment.  Assuming that Reddick misses the entirety of minicamp, the next time Reddick is required to report to the Jets would be at training camp, and that is a month into the future with all sorts of opportunities for leaks to the “Insiders”.

Ladies and gentlemen, the NY Jets appear to be in mid-season form and it’s only mid-June…

Saying with NFL maters but switching gears …  I ran across this data recently regarding the standings of the AFC West Division for the last 21 years.  In that time span:

• The Division Champs have been the KC Chiefs 10 times – – including the last 8 seasons in a row.
• The Division Champs have been the Denver Broncos 6 times.
• The Division Champs have been the San Diego Chargers – – prior to relocation – – 5 times.

Note that the Oakland/Los Angeles/Las Vegas Raiders are absent from that compendium.  Their absence here is all the more stark than is their dominance of their division – – under various names – – in the 1960s and 1970s when the Raiders were division champions 9 times in the 10 seasons from 1967 to 1976.

Next up …  The Canadian Football League regular season began last weekend.  The Grey Cup Champion Montreal Alouettes opened the season against Western Division favorite Winnipeg Blue Bombers and won that opening game handily by a score of 27-12.  The Blue Bombers were at home and were a healthy 7.5-point favorite in the game, but the Alouettes clearly dominated.

The Grey Cup will be hosted by the BC Lions in Vancouver in mid-November this year.  If the Lions want to be in that game on their home field, they will need to up their game; the Lions lost on the road to the Toronto Argonauts in Week 1 by a score of 35-27.

My “favorite” CFL player – – based entirely on his name – – is Bo Levi Mitchell.  [Aside:  I am a “Bo-Liever”…]  Bo Levi is a QB and is with the Hamilton Tiger Cats this season; so, I guess I am all-in on the Ti-Cats for 2024 …

Finally, since today began with a comment on gluttony, let me close with some observations about gluttony:

“Our fear of hypocrisy is forcing us to live in a world where gluttons are fine, so long as they champion gluttony.”  [Jonah Goldberg]

And …

“Gluttony is not a secret vice.”  [Orson Welles]

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