Rugby is often seen as a tough-man's game, often populated with fights, under-punished by both on-field referees and off-field tribunals in the interest of the show going on.
Well, Italy's national side, in losing to England recently, may have had something to say about that, if the strategy discussed in this Deadspin article takes wider foot.
It may well open the game up and stop a lot of the cheap shots.
Basically, often what happens is when a player is downed in rugby, a complete mess with very few rules results as a number of players attempt to either contest the ball or keep the ball on their side. This mass of players, called a "ruck", often results in cheap shots, fouls (called or otherwise), and, eventually, fights.
The key rule here is, when a ruck is formed, no player from their own side of the ruck can pass over to the other side of the ruck.
So, what happens when there's no ruck on a tackle? That is, once a tackle is made, they just get off the guy?
Italy tried that against England, and pissed them off. The referee, however, correctly called that there was only tackles, no rucks, with Italy, and, hence, Italy could get on the offensive side of the ball and camp out there (a practice illegal if a ruck is formed).
England, after winning with three late tries, wants the rules changed to make that illegal too.
I like Italy's tactic here. Get the cheap-shot business off the field and let the game flow a bit more.
Monday, February 27, 2017
Ref Abuse: We Knew It Was Coming...
The NJCAA National Hockey Championship game was terminated and forfeited Saturday night when one of the players of one of the five schools of this division attacked a referee and was arrested.
We knew this was coming. There has been far too much referee abuse making the national media the last several years. We had to know it would get at least this far at some point.
The player, Brandon Day, has been charged with second-degree harassment, disorderly conduct, and fourth-degree criminal mischief under New York Law.
There is no apparent special reference in New York's Penal Code 120, for assault and other similar crimes, against a sports referee.
The disorderly conduct charge (240.20) is a minor violation. So is second-degree harassment (240.26).
It's the criminal mischief charge (145.00) that can get him one year in New York jail. I'm not clear why something in Penal Code 120 was not also invoked here.
In fact, reading 145.00 here, it sounds like Day is being mis-charged.
Since there were only five schools this year, the NJCAA has terminated sanctioning of men's ice hockey.Erie Community College (NJCAA) player storms out of penalty box to level referee late in 3rd period, ending national title game pic.twitter.com/UuJYjSER3K— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 26, 2017
We knew this was coming. There has been far too much referee abuse making the national media the last several years. We had to know it would get at least this far at some point.
The player, Brandon Day, has been charged with second-degree harassment, disorderly conduct, and fourth-degree criminal mischief under New York Law.
There is no apparent special reference in New York's Penal Code 120, for assault and other similar crimes, against a sports referee.
The disorderly conduct charge (240.20) is a minor violation. So is second-degree harassment (240.26).
It's the criminal mischief charge (145.00) that can get him one year in New York jail. I'm not clear why something in Penal Code 120 was not also invoked here.
In fact, reading 145.00 here, it sounds like Day is being mis-charged.
Friday, February 24, 2017
A "Danger, Will Robinson" moment for Brian Tuohy...
I'll let the man tell you himself...
When are people going to get smart and just shut down soccer in Italy to begin with?
Of course, this comes in the same week that Sutton United's reserve goalkeeper, Wayne Shaw, was caught spot-fixing, forced to leave the team, and permanently sullied one of the grand stories in the FA Cup.
(But there is another: Arsenal's next opponent is Lincoln City, the first fifth-level team to reach the quarterfinals of the FA Cup in over a century.)
The spot-fixing, if there is one thankful moment of this, was effectively taking advantage of that the match was at Sutton United, a similar fifth-tier side. At halftime, it was apparently being discussed at the sideline that 8-1 odds had been placed that the portly reserve goalkeeper (who I also believe was a coach) would eat a pie on the sideline.
So he ordered one and did just that!
Shaw is now under investigation by the FA, which as rules against such conduct in the top eight levels of English soccer. A conviction probably ends his career, as usual bans for this are multiple years.
Also, this week, it was revealed that at least 53 players have run afoul of similar regulations in just over two years of a Gambling Commission, including...
... wait for it...
Joey Barton!
We may finally be rid of him.
After his attempt to get Queens Park Rangers demoted from the Premier League in 2012:
The Football Association has evidence, so it claims, that Barton placed over 1,260 bets on soccer matches illegally over a 10-year period (2006-2016).
It is currently unknown where the process stands -- he has asked for mitigation in a personal meeting, but how Joey Barton is ever allowed on any football pitch in the world is beyond me.
And, given the scope of the betting illegalities, one can only re-ask the question regarding that (in)famous day at Manchester City.
Italy. AGAIN...So I got an email offer from someone in Italy asking for me to help fix a soccer match. Who should be most concerned? Me, the guy, FIFA...?— Brian Tuohy (@TheFixIsInTuohy) February 21, 2017
When are people going to get smart and just shut down soccer in Italy to begin with?
Of course, this comes in the same week that Sutton United's reserve goalkeeper, Wayne Shaw, was caught spot-fixing, forced to leave the team, and permanently sullied one of the grand stories in the FA Cup.
