Category: Uncategorized

You do not need to be an honors graduate of the Harvard Business School to recognize that the US economy is undergoing a period of inflation.  If you want to understand why that is the case and/or how such an economic trend might be altered, you should go and find an honors graduate of the Harvard Business School and get him to explain it to you.  In my simplistic reasoning, things cost more because there is more money out there in the economy than there was before.

Using my simplistic explanation, it is not unreasonable to expect that the sports world will see revenue growth in these times.  And there are reports of just such situations coming to pass.  For example, when the NFL recently announced its new media rights deals, some folks wondered if the prices paid by the media outlets represented a “bubble” – – an economic situation that could not be sustained because the costs were prohibitive to the broadcasters.  Well, here is the current situation:

• Ad rates for NFL in-game time slots are up 7% over last year
• A 30-second time slot in a national game (late afternoon on Sunday or Sunday night or Monday night) cost up to $860,000.
• Networks report that more than 90% of the time slots for all NFL games have already been sold for the run of the regular season.
• Media outlets will take in more than $7B from advertisers over the course of the NFL regular season.

Amazon, CBS, Disney, Fox and NBC will pay the NFL $110B over the next 11 years for the broadcasting rights.  Amazon will have the Thursday Night Football games this year and will certainly take in less money per game from advertisers than the other providers simply because Amazon Prime TV is available to fewer households.  But the other companies look to be in good shape economically since they have playoff games and then FOX has the Super Bowl telecast in February 2023 as added sources of revenue.  FOX reports that it has already sold “a majority of its inventory” for the Super Bowl and that the average in-game time slot is going for more than $6M.

As inflation continues, the networks can look to raise the rates they charge to advertisers while the payments they have to make to the NFL are fixed for the term of the deal.  So, maybe these cost levels for broadcast rights are sustainable after all?

There has been another recent economic event associated with the NFL that deserves a mention.  Recall that one of the Spanos siblings – – a co-owner of the LA Chargers – – was suing her brother and seeking to force the team to be sold claiming that the trust that allows the family to control the Chargers was in a financial state such that it could not meet its obligations.  That lawsuit had interesting potential because the finances of every NFL team other than the Green Bay Packers are not revealed publicly.  A trial of this kind would put a lot of that sort of information in the public domain.

Those folks who were relishing the opportunity to get a peek behind the veil got some bad news about a week ago. The judge in the case ruled in favor of a motion by Dean Spanos that the case would not be heard in open court but would be handled in the NFL’s arbitration system which is about as transparent as a block of granite.  Previously, the NFL named former US Attorney General, Eric Holder, as the person who would handle the arbitration proceedings.

Moving on …  There are reports that Netflix is considering a documentary on Johnny Manziel.  My first reaction was:

• Why would anyone want to know anything more about Johnny Manziel?

But upon reflection, there is something attractive about watching a train wreck – – so long as you do not know anyone on the wrecking train(s).  And a documentary on Johnny Manziel would have train wreck qualities to it because it is a story of a rapid rise to celebrity status followed very quickly by a fall from grace to a status that is almost pitiable.  That is a story arc that a documentary film maker can exploit and sell to the public…

In the business of baseball news, the Oakland A’s would appear to be nearing a crossroads decision about the future of the franchise.  Earlier reports said that representatives of the A’s had met specifically with a billionaire in Las Vegas about specific  undeveloped piece of land that he controls in the city.  Now there is a report that the A’s have notched a victory in court that moves them closer to the ability to build a stadium and a surrounding developmental area in the city of Oakland.  Here is a capsule of what happened there:

• The A’s proposed a humongous developmental project in a waterfront part of the city.  The plan would have a stadium, 3000 units of housing, retail space and a mid-sized hotel built on the plot.  Total cost estimate is $12B.
• The A’s filed the necessary environmental impact statements and those documents were challenged in court by a variety of plaintiffs including the Union Pacific Railroad Company.
• The court ruled in favor of the A’s saying the environmental impact statements were satisfactory.

For the A’s to realize their “Oakland option” the city needs to come up with a chunk of money to cover the development of necessary infrastructure in that part of town.  Currently the area is warehouses and a dock; clearly, that is insufficient in terms of infrastructure for the kind of development envisioned here.  There has been some money appropriated by the State of California and there is an application in for some Federal funding too.  Then the city will have to figure out if it can come up with the rest.

Finally, having mentioned Las Vegas as an option for the A’s above, let me close today with this definition from The Official Dictionary of Sarcasm:

“Las Vegas:  A Nevada gambling and entertainment Mecca that sells itself as a naughty destination for the sexually adventurous nightclub set, when in reality it contains mostly doughy families from the Midwest whose idea of a night at the theater involves either a light show or a magician and row upon row of infirm emphysema cases going from one penny slot machine to another on their mobility scooters.  Sexy stuff, indeed.”