(But there is another: Arsenal's next opponent is Lincoln City, the first fifth-level team to reach the quarterfinals of the FA Cup in over a century.)
The spot-fixing, if there is one thankful moment of this, was effectively taking advantage of that the match was at Sutton United, a similar fifth-tier side. At halftime, it was apparently being discussed at the sideline that 8-1 odds had been placed that the portly reserve goalkeeper (who I also believe was a coach) would eat a pie on the sideline.
So he ordered one and did just that!
Shaw is now under investigation by the FA, which as rules against such conduct in the top eight levels of English soccer. A conviction probably ends his career, as usual bans for this are multiple years.
Also, this week, it was revealed that at least 53 players have run afoul of similar regulations in just over two years of a Gambling Commission, including...
... wait for it...
Joey Barton!
We may finally be rid of him.
After his attempt to get Queens Park Rangers demoted from the Premier League in 2012:
- He was fined 75,000 pounds, docked six weeks wages for another 500,000 pounds, and banned 12 matches for the incidents in a last-day match against Manchster City.
- He was loaned to Marseille in France for six months, banned to just the UEFA Europa League for the relevant twelve matches, and announced he would not return to QPR -- who were relegated in 2012-13.
- He was, by May of 2013, given a two-match suspended ban for an inappropriate remark about a player from Paris-St. Germain on Twitter.
- Barton, then, inexplicably, was allowed back to Queens Park Rangers for the 2013-14 season in the Championship (second-level to the Premier League). This, after he told the media he had only joined QPR for the money AND that QPR's chairman actually said that Barton's departure had a part to play in the team's demotion!
- He lasted two years, was sent off twice, and finally left QPR for Burnley in 2015.
- West Ham wanted to sign him, but fans protested, noting Barton's long indiscipline record.
- He largely stayed out of trouble at Burnley, being a major factor in their promotion in 2015-16 to the Premier League. He was actually named to the all-league team.
- At which point he left for Scotland and Rangers. He lasted the off-season and maybe a month of the main year. Banned for three weeks after a dispute with his coach, he was finally fired from the team after a one-match ban for gambling in November of 2016.
- Returning to Burnley at this first of this year...
The Football Association has evidence, so it claims, that Barton placed over 1,260 bets on soccer matches illegally over a 10-year period (2006-2016).
It is currently unknown where the process stands -- he has asked for mitigation in a personal meeting, but how Joey Barton is ever allowed on any football pitch in the world is beyond me.
And, given the scope of the betting illegalities, one can only re-ask the question regarding that (in)famous day at Manchester City.
Islam to become illegal in 3??? 2??? 1???
Muhammad Ali Jr. was detained for questioning at a Florida airport on February 7.
This makes the son of The Greatest almost-certainy the highest profile victim of Herr Troomp's Muslim immigration ban.
Of course, as the Deadspin article's commenters quickly note, Trump doesn't even understand Muslim sports heroes in this country...
Oh, like Jr.'s FATHER??? Or does Donald Trump actually believe that he was Cassius Clay -- Ali's "slave name".
This makes the son of The Greatest almost-certainy the highest profile victim of Herr Troomp's Muslim immigration ban.
Of course, as the Deadspin article's commenters quickly note, Trump doesn't even understand Muslim sports heroes in this country...
Oh, like Jr.'s FATHER??? Or does Donald Trump actually believe that he was Cassius Clay -- Ali's "slave name".
Saturday, February 18, 2017
Super Farce LI(E): Please tell me they're not doing this...
Brian Tuohy retweeted something this morning:
Oh. Dear. God.
Bleacher Report reported Thursday from Anita Busch at Deadline that a film and a book are being commissioned to take this entire fucking farce that is Tom Brady of the last three years (Deflategate to Super Bowl LI(E)) and turn it into a redemption story...
The jokes just write themselves.
Now all we need to know is when in about December or so the plans began...
So, time to click the URL in the thing to see if this is really happening...@TheFixIsInTuohy have you seen this? pic.twitter.com/eMTPVLq5fV— LooseCannon (@cklegend7) February 18, 2017
Oh. Dear. God.
Bleacher Report reported Thursday from Anita Busch at Deadline that a film and a book are being commissioned to take this entire fucking farce that is Tom Brady of the last three years (Deflategate to Super Bowl LI(E)) and turn it into a redemption story...
The jokes just write themselves.
Now all we need to know is when in about December or so the plans began...
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
And now we have another state wanting to join North Carolina in American Sports Apartheid...
The governor of the state of Texas, Transphobe Greg Abbott, wants passed an anti-transgender bathroom bill.
The NFL has told said state that such passage might well terminate any hope of Texas hosting the Super Bowl in the future.
The governor of the state has said, according to Deadspin, that the NFL is "walking on thin ice", also referencing the Colin Kaepernick debacle.
He may wish to talk to his religious brethren in North Carolina, who have lost:
Next year's Men's Final Four, however, is in San Antonio.
As such, I leave you with this message I have sent to the Governor of the State of Texas, both his news and personal Twitter accounts:
The NFL has told said state that such passage might well terminate any hope of Texas hosting the Super Bowl in the future.