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

 

 

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Let me begin today with a comment about the rumored trade between the Nets and the Lakers which would exchange Russell Westbrook and Kyrie Irving – – along with other guys to make the deal financially allowable.  I have no idea if this exchange of disgruntlement will happen, but I think people are looking at the possible outcomes from such a trade incorrectly.

Most of the reports seem to focus on the potential reunion of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving who had been teammates in Cleveland when the Cavs won the NBA Championship.  That relationship soured to the point where they parted company, but a lot of sand has dropped through the hourglass since then.  LeBron James wants to win another title – – remember he is still two titles behind Michael Jordan and tied in the number of titles with Steph Curry – – because “The Chosen One” needs to be in a class of his own.  Kyrie Irving has not even sniffed another championship since leaving Cleveland.

While that is an interesting storyline that might make the basis for a screenplay and a short film feature, I think the more interesting thing to do is to ponder the Nets’ situation should such a trade take place:

• The Brooklyn Nets would have Russell Westbrook, Ben Simmons and possibly Kevin Durant on their roster as their “Big Three”
• Kevin Durant is a great player – one of the best ever.  He can score and he will play defense even though he is not a great defender.
• Ben Simmons is a “reluctant shooter” which is a good thing because when shooting outside about 6 feet from the basket he is a bad shooter.  Simmons is a demon on defense though…
• Russell Westbrook has never seen a shot he was reluctant to take, and he plays defense as enthusiastically as someone looks forward to a pay cut.

To me, that situation could create great synergy – – or it could collapse like the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.  If that image does not immediately come to mind, here is a refresher for your memory; the refresher only takes 1 minute and 13 seconds…

One other trade speculation involving NBA teams has it that the Knicks would like to acquire Donovan Mitchell from the Jazz.  It surely appears from afar that the Jazz are seeking to do a full “tear-down and rebuild” to the team.  Coach Quin Snyder left town after the Jazz were eliminated from the playoffs; the team traded Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves for 4 first round picks plus the guy the Wolves took in the first round this year.  Mitchell should be an asset that carries a similar value to Gobert’s; so, let the bidding begin…

Let me be clear that I like Donovan Mitchell a lot; having said that, I do not think the Knicks are the best team for him.  I think there are several important reasons why the Knicks should be looking elsewhere to land a star player:

• Mitchell is signed to a contract that runs through the end of the 2024/25 season with a player option for the next year.  He will make between $30.4M next year and up to $34.8M two seasons after that.  The option year would be at a salary of $37.1M.  The Knicks just signed Jalen Brunson to a deal with over $100M so they are not about to trade him.  But they must come up with a package of picks plus players that approaches $30M for the trade to be permissible.
• That salary stipulation puts RJ Barret’s name front and center as a player the Jazz might be happy to have either to build around or to flip in yet another trade.  The Knicks’ problem is that Barrett is the best player they had prior to signing Brunson.
• Mitchell and Brunson would be a strong backcourt tandem to be sure – – but the NBA is not won by small guards with questionable support from “the bigs”.  And if Barrett is gone, the best of the remaining “bigs” would probably be Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson.  That tandem elicits a Meh! from these quarters.
• Randle is the only Knick under contract whose salary in 2022/23 is nearly sufficient to allow a trade for Mitchell; Randle will make $23.9M next year.  The Jazz CEO for Basketball Operations, Danny Ainge, would have to be on some sort of psychedelic trip to consider a Randle for Mitchell swap – – and he may not even want Randle at all given that the Jazz will be rebuilding, and Randle has been in the NBA for 8 years now.

Unless the Jazz value whatever draft capital the Knicks have very highly, acquiring Donovan Mitchell would either gut the Knicks of whatever young prospects they have on the roster and/or denude them of draft picks in the future.  [Aside:  Please see what I said about the NBA not being won by small guards alone…]  Donovan Mitchell would surely be an upgrade for the Knicks – but I do not think it is a good fit for Mitchell or the Knicks in the long run.

Then again, I am not an NBA GM…

One other NBA note today.  The Wizards signed Bradley Beal to a max contract over 5 years worth $251M.  The Wizards had a similar experience with John Wall and a “max contract which they traded away to get Russell Westbrook on a max deal who they then traded away.  You would think that the Wizards would have learned from those experiences that players of that style do not hold up well as they age.

Like I said, I am not an NBA GM…

Finally, having just mentioned Russell Westbrook I ran across an interesting stat about him and his contract with the Lakers.

Assuming Westbrook plays the entire 2022/23 season with the Lakers, he will have made a total of $91.3M in salary from the Lakers.

In 1979, Jerry Buss bought the Lakers franchise PLUS the LA Kings franchise PLUS The Forum from Jack Kent Cooke for a total of only $67.5M.

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

 

 

Congratulations this morning to the Colorado Avalanche; they are the Stanley Cup champions having defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in 6 games.  I will not pretend to be able to provide a meaningful analysis of how or why the Avalanche prevailed here other than to say that as I watched the series progress, it seemed to me that Colorado was faster than Tampa and it is awfully hard to defend against an opponent that you cannot keep up with.

I want to focus on a couple of NBA issues today.  The league is in its offseason – brief as it may be – but there are a bunch of storylines that need following over the next few days and others that will play out over the next couple of months.  The ones that have short-term “deadlines” have to do with players whose contract has expired but who also have player options for one more year.  Those players have until June 29 to choose one of three options:

1. Decline the player option and work out a contract extension with their current team
2. Let the deadline pass and become an unrestricted free agent eligible to sign with any team
3. Exercise that one-year option with their current team.

A report by NBC Sports says that Bradley Beal and the Wizards have agreed on a contract extension.  His option year would have paid him $36.5M but the new contract is purportedly worth $248M over the next 5 years.  Assuming that report to be completely accurate, Beal is setting himself – and most likely his grandchildren – up with an incredibly secure financial future.  At the same time, I suspect that he is consigning himself to being the best player on a mediocre team for the next 5 years.  The players surrounding him on the roster seem to me to be from Lake Woebegone – – everyone thinks they are slightly above average.

Another player who has to make a decision this week is James Harden.  According to a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Harden is going to blend Option 1 and Option 3 above; the report says that he will exercise his one-year option at $47.4M and then sign a short term (2-year) deal with the Sixers on top of that which would give him a 5% increase in salary in each of those two seasons.  James Harden will be 33 years old when the next NBA season tips off; the last time he played in more than 70 games in a season was back in 2018/2019.  I do not want to go hyperbolic here and say that Harden is washed up because he is not; having said that, James Harden is not the player he was 5 years ago, and he is not likely to regain that form any time in the future.  This saga has a couple more days to run before the first shoe drops and Harden opts in for next year at $47.4M.  I think he would be crazy not to do that.

The third player in this situation is the one that brings the most drama to the storyline; that would be Kyrie Irving and that ought not be a huge surprise because Kyrie Irving can create drama over the preparation of a grilled cheese sandwich.  Irving’s option year with the Nets would pay him $36.4M next year; a couple of months ago, he announced that he intended to sign an extension with the Nets but that  seems to have run aground.  Let me try a thumbnail reset here:

• Irving was drafted by the Cavs in 2011.  He was a major part of the Cavs’ NBA Championship team alongside LeBron James in 2016.
• He spent 2 seasons with the Celtics and professed a love for the team and city assuring fans he was there for the long haul – – and then he bailed.
• Signing with the Nets brought him close to his high school neighborhood in Elizabeth NJ and paired him with his friend, Kevin Durant – – but that has not seemed to make Irving into a reliable teammate.

To call Irving “mercurial” is an understatement.  More importantly, he is not reliable in the sense that he has not played in slightly more than half of the Nets’ games over the past 3 seasons.  From the Nets’ perspective, he is a part-time employee pulling down a full-time salary and according to reports, the Nets are not excited about the prospects of seeing that sort of situation perpetuate into the future until such time as Irving begins to whine and demand a trade.

At his best, Kyrie Irving is a dominant player.  When I watch him play, he does his thing so effortlessly that I wonder why everyone else doesn’t do those same sorts of things.  He is indeed a special talent on the court.  On the bench and “on the street”, it is a different story.  Irving does not “elevate the players around him” and he creates drama for himself and by extension for others involved with the team.  Last season, it was his refusal to take the coronavirus vaccine that created a maelstrom; in the past Irving felt it important to let everyone know that he believed that the Earth is flat and for some reason there was a need for scientists to have the general public falsely believe it is spherical.

• [Aside:  Those utterances earned him the nickname “World B. Flat” placing him aside another legendary NBA free spirit, World B. Free.]

The Nets/Irving drama has seen the curtain come down on several acts and another one will come down on June 29.  The question for the Nets at that time will be:

• How much are  you willing to pay for another string of acts in this play titled Irving and the Nets?  [Aside:  Not to be confused with Elton John’s “Bennie and the Jets”…]

The reason that is the central question for the Nets is simple.  History shows that Kyrie Irving cannot exist without “external events” that affect his game or his ability to participate.  When no such circumstances exist, he will manufacture them.  Stay tuned…

Finally, today’s rant has dealt with people who are very rich; and so, I will close with this comment about rich people from George Bernard Shaw:

“What is the matter with the poor is poverty; what is the matter with the rich is uselessness.”

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

 

 

The NBA Finals might be finished tomorrow; the Warriors lead the Celtics 3 games to 2 with tomorrow’s game in Boston.  If a 7^th game is needed it will be Sunday in San Francisco.  The Series so far has been interesting, but the games have not been exciting; the average margin of victory has been 13.4 points per game; every game has been decided by double-digits.  Tomorrow’s game – and Sunday’s game if needed – should be worth your attention.

I want to focus on some of the remarks that Adam Silver made about the league earlier this month before the finals began.  The league did well this year on TV and its playoffs averaged more than 3.5 million viewers per game.  That is good news for the league and for its fans because the league lost a reported $695M to the pandemic.  Moreover, reports say that the losses are not restricted to the “small market teams”; the NY Post reported that the Brooklyn Nets lost at least $50M over the course of the COVID-19 restrictions.