The governor of the state has said, according to Deadspin, that the NFL is "walking on thin ice", also referencing the Colin Kaepernick debacle.
He may wish to talk to his religious brethren in North Carolina, who have lost:
- The NBA All-Star Game this year
- The ACC Football Championship Game, at least for this year
- At least one year of NCAA Championships, including one pod of the first two rounds.
- And as now threatened that, if their anti-transgender bill is not rescinded, that ban will until at least 2022, for ALL NCAA Championships. They have until the end of February, according to Deadspin.
- The Women's Basketball Final Four is in Dallas this year. (The day after the corresponding rounds of the Men's.)
- The Division I (FCS) Football Championship is held in Frisco, TX. (Was held on January 3, 2017)
- The Men's and Women's Indoor Track and Field Division I Championships are in College Station, TX this year. (Second weekend in March)
- The Men's Swimming and Diving Division III Championships are in Shenandoah, TX this year. (Third weekend in March)
- The Women's Golf Division III National Championship is in Houston this year (Second weekend in May).
- The Division II Baseball National Championship is in Grand Prairie, TX this year (end of May, first of June).
Next year's Men's Final Four, however, is in San Antonio.
As such, I leave you with this message I have sent to the Governor of the State of Texas, both his news and personal Twitter accounts:
@GovAbbott @GregAbbott_TX Just a reminder: If you sign that transphobic piece of shit bill, you lose next year's Final Four. #Fact— Michael Falkner (@darkstar7646) February 16, 2017
NHL Suspension Blotter: One Big One In, Another Bigger One Coming
- Detroit Red Wings: Gustav Nyquist got off light here.
He was suspended six games today after a phone hearing, and, if you see the shot Spurgeon took, should've been 10.
Of course, that's about half what another player might be expecting.
- Anaheim Ducks: Antoine Vermette.
Word is he's probably looking at 10 when the announcement comes tomorrow.
Sunday, February 12, 2017
Two utter and complete facepalms this Sunday which have to leave you thinking: "What were they THINKING?"
Two cases of unsportsmanlike conduct which just leave my face in my hands this morning:
First, the United States Tennis Association was forced to apologize to Germany. Before the Federation Cup matches, the USTA had someone sing their national anthem...
According to Deadspin, however, there was a major problem. Instead of "Deutschlandlied" (and, according to Wikipedia, usually only the third stanza thereof, someone thought it would be a good idea to do the first verse, "Deutschland Uber Alles", the anthem of NAZI GERMANY!!!
The German captain considered ripping the microphone out of the singer's hands - and she damn well should've. That was a fucking joke and a disgrace for a country (US!!!) who's racking them up at record rates the last three months.
On a far less important level, and speaking of disgraces:
When are gaming companies going to learn that most American gamers are pretty much pieces of shit, especially the more competitive you get?
The Madden Bowl champion from this year (the beginning of a far more organized e-sports effort on EA's part for Madden and FIFA, announced at last year's E3) has been stripped of some of his series points and fined $3,000 of his $75,000 champion's prize for inappropriate tweets for a now-public figure of EA and Madden. (Kotaku)
Chris McFarland has a reputation for this shit, apparently, making his smarmy ass pictured with two models and a championship belt all the more disgusting. He was warned to lay off during the competition, and was fined and docked when he decided not to.
McFarland believes this will kill his real social media persona, but probably being threatened with being banned from the series will force the issue. He has a long reputation for hate speech and other inappropriate conduct.
One has to wonder when these gaming companies are going to understand this degree of hate is endemic to American gaming?
*facepalm*
First, the United States Tennis Association was forced to apologize to Germany. Before the Federation Cup matches, the USTA had someone sing their national anthem...
According to Deadspin, however, there was a major problem. Instead of "Deutschlandlied" (and, according to Wikipedia, usually only the third stanza thereof, someone thought it would be a good idea to do the first verse, "Deutschland Uber Alles", the anthem of NAZI GERMANY!!!
The German captain considered ripping the microphone out of the singer's hands - and she damn well should've. That was a fucking joke and a disgrace for a country (US!!!) who's racking them up at record rates the last three months.
On a far less important level, and speaking of disgraces:
When are gaming companies going to learn that most American gamers are pretty much pieces of shit, especially the more competitive you get?
The Madden Bowl champion from this year (the beginning of a far more organized e-sports effort on EA's part for Madden and FIFA, announced at last year's E3) has been stripped of some of his series points and fined $3,000 of his $75,000 champion's prize for inappropriate tweets for a now-public figure of EA and Madden. (Kotaku)
Chris McFarland has a reputation for this shit, apparently, making his smarmy ass pictured with two models and a championship belt all the more disgusting. He was warned to lay off during the competition, and was fined and docked when he decided not to.
McFarland believes this will kill his real social media persona, but probably being threatened with being banned from the series will force the issue. He has a long reputation for hate speech and other inappropriate conduct.
One has to wonder when these gaming companies are going to understand this degree of hate is endemic to American gaming?
*facepalm*
Friday, February 10, 2017
If James Dolan had a set of balls, Charles Oakley would be in Riker's Island or Bellevue. Right now.