The NBA national media deals expire at the end of the 2024 season; the existing deal will have brought in $24B in revenue to the league at expiration, and one report I read from CNBC suggested that the NBA will seek a multiyear deal worth $75B this time around.  If the league can triple its revenue from TV rights, that should go a long way to erasing the COVID-related losses.

As is always the case when a league Commissioner participates in one of these so-called “State of the League” press events, there is some focus on issues that seem far less important than things like TV ratings and revenue growth.  This year’s press event was no different.

Commissioner Silver said that there is still consideration given to a tournament for NBA teams in the midst of the regular season and that such a tournament might begin as soon as next season – – if they can figure out how to do that.  The Commissioner’s remarks there are important:

“We continue to talk to our Competition Committee about it, our team governors, the Players Association, to see if there’s a way throughout the season to create more meaningful games, more games of consequence, potentially a tournament that would arguably replace some of the regular-season games but would be more meaningful.”

“More meaningful games” and “more games of consequence” for the NBA regular season has been a bugaboo for at least the last 25 years.  There are way too many games that are of zero importance to anyone other than the participants on the floor and I have argued for years that the league needs to find ways to fix that.  My solution has been to shorten the season to 58 games where each of the 30 teams plays every other team twice – – home and away.

I am not sure if the league were to “take a break” and run a single elimination tournament in mid-season if that would add “meaningful games.”  Maybe the last three games of the brackets might be interesting – – or not.  I will say this about the idea of a tournament:

• I cannot imagine a scenario where the Players’ Union would agree to institute a tournament in addition to an 82-game regular season schedule.
• Even without a tournament, it is unusual to find a player who participates in all 82 games; adding more contests would seem to call for more consideration of load management.

One way that pro sports leagues have used to infuse capital into the league is expansion.  Rumors abound that the NBA will expand by two teams as soon as 2024 and that one of them will play in a new arena under construction in Las Vegas.  Silver seemed to throw some water on the specifics of those rumors in his remarks.  He said that indeed it was inevitable for the NBA to expand but that it is not something that is under discussion right now.  On this point, I think the Commissioner is correct.  There are supremely talented players in the NBA – – but there is not a surfeit of them.  Unless the league were to allow teams only to “protect” a starting five from an expansion draft, an expansion team – – or two of them – – would be hideously uncompetitive for several years.  The last team in that position was the Vancouver Grizzlies  It was not until the 5^th season of the team’s existence that it was able to win 20 games in a season.  That is not something that bears repeating.

Switching attention to college basketball, the NCAA Rules Oversight Panel approved “allowing men’s basketball officials to assess Class B technical fouls to players who fake being fouled, beginning in the 2022-23 season.”   A Class B technical foul awards one free throw to the opponent.  Under the current rule/interpretation, the official would give a warning first before calling a “Flopping Tech”.

As a former official, I am of two minds on this one:

• I totally agree with the intent to get flopping out of the game.  Fakery should not be part of basketball at any level.
• I also know that every “flopping call” will have a component to it that requires mind-reading on the part of the official as he/she considers the intent of the potential flopper.  Basketball officials are not mind-readers; these calls – if there are many of them – will be VERY controversial.

Here is the explanation of this new rule interpretation that does not mention mind-reading.  It almost sounds as if you could measure it objectively:

“When evaluating potential flopping situations, officials will be asked to judge whether the player’s physical reaction to the contact with another player is consistent with what would have been expected, given the force of the contact. When the reaction is not consistent, the player is most likely exaggerating the nature of the contact in an attempt to gain an advantage, and flopping has occurred.”

Good luck with this one, folks…

Finally, let me close today with the definition of “Basketball” from The Official Dictionary of Sarcasm:

“Basketball:  A fast-paced and energetic team sport in which two opposing teams attempt score the most points by propelling a large orange ball through a hoop roughly ten feet off the ground.  The game is notable mostly for the fact that it is played in stadiums that used to have some individuality but are now named after a wide variety of telephone companies and office supply retailers.”

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

 

 

Yesterday’s rant was brought to you by The FOG – – The First and Only Grandson – – and I said then that he would produce part of today’s offering as well.  Last weekend, Real Madrid beat Liverpool 1-0 in the finals of the UEFA Champions League.  The FOG was not in attendance but saw the game and sent me this description/analysis:

“The 2021/22 season drew to a close on Saturday the 28^th of May in Paris as the Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid commenced later than planned due to rioting from Real supporters outside the entrance to the Stade de France not allowing many Liverpool fans to enter the stadium. The atmosphere in the stadium was supposedly electric as Liverpool fans hoped for the second Champions League title of manger Jurgen Klopp’s reign whereas Real supporters sought to break their own record for most Champions League wins by making it 14 in total. There was a lot of history between these two clubs as they had met in the Champions League final before in 2018, a match where Liverpool was let down by both bad goalkeeping and an injury to their star player Mohammed Salah caused by Sergio Ramos who went unpunished much to the dismay of the fans.

“When the match finally got under way, around 40 minutes later than expected, Liverpool showed their hand immediately with a high line intended to press the notoriously lacklustre Real defence which had been a sore point for “Los Meringues” all season. It seemed to be working as within the first half hour the Liverpool strikers managed to get shots off frequently challenging Thibaut Courtois, the Real Madrid Goalkeeper. As the half progressed Real began to attack more but they were still looking as if they were outclassed by Liverpool, and it was only a matter of time before Courtois allowed a shot to bulge the net.

“This is until the 40^th minute where Karim Benzema got on the end of a ball over the head of Liverpool centre back, Van Dijk, who was unable to catch up with him. Benzema looked as if he was about to shoot but he hesitated to long and was closed down by Alisson forcing him to lay the ball off to Vinicius Junior who could do little but poke at the ball managing to sneak it past Alisson and back to Benzema who put in the net. His celebrations and those of the Real Madrid fans were cut short though by an offside decision as it turns out that Benzema was behind Alisson leaving only one defender between him the goal line, therefore he was offside, and the goal didn’t count. Little more happened in the first half, and it ended 0-0.

“The second half was much of the same but Liverpool dominance over possession was slightly weaker opening the door for Real Madrid to counterattack. Liverpool continued to bombarde the Real goal forcing Courtois to shut down chance after chance with incredible saves. One that was particularly notable came when Salah expertly took down an over-the-top ball with his first touch but was foiled in his endeavour to give his team the lead by an incredible reaction save. Liverpool looked destined to win until one of those counter attacks combined with an error from Trent Alexander-Arnold and a pinpoint pass from Valverde gave Vinicius Junior an easy tap in to deliver Real the lead after 59 minutes of deadlock.

“Madrid, now with the lead, needed only to see off any more challenges from the Reds and hold on till the final whistle blew, but this would prove harder than expected as Liverpool only upped their chance production as they riddled the Madrid goal with shot after shot each one blocked by an expert save from Thibaut Courtois who I believe deserved a man of the match award as he personally kept “Los Blancos” in the match. As regular time ran out and all hope began to fade for the Liverpool supporters their shots became increasingly desperate coming from outside the box at awkward angles and many of them missing far wide of either post.

“When the clock struck 90 minutes the ref announce that he would be adding 5 minutes of injury time giving new life to the Liverpool team as they continued to press in search of an equaliser. The last few minutes were scrappy and Real Madrid players were taking every opportunity to fall on the ground and waste time with injuries that seemed to magically disappear 20 seconds later. In the end Madrid managed to hang on to their 1-0 lead, adding a 14^th Champions League title to their trophy cabinet despite Liverpool’s dominant and objectively more impressive performance.”

Here are a couple of stats to give you an idea of how Liverpool dominated the action in that game – – to no avail:

• Shots:   Liverpool 24  Real Madrid 4
• Shots on Goal:  Liverpool 9  Real Madrid 2
• Corner Kicks:  Liverpool 6  Real Madrid 2

Moving on …  Let me tie up another “loose end” here.  A week ago, I mentioned that Huddersfield and Nottingham Forest would face each other in a finals match to see which team would be promoted from the English Championship to the English Premier League next season.  The game was played last Sunday, and Nottingham Forest prevailed by a score of 1-0.  That means the three “promoted” teams are Fulham, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest.

I am not going to pretend to be a soccer maven here, but something jumps out at me from the Championship Table last season.

• Fulham averaged 2.3 goals per game
• The next highest scoring team (Bournemouth) averaged only 1.6 goals per game.

In the Premier League last season, only 2 teams averaged more than 2.3 goals per game.  Those two teams – – Manchester City and Liverpool – – finished first and second in the Premier League.  It will be interesting to see if Fulham can continue that sort of offensive prowess against better defenses next year in the top league.

Finally, I received an email from a friend who said he thought I was morphing from a curmudgeon into a pessimist.  Thinking on that “accusation”, I went to see if I could find a distinction and came across this observation by Oscar Wilde:

“Pessimist:  one who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both.”

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

 

 

Well, the “quarterback situation” in the NFL changed just a bit yesterday.  Aaron Rodgers decided to sign with the Packers for 4 years and a deal that could be worth as much as $200M.  I will explain later but here is The Bottom Line regarding that deal:

• Barring catastrophic circumstances, the Green Bay Packers are Super Bowl contenders for the next four seasons.

As if that was not sufficiently impactful news relative to the “quarterback situation” yesterday, there was also a humongous trade.

• Broncos:  Get Russell Wilson plus a fourth-round pick.
• Seahawks:  Get Noah Fant (TE), Shelby Harris (DL), Drew Lock (QB), two first-round picks, two second-round picks and a fifth-round pick.