Of course, he doesn't: False premise and all that kind of shit.
But two developments today in the bizarre ejection of Charles Oakley from Madison Square Garden two nights ago indicate that if this piece of shit (I don't forget how you tried to railroad the Rockettes to the Trump inauguration, for one!) had a set between his legs, Charles Oakley would be arrested and on his way to either Riker's Island (and probably a secure area of the Anna M. Kross Center) or to Bellevue Hospital if some of Dolan's rantings on the subject had an ounce of credibility or humanity to them!
First, the security chief at Madison Square Garden has been fired by Dolan, who owns the Garden as well as the Knicks and other properties as well. Deadspin reports Frank Benedetto, hired by Dolan after two decades in the Secret Service, was fired today.
And when you read the situation whenever Oakley enters the building, you wonder how it took this long for everything to go down. Basically, whenever Oakley enters Madison Square Garden, James Dolan is notified and the head of security watches Oakley personally.
The Knicks have done everything today to distance themselves from Oakley, including a massive report of the arrest which puts Oakley as a raving maniac. You can read it for yourself at Deadspin here.
Finally, today, James Dolan formally and (though he has tried to say not so, probably) permanently banned Charles Oakley from Madison Square Garden. (Deadspin)
On top of which, he has stated he believes Oakley has anger management and alcohol issues.
Mr. Dolan, I have some free advice for you, and this is from someone with knowledge, as a high-profile defendant, of the law I am about to quote:
First, you need to come out and publicly state that you believe Charles Oakley wants to kill you and, if given the chance, will do so. He has probably intimated as such in several interviews.
It is clear, and I can state from personal experience in the state of New York, that your actions surrounding Oakley, both previous to this incident, within this incident, and subsequent, are those of actions you would take against someone who is a threat to you personally.
As such, I would like to quote to you a law of which I was forced to become quite familiar:
New York Penal Code 120.13, .14, and .15 are the three statutes covered in what is called "Menacing" in the state of New York.
120.15's summary on the linked page reads as follows:
Note, in this clause, no second or "course of conduct" is necessary. One action is sufficient to arrest for third-degree, a 90-day misdemeanor.
Second-degree, 120.14, adds some more complication.
To the baseline is added one or more of the following:
It would appear, by your conduct, Mr. Dolan, that Oakley would qualify under the "course of conduct".
120.13 requires a repeat offense, or a menacing offense against a police officer, in the last ten years. That's a felony, punishable by a state prison sentence of between 16 and 48 months.
Mr. Dolan, if you had a set between your legs and the contempt you appear to have for anyone but yourself, you'd have Charles Oakley charged with a violation of New York Penal Code 120.14, for a course of conduct placing you in enough danger that you are personally notified as to Oakley's whereabouts anytime he enters Madison Square Garden.
So where's your nuts, big boy?
But two developments today in the bizarre ejection of Charles Oakley from Madison Square Garden two nights ago indicate that if this piece of shit (I don't forget how you tried to railroad the Rockettes to the Trump inauguration, for one!) had a set between his legs, Charles Oakley would be arrested and on his way to either Riker's Island (and probably a secure area of the Anna M. Kross Center) or to Bellevue Hospital if some of Dolan's rantings on the subject had an ounce of credibility or humanity to them!
First, the security chief at Madison Square Garden has been fired by Dolan, who owns the Garden as well as the Knicks and other properties as well. Deadspin reports Frank Benedetto, hired by Dolan after two decades in the Secret Service, was fired today.
And when you read the situation whenever Oakley enters the building, you wonder how it took this long for everything to go down. Basically, whenever Oakley enters Madison Square Garden, James Dolan is notified and the head of security watches Oakley personally.
The Knicks have done everything today to distance themselves from Oakley, including a massive report of the arrest which puts Oakley as a raving maniac. You can read it for yourself at Deadspin here.
Finally, today, James Dolan formally and (though he has tried to say not so, probably) permanently banned Charles Oakley from Madison Square Garden. (Deadspin)
On top of which, he has stated he believes Oakley has anger management and alcohol issues.
Mr. Dolan, I have some free advice for you, and this is from someone with knowledge, as a high-profile defendant, of the law I am about to quote:
First, you need to come out and publicly state that you believe Charles Oakley wants to kill you and, if given the chance, will do so. He has probably intimated as such in several interviews.
It is clear, and I can state from personal experience in the state of New York, that your actions surrounding Oakley, both previous to this incident, within this incident, and subsequent, are those of actions you would take against someone who is a threat to you personally.
As such, I would like to quote to you a law of which I was forced to become quite familiar:
New York Penal Code 120.13, .14, and .15 are the three statutes covered in what is called "Menacing" in the state of New York.
120.15's summary on the linked page reads as follows:
A person is guilty of menacing in the third degree when, by physical menace, he or she intentionally places or attempts to place another person in fear of death, imminent serious physical injury or physical injury.
Note, in this clause, no second or "course of conduct" is necessary. One action is sufficient to arrest for third-degree, a 90-day misdemeanor.
Second-degree, 120.14, adds some more complication.