The Broncos have been in a “quarterback wasteland” ever since they won the Super Bowl and Peyton Manning retired.  Here are the eleven players who have started at QB for the Broncos since the team last won the Lombardi Trophy:

1. Trevor Siemian (24 starts)
2. Drew Lock (21 starts)
3. Case Keenum (16 starts)
4. Teddy Bridgewater (14 starts)
5. Joe Flacco (8 starts)
6. Paxton Lynch (4 starts)
7. Brock Osweiler (4 starts)
8. Brandon Allen (3 starts)
9. Jeff Driskel (1 start)
10. Philip Lindsey (1 start)
11. Brett Rypien (1 start)

The Broncos gave up a lot to get themselves stability at the quarterback position; that list should explain why they were so anxious for some stability.

I said I would explain why the Packers are now Super Bowl contenders for the next 4 seasons.  With Russell Wilson leaving the NFC in this trade, the imbalance in “star quarterbacks” between the NFC and the AFC has gotten even worse.  If I were to list the “Elite QBs” in the NFC this morning, Aaron Rodgers would go on the list, and no one would object.  After Rodgers, you might have to squint to add anyone to the list:

• Matt Ryan – – maybe
• Matthew Stafford – – maybe
• Kyler Murray – – not yet
• Dak Prescott – – maybe
• You get the idea…

Now do the same sort of listing for “Elite QBs” for teams in the AFC:

• Josh Allen – – sure
• Joe Burrow – – highly probable
• Derek Carr – – maybe
• Justin Herbert – – sure
• Lamar Jackson – – maybe
• Trevor Lawrence – – ???
• Patrick Mahomes – – sure
• Russell Wilson – – sure

By the way, if Deshaun Watson ever suits up again with the Texans, you can add him to the of AFC Elite QBs too.  The path to the Super Bowl in the NFC looks to be a lot less cluttered than is the path in the AFC.

• [Aside:  Thinking about quarterbacks brought this to mind.  Kenny Pickett (Pitt) is going to be drafted this year notwithstanding his small hands.  There have been lots of stories about him and every time I see his picture, he reminds me of “Bo Callahan” – the QB who everyone thought would be the first player taken in the movie, “Draft Day”.   Use Google images to see if you agree with me…]

The thread to the next topic is tenuous, but another “Broncos’ QB” has been in the news recently.  Brian Griese was originally drafted by the Broncos and played in the NFL for eleven seasons.  Since retiring in 2009, Griese has been in the broadcasting booth making it to the Monday Night Football announcing team on ESPN.  Griese has recently left ESPN to take a job with the Niners as their QB coach.

I think this is an excellent career move for Brian Griese.  I doubt that he had a lot of “growth potential” left in the broadcasting business; he had reached his level of competence.  But he is only 47 years old and that is not exactly “retirement age” for most folks.  So, this job offers him a challenge and an opportunity to become a “hot commodity” in the assistant coaching profession.  The Niners have a rookie they must like in Trey Lance; after all , the Niners traded up in the Draft to take him with the 3^rd overall pick last year.  If Griese works with him and Lance emerges as a young star QB, Brian Griese – – rightly or wrongly – – will inherit the aura of a “Quarterback Whisperer”.  Those folks are almost as coveted as “Franchise QBs”…

Bonne chance Brian Griese…

Finally, #2 son sent me a note yesterday with a line from Saturday Night Live, Weekend Update that ties together current events and the sports world in a tidy package:

“Some people have been surprised that the Russians, despite superior firepower, have been slowed by aging equipment, poor motivation, and inept leadership.  So basically, they’re the Lakers.”

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

 

 

I will be “off the air” for the next week.  My long-suffering wife and I are going to the Maryland Eastern Shore for some sightseeing and seafood.  Maybe I will be back in time to write next Friday (Feb 18); if not, I’ll be back on Monday (Feb 21)

Stay well, everyone…

            The MLB Hall of Fame ballot for next year is out.  There are 13 new names on the ballot for the first time and only four of them are worth more than even a passing glance:

1. Ryan Howard
2. Tim Lincecum
3. David Ortiz
4. Alex Rodriguez

Howard and Lincecum had their moments in the spotlight during their MLB careers, but I truly do not think of them as “HoF material.”  The candidacies of both Ortiz and Rodriguez will be interesting to track – – because there are two players who will be on the Hall of Fame ballot for the tenth and final time this year:

• Barry Bonds
• Roger Clemens

Bonds and Clemens have provided us with a decade-long debate about what it means to put a player in the Hall of Fame.  Neither player has been ”proven beyond a reasonable doubt” as a steroid user; nonetheless, many people – me included – think that they did indeed enhance their longevity and their statistics with some “biochemical assistance”.  Make no mistake here; my opinion on that matter is not relevant because it is nothing more than an opinion, but it has been a sticking point for many of the folks who vote for Hall of Fame inductees.