To the baseline is added one or more of the following:
- Displaying a weapon
- Adding the stalking parameters to the menacing (the "course of conduct" parameter)
- or violates a stay-away order after a third-degree conviction.
It would appear, by your conduct, Mr. Dolan, that Oakley would qualify under the "course of conduct".
120.13 requires a repeat offense, or a menacing offense against a police officer, in the last ten years. That's a felony, punishable by a state prison sentence of between 16 and 48 months.
Mr. Dolan, if you had a set between your legs and the contempt you appear to have for anyone but yourself, you'd have Charles Oakley charged with a violation of New York Penal Code 120.14, for a course of conduct placing you in enough danger that you are personally notified as to Oakley's whereabouts anytime he enters Madison Square Garden.
So where's your nuts, big boy?
MLB: He's... NOT!!!
(Thank you to my anonymous friend and baseball historian for a correction on the ownership situation on the Marlins in 1997.)
The World Baseball Classic is about to convene, and pitchers and catchers are about to report elsewhere.
The Major League Baseball season, largely seen in predictions as a coronation for the Cubs to go back-to-back (popular opponent is Boston), may have just hit two serious roadblocks in the ownership ranks.
First, however, let us pay our respects. Mike Ilitch, seen as a savior of sports in downtown Detroit as he was also the creator of the Little Caesar's pizza franchise, while keeping the Red Wings and Tigers downtown while the Lions fled to Pontiac and the Pistons to Auburn Hills (though Ford Field is now back downtown and the Pistons go into the Red Wings' downtown arena next year), died today at age 87.
Our sympathy to his family, and to all the Detroit people who were touched by his passion to keep sports alive in Detroit. It will be interesting to see what happens going forward, but I would hope the team stays in the Ilitch family to continue stability for a city which badly needs it.
That pales in comparison to the other ownership story.
Do you want the good news or the bad news first??
I'll give you the good news.
Jeffrey Loria is finally selling the Marlins.
This virus on baseball killed baseball in Montreal, just when it seemed like it might be a nice parallel to the Toronto Blue Jays. Then, he proceeded to win a World Series title (2003), then sell the players off (even the cheap bastard he was in 2003) and basically bilk the city of Miami into building a stadium.
Perhaps the nadir of his ineptitude was when Muhammad Ali came out on the first night of the new stadium -- ESPN Sunday night game -- and had to have the announcer plead for an "ALI!" chant.
Jeffrey. Fucking. Loria.
Selling price? $1.6 BILLION. For a nothing team with no fanbase because Loria has killed the team time and time again.
And that's the GOOD NEWS!!!
Here's the bad news: The proposed new ownership group has ties to President GrabHerInThePussy.
Yep, the Oompa-Loompa in Chief is believed to be the father-in-law of one of the main players in the purchase: Charles Kushner, New York real-estate mogul, multiple sources are indicating -- this one from Mike Oz at Yahoo! Sports' Big League Stew blog.
Father to Jared Kushner, who is married to Ivanka and a senior advisor in the Trump White House.
ARE
YOU
FUCKING
KIDDING
ME????
Wow. Just... Wow...
One impediment would be a 2005 conviction of Charles for illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, and witness tampering. (HEY! He fits in perfect with the Orange Monster in Washington.)
There is thought, though, he could aid Jared and his other son Joshua in purchasing the team. Right now, though there does not appear to be more direct involvement, word is that if the Kushners are looking into the Marlins, it's Joshua who's doing the current heavy lifting.
The World Baseball Classic is about to convene, and pitchers and catchers are about to report elsewhere.
The Major League Baseball season, largely seen in predictions as a coronation for the Cubs to go back-to-back (popular opponent is Boston), may have just hit two serious roadblocks in the ownership ranks.
First, however, let us pay our respects. Mike Ilitch, seen as a savior of sports in downtown Detroit as he was also the creator of the Little Caesar's pizza franchise, while keeping the Red Wings and Tigers downtown while the Lions fled to Pontiac and the Pistons to Auburn Hills (though Ford Field is now back downtown and the Pistons go into the Red Wings' downtown arena next year), died today at age 87.
Our sympathy to his family, and to all the Detroit people who were touched by his passion to keep sports alive in Detroit. It will be interesting to see what happens going forward, but I would hope the team stays in the Ilitch family to continue stability for a city which badly needs it.
That pales in comparison to the other ownership story.
Do you want the good news or the bad news first??
I'll give you the good news.
Jeffrey Loria is finally selling the Marlins.
This virus on baseball killed baseball in Montreal, just when it seemed like it might be a nice parallel to the Toronto Blue Jays. Then, he proceeded to win a World Series title (2003), then sell the players off (even the cheap bastard he was in 2003) and basically bilk the city of Miami into building a stadium.
Perhaps the nadir of his ineptitude was when Muhammad Ali came out on the first night of the new stadium -- ESPN Sunday night game -- and had to have the announcer plead for an "ALI!" chant.
Jeffrey. Fucking. Loria.
Selling price? $1.6 BILLION. For a nothing team with no fanbase because Loria has killed the team time and time again.