If you look purely at “the numbers”, there is no question that both Bonds and Clemens belong in Cooperstown.  If you want to “downgrade” some of those numbers because you think they are “chemically enhanced”, go right ahead and I still think Bonds and Clemens belong in the Hall of Fame with whatever reasonable degradation you might apply.  But the voters have looked beyond the numbers for these two players for the last ten years.

Now onto the ballot come David Ortiz and A-Rod.  There are more than a few whispers out there that Ortiz was “a user”.  There is no good evidence, but the whispers persist.  A-Rod is a different story; basically, he was caught twice with positive tests and served a full year’s suspension from the Commissioner.  Here is the question:

• Will the “behavioral component” of the voting that has kept Bonds and Clemens out of the Hall of Fame and on the ballot for a decade be applied to either Ortiz or Rodriguez – – or both?

Interestingly, the “behavioral component” I referenced above is also a significant part of why another player is on the ballot for the tenth and final time this year.  Curt Schilling’s numbers – particularly in the playoffs and in the World Series – clearly tell me that he belongs in the Hall of Fame.  However, Curt Schilling is a wing nut who has espoused publicly more than a few off-center views of the world and the US political scene.  [Aside: I have no interest in discussing/debating some of his stated positions so let me leave it that I consider many of them to be “off-center”.]

Here is my suggestion:

• Recognize that all five of the “controversial candidates” here (Bonds, Clemens, Ortiz, Rodriguez and Schilling) belong in the Hall of Fame when you consider their accomplishments on the field.
• So, put them in there.  And also add a small second plaque to the standard one that is there for other great players like Aaron and DiMaggio and Mays and Ruth and Williams where the small added plaque says to visitors, some of the stats that got these guys admitted here may have been “chemically enhanced”.  [I will leave it to the baseball poets to come up with more acceptable prose here.]

Finally, since three of the five players (Clemens, Ortiz and Schilling) I have mentioned here as being at odds with the “behavioral component” of Hall of Fame voting played for the Boston Red Sox, let me close with this observation about Boston by comedian, Fred Allen:

“I have just returned from Boston.  It is the only thing to do if you find yourself up there.”

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

 

 

Since I am about to embark on a topic this morning that is laden with political nuances and sentiments let me declare my personal politics in a generic way:

• I am not a Democrat.
• I am not a Republican.
• I am a Pragmatist.

I have not been able to buy into the ideologies or whatever passes for the guiding principles of either of the major US political parties for all of my adult life and both parties fail to attract me to their way of thinking because neither party can accomplish what they say they want to accomplish when they are “in power”.  What I care about in politics is successful achievement of new laws and new policies and new procedures that make life better.  To say that for the most part I have been “politically disappointed” over the last 50 years or so would be an understatement.

It is with that admittedly jaded attitude that I read last week that President Biden said he was “considering” a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics to be held in Beijing as a way to protest and to put pressure on the Chinese government to amend their human rights policies and practices.  The President is only considering preventing US diplomats and functionaries from attending the Games; the US athletes would be there to compete.

Since I am a political Pragmatist, it should not be much of a surprise that I think the US President should not “consider” such a thing for more than about a nanosecond because keeping US diplomats somewhere other than in Beijing during the Winter Olympic Games is not going to cause any change in behavior on the part of the Chinese government.  It just isn’t.

Even worse than pretending that such a symbolic gesture will cause even a minor change is the fact that we have empirical evidence that Olympic boycotts do not work.

• In the late 1970s, President Carter was mightily miffed by the audacity of the Soviet Union to send army troops into Afghanistan.  The 1980 Summer Olympic Games were going to be held in Moscow and President Carter kept the US athletes home and out of the competition.
• That boycott changed the behaviors of the Soviet leaders and the Soviet army not even a little bit.  It was not until the end of the 1980s that the Soviets pulled their troops out of Afghanistan – long after everything about the 1980 Summer Olympic Games had faced from memory.
• Then in 1984, the Soviets chose to boycott the Summer Olympic Games that were held in Los Angeles.  About a dozen countries generally aligned with the Soviet Union joined that boycott which had no discernable effect on the Los Angeles Games.

An Olympic boycott is feckless; a diplomatic boycott of Olympic games is an expression of impotence.  And on another plane of thinking, would the US government change any of its fundamental behaviors based on our precepts because a foreign government made it clear to us that they think we are doing the wrong things within our borders?  I doubt it.  And so, we need to step back and be sure that we are not carrying a burdensome load of hubris when we take such positions.

When I read about this action being “under consideration”, I had to check and see what it meant to have diplomats boycott Olympic Games since I was certain that there were no athletic competitions reserved for members of the diplomatic corps of various countries.  If you did not know, First Lady, Jill Biden led a US diplomatic delegation to the Tokyo Games earlier this year.  Until this weekend, I was unaware of such a delegation, and I am still unaware of its purpose or its achievements.  But, now you know…

And while I am on the subject of useless and unproductive things, let me propose a Quick Quiz.  We have not had one of these in quite a while around here so let me pose the question and the form of the response:

What is the most useless and why:

• Weekly NFL “Power Rankings”
• Weekly College Football Rankings
• “Bracketology” columns written in November?