And that's the GOOD NEWS!!!
Here's the bad news: The proposed new ownership group has ties to President GrabHerInThePussy.
Yep, the Oompa-Loompa in Chief is believed to be the father-in-law of one of the main players in the purchase: Charles Kushner, New York real-estate mogul, multiple sources are indicating -- this one from Mike Oz at Yahoo! Sports' Big League Stew blog.
Father to Jared Kushner, who is married to Ivanka and a senior advisor in the Trump White House.
ARE
YOU
FUCKING
KIDDING
ME????
Wow. Just... Wow...
One impediment would be a 2005 conviction of Charles for illegal campaign contributions, tax evasion, and witness tampering. (HEY! He fits in perfect with the Orange Monster in Washington.)
There is thought, though, he could aid Jared and his other son Joshua in purchasing the team. Right now, though there does not appear to be more direct involvement, word is that if the Kushners are looking into the Marlins, it's Joshua who's doing the current heavy lifting.
Two e-sports stories this Friday....
One, good... The other? More endemic to this blog.
One caveat, as my anonymous friend pointed out: There is so much corruption in e-sports right now, any involvement may be a bad idea. We'll have to see.
And what might bring all that about? Try this League of Legends story:
Sixteen players in this second-tier Oceanic league (in which two teams are promoted to the Oceanic Professional League, the top tier) have been banned in a massive Competitive Ruling, three of which for toxicity. Three more were penalized for sharing accounts. Ten others, in a more disturbing development, were banned due to involvement in a process called "Boosting".
This, a year or two after the OPL had to become the first league in top-level play to expel a team outright for a number of suspensions.
"Boosting" is a process where a lesser player pays a player of more skill to advance their character. It is, effectively, "power-leveling" through RMT (Real Money Trading) in the game, and is illegal on both sides of the equation.
Originally reported in Kotaku, they note that the standard Challenger Series salary for a "split" is only $6,000.
Banned for Weeks 2 and 3 of the season for in-game behavioral issues:
And now the Boosting bans:
Two franchises are being worked with to allow them to continue, but there's no way, in my mind, at minimum, that SIN Academy or Team Regicide should not be immediately expelled from the Challenger Series.
In fact, the review basically indicates, to me, no advancement to the OPL should be made for the second split. Also, no demotion from the OPL.
I think it is now clear that there are even more severe problems with the OPL than the expulsion of Rich Gang would seem to indicate.
And this comes at the worst time for Riot Games for a region like Oceania. Starting this season, they are giving the "International Wild Card" lesser regions a more direct path to influence the seedings of the World Championships in the Midseason Invitational and a direct spot in a new first phase of a now two-phase system for the World Championships themselves.
That said, this is not good news.
My remedy: End the first split now. Throw out all of the teams except for Alpha Sydney. Ban Sin Academy and Team Regicide for the balance of the year. The other five teams join the top nine teams in the Oceanic Open Ladder to determine the other seven spots for a new Challenger Series starting after the Midseason Invitational.
No advancement to or demotion from the OPL itself until after the World Championships, and a full review of the entire situation.
But they did continue. One thing I am continually sickened by is Riot Games' inability to properly police their game, in the name of money and the show having to go on -- at all cost.
- First, the good one. The NBA will partner to create a professional NBA 2K17 e-sports league.
One caveat, as my anonymous friend pointed out: There is so much corruption in e-sports right now, any involvement may be a bad idea. We'll have to see.
And what might bring all that about? Try this League of Legends story:
- The Oceanic Professional League Challenger Series, the second-tier League of Legends competition in Australia, New Zealand, and associated areas, has been rocked by a scandal.
Sixteen players in this second-tier Oceanic league (in which two teams are promoted to the Oceanic Professional League, the top tier) have been banned in a massive Competitive Ruling, three of which for toxicity. Three more were penalized for sharing accounts. Ten others, in a more disturbing development, were banned due to involvement in a process called "Boosting".
This, a year or two after the OPL had to become the first league in top-level play to expel a team outright for a number of suspensions.
"Boosting" is a process where a lesser player pays a player of more skill to advance their character. It is, effectively, "power-leveling" through RMT (Real Money Trading) in the game, and is illegal on both sides of the equation.
Originally reported in Kotaku, they note that the standard Challenger Series salary for a "split" is only $6,000.
Banned for Weeks 2 and 3 of the season for in-game behavioral issues:
- Dmitry Botov of Team Noxide
- Milos Mladenovic of Team Regicide
- Andrew Licata of Outlaws
- Jordan Middleton of Tainted Minds Blue
- Kevin Su of Team Regicide
- Alex Nang of Team Regicide
And now the Boosting bans:
- From Outlaws: Morgan Khuu, rest of the year. (Technically, the "2017 Competitive Season", which wraps with the World Championships in China -- expanded to 24 teams and a two-phase format)
- From Legacy Genesis: Kalvik Raajendran and Cameron Douglas, both for this split only.
- From Team Regicide: Adem Tontu for this split, Jaeung Han for the rest of the year.
- SIN Academy gets three: Ryan Gibbons, Ari Greene-Young, and Daniel Ealam, all for this split only.
- From Corvidae: Oren Hipwell, this split only.
- And from Tainted Minds Blue: Luke Duske, rest of the year.
- Team Noxide got one two-week suspension.
- Outlaws got one two-week suspension, one for the rest of the year.
- Legacy Genesis got two one-split suspensions.
- Team Regicide had it's entire team suspended, three for two weeks, one for one split, one for the year.
- SIN Academy drew three one-split suspensions.
- Corvidae drew a single one-split suspension.
- Tainted Minds Blue: One two-week ban, one for the year.
Two franchises are being worked with to allow them to continue, but there's no way, in my mind, at minimum, that SIN Academy or Team Regicide should not be immediately expelled from the Challenger Series.
In fact, the review basically indicates, to me, no advancement to the OPL should be made for the second split. Also, no demotion from the OPL.
I think it is now clear that there are even more severe problems with the OPL than the expulsion of Rich Gang would seem to indicate.
And this comes at the worst time for Riot Games for a region like Oceania. Starting this season, they are giving the "International Wild Card" lesser regions a more direct path to influence the seedings of the World Championships in the Midseason Invitational and a direct spot in a new first phase of a now two-phase system for the World Championships themselves.
That said, this is not good news.
My remedy: End the first split now. Throw out all of the teams except for Alpha Sydney. Ban Sin Academy and Team Regicide for the balance of the year. The other five teams join the top nine teams in the Oceanic Open Ladder to determine the other seven spots for a new Challenger Series starting after the Midseason Invitational.
No advancement to or demotion from the OPL itself until after the World Championships, and a full review of the entire situation.
But they did continue. One thing I am continually sickened by is Riot Games' inability to properly police their game, in the name of money and the show having to go on -- at all cost.
- Tainted Minds Blue was forced to forfeit their first match (unknown as to whether it was due to the rulings). Alpha Sydney, seen as a NOTHING team (and was the only team to escape bans) defeated them in about 36 minutes in a complete rout.
- SIN Academy was allowed to continue. And they drew Team Regicide. HOW THE FUCK DID THIS MATCH TAKE PLACE??? SERIOUSLY! SIN Academy were forced to forfeit they ban phase for this game -- each team can remove five champions from the selection pool, and SIN Academy was not allowed to take part in this process due to not fielding their substitutions for the banned players in time. Regicide won in fairly quick fashion.
- Outlaws defeated Corvidae.
- Team Noxide defeated Legacy Genesis.
Thursday, February 9, 2017
As a person who believes every one of these has a story, good on Jordan Spieth.
I was about to begin railing on Jordan Spieth when I saw a headline on ESPN about him railing against autograph seekers. I am very glad I clicked and read the accompanying article.
What he's railing against is one of the pariahs of fanhood: Professional autograph seekers who take and sell them on eBay.
From back in the day when I used to have a (personally-collected) autograph collection, I had two things to say about them:
One, they would never be sold for any price.
Two, every one of them has a story behind them.
As such, I find the professional autograph seeker an insult -- effectively at least the same level, if not worse, than the "ballhawk" like that guy from either last year or two years ago.
So thank you Jordan Spieth. Those professional autograph seekers ruin the process for the rest of us.
Spieth is playing in the Pebble Beach tournament this weekend and had just completed a practice round.
What he's railing against is one of the pariahs of fanhood: Professional autograph seekers who take and sell them on eBay.
From back in the day when I used to have a (personally-collected) autograph collection, I had two things to say about them:
One, they would never be sold for any price.
Two, every one of them has a story behind them.
As such, I find the professional autograph seeker an insult -- effectively at least the same level, if not worse, than the "ballhawk" like that guy from either last year or two years ago.
So thank you Jordan Spieth. Those professional autograph seekers ruin the process for the rest of us.
Spieth is playing in the Pebble Beach tournament this weekend and had just completed a practice round.
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
At least one potentially major NBA story may be brewing here...
At least one WILL BE and another MIGHT BE...
Starting with the MIGHT:
Steph Curry hates Donald Trump.
After the CEO of Under Armour (which has had a not-so-good last several days) called Trump a (backtracked to business) asset to the country, Steph Curry wants to remove the "et".
He's right! :)
But Curry's comment will be a footnote tonight to "As the Dolans Turn".
As of right now, we do not know what exactly has happened, but Charles Oakley has been thrown under the bus by the New York Knicks PR Department (according to Deadspin) after Oakley was arrested in Madison Square Garden for going after somebody.
Deadspin currently (as of the time of writing) believes one or more fans may have been involved, but this throwing-under-the-bus by the Knicks PR Department indicates that Oakley's hatred of James Dolan plus his hatred of how much Dolan has turned the Knicks into a joke has probably boiled over with an attack on the owner.
Why do I say this? Here's the statement from the Knicks:
Oakley has said he'd poison Dolan if he ever were given the chance to make him dinner.
This is going to be a mess. Stay tuned.
Oakley will be charged with three counts of assault after being escorted out by a ton of MSG security.
Starting with the MIGHT:
Steph Curry hates Donald Trump.