Fifty words or less…

Finally, Dwight Perry had an interesting comment on another possible intersection between sports and politics in the Seattle Times over the weekend:

“House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy spoke for 8½ hours into the early hours Friday morning in futile opposition to President Biden’s social spending bill.

“Veteran observers say it was like watching a Yankees-Red Sox doubleheader.”

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

 

 

Last week, there was a story at CBSSportsline.com saying that Ben Simmons’ agent, Rich Paul, claims that the Sixers are worsening Simmons’ mental health by levying fines on him for not playing/practicing/being part of the team and by giving him negative publicity because he has not done any of those things.  Simmons has been asking for a trade for several months now and that is at an impasse because the Sixers cannot get a deal done that gets them a return they feel is sufficient.  This has become a chicken and egg situation.

• Simmons is being fined and is the subject of negative publicity because of his refusal to be part of the Sixers.  He claims that he needs to look out for his mental health.
• Other teams do not want to give up valued assets to acquire someone who may revert to that sort of status after they trade for him.
• Rinse and repeat…

And that brings me to the story that appeared last week.  It would seem to me that a player agent is retained and paid to elevate the player’s stature in the eyes of coaches/GMs and fans.  On that axis, I do not see how the claims made last week move things on a positive vector heading for Ben Simmons.  Here is a link to the story from last week.  I am not qualified to say – nor do I have any vested interest in the outcome of this contretemps – anything related to Simmons’ mental health status, but how do the statements made by Rich Paul enhance Simmons’ trade value which is one of the key elements in getting him off the Sixers’ roster and onto another roster where he will be happier to play basketball?  I just don’t get it.

Over the weekend, a friend pointed out to me that the Washington Wizards have the best record in the Eastern Conference so far in the 2021/22 season; that record is 9-3.  I have seen a couple of their games and parts of other games and there is a significant difference between the Wizards of this year and the Wizards of the past couple of years:

• This year’s team actually plays defense!

Last year for sure and probably stretching back another year or so, the Wizards idea of “tight defense” meant that as the opponent was dunking the basketball, one or more of the Wizards players still had their eyes on him.  Even more importantly, the Wizards of this season box out and get rebounds; in fact, as of this morning the Wizards lead the entire NBA in defensive rebounds per game (39.1 rebounds per game) which is due to opponents missing shots because they are competently guarded and the fact that Wizards’ players are contesting the boards this year.

The Wizards have a new coach this year – – Wes Unseld, Jr.  He came to the team with a reputation that he focused on defensive basketball more than previous coaches of the Wizards had done.  Perhaps it is genetic because his father was a defensive force – and a rebounder par excellence – for all of his career in the NBA.  The Wizards are on track to win more than 60 games this season; it is far too early to make that sort of leap of faith even for team fanboys, but they are playing a much more intense style of basketball this year; and so far, it has put them in a good spot.

As I noted in a previous rant, there is not going to be a lot of free agent signings/movement in MLB until and unless there is a new CBA in place; the current one expires on December 1^st.  However, once things get sorted out and there is a new CBA, there could be some interesting free agent/potential free agent doings.  Consider:

1. Freddie Freeman is a free agent.  Freeman has been in the majors for 12 seasons all of them with the Braves.  Back in the 50s and 60s, they used to call Ernie Banks, “Mr. Cub” for his importance to the Cubs’ franchise.  I doubt that anyone in Atlanta would argue that since 2010 when Freeman debuted with the Braves any other player would challenge him for the label “Mr. Brave.”  Freeman is 32 years old as of September of this year; it will be interesting to see what sorts of offers he gets and – potentially – might he give the Braves a “hometown discount”.
2. This is the “Year of the Shortstop”.  There are five young shortstops who have hit free agency all in the same year and all five of them are excellent players.  In alphabetical order they are Javier Baez, Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien and Trevor Story; each of these five players should command a nice fat contract that stretches over more than 5 years.  There will be some sort of internal jockeying among agents for these players to see which one sets the market by signing first and then how others might – or might not – be able to leverage their deals off the deal signed first.  Adding to that sort of contract dynamic is the fact that the New York Yankees are in desperate need of a shortstop this year; it is inconceivable to me that they will start the 2022 season with Gelyber Torres at shortstop.  The Yankees do not have a history of penny-pinching.  Now add to the mix that Corey Seager might sign with a team other than the Dodgers where he has been for his major league career; if that happens, then the Dodgers would also be in the market for a shortstop, and they too have deep pockets.

It could take a while for the MLB free agent signing season to gather any momentum, but when it does, it could get very interesting very quickly.

Finally, here is a baseball-related item from Dwight Perry in the Seattle Times:

“Ex-White Sox slugger Frank Thomas has purchased majority ownership of the ‘Field of Dreams’ movie site.

“The sale was approved by a 24-3 vote of the ghosts in the cornfield.”

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