After the CEO of Under Armour (which has had a not-so-good last several days) called Trump a (backtracked to business) asset to the country, Steph Curry wants to remove the "et".
He's right! :)
But Curry's comment will be a footnote tonight to "As the Dolans Turn".
As of right now, we do not know what exactly has happened, but Charles Oakley has been thrown under the bus by the New York Knicks PR Department (according to Deadspin) after Oakley was arrested in Madison Square Garden for going after somebody.
Deadspin currently (as of the time of writing) believes one or more fans may have been involved, but this throwing-under-the-bus by the Knicks PR Department indicates that Oakley's hatred of James Dolan plus his hatred of how much Dolan has turned the Knicks into a joke has probably boiled over with an attack on the owner.
Why do I say this? Here's the statement from the Knicks:
— NY_KnicksPR (@NY_KnicksPR) February 9, 2017That is not a comment one makes as a team or a PR organization for someone who simply goes after a fan. I believe it's clear something happened here that probably involves James Dolan. If I'm wrong (and I do understand that it is highly inappropriate to go after a fan), then so be it.
Oakley has said he'd poison Dolan if he ever were given the chance to make him dinner.
This is going to be a mess. Stay tuned.
Oakley will be charged with three counts of assault after being escorted out by a ton of MSG security.
To give you an idea of how stupid things have gotten the last 6 1/2 years...
A little statistical analysis of my first 2,000 posts:
- Post #1: October 7, 2010
- Post #100 wasn't until September 22, 2011. I had only posted 33 posts from January to July of 2011. It picked up in the football season, and Post #100 was the Fine Blotter for Week 2 of the 2011 NFL season.
- Post #200 didn't even need the end of that NFL season, though this one was about a high school basketball fight and another player getting tossed for taunting. December 27, 2011.
- 170 posts in 2011.
- 239 in 2012. That totaled 445 posts in 2010-2012.
- Post #500: Came in what was known as a dead zone in Super Fraud -- the NFL offseason has been a bit of a down time many years, and 2013 was no exception. After 45 posts, probably largely surrounding the playoffs and Super Farce LXVII, Post #500 was not the post I actually listed as #500, at least by my current count. I did a "Post #500" on a case study of former NBA corrupt official Ed Rush, then working for the Pac-12. By current count, my actual Post #500 was my comments on the Boston Marathon Massacre on April 16, 2013.
- 256 posts in 2013, 701 total.
- Post #750: My Round 1 study of the 2014 NBA playoffs. A work in progress throughout that first round in April of 2014, largely studying freethrow differential.
- To show how crazy things got in 2014 with the NFL, Post #1,000 didn't even take til the end of 2014: The Fine Blotter for Week 13 of the 2014 NFL season, December 4, 2014. I did, also, a "1,000th Post" that, probably due to either miscounting or something, the same day, largely a similar retrospective to my 2.000th post you just saw.
- 323 posts in 2014.
- But that would be dwarfed by my record year of 2015: FIVE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY posts that year.
- 77 of them in January (Leading to Thugs vs. Cheaters), 100 of them in September (Ray Rice/Adrian Peterson/etc.) and 96 in October.
- Post #1,250: The Kimbo Slice/Ken Shamrock SHAM, posted June 22, 2015 -- neither video linked exists.
- Largely because of Rice, Peterson, et. al., Post #1,500 only took until October 24 of that same year: A death of a high-school football player in the Chicago area that weekend.
- And post #1,750 was the (then to-date) offseason NFL suspension blotter, mostly for drugs, for the 2016 offseason, posted July 27, 2016.
- 1-200 took 14 1/2 months. 1-250 was actually May 3, 2012 ( a retraction of an earlier report that Junior Seau appeared in a game with the Bountygate Saints), so that was a year and almost eight months.
- 251-500 took 11 1/2 months
- 501-750 took basically a year.
- 751-1000 took just about 7 1/2 months.
- 1001-1250 took 6 1/2 months.
- 1251-1500 took only four months and two days.
- 1501-1750 took about nine months.
- 1751-2000 took about 6 1/2 months.
Mr. Adamle, as a professional wrestling fan: I am sorry.
Mention Mike Adamle to most professional wrestling fans, especially WWE in the late 2000's, and you'll get laughs, at least before today.
Mike Adamle was brought in to give some real-world name recognition to the product. He was an announcer and was placed into the character of General Manager of Monday Night RAW.
To say it went badly is one of the largest understatements in professional wrestling.
He didn't follow the action, botched names, just looked like he didn't know what he was doing or, often, where he even was.
They played it into an angle to at least get something out of Adamle, but what we know today changes all of this.
We all know Mike Adamle as an announcer -- standard sports announcer for many years, the original host of American Gladiators (the first version), etc.
What most of us probably didn't know is, before this, Mike Adamle played football. He played at Northwestern and actually was in the NFL with three different teams in six NFL seasons as a running back (Kansas City, the Jets, and Chicago -- thank you Pro Football Reference).
He's got dementia, epilepsy, seizures, and CTE, by his own admission. Interview with Chicago NBC 5 News today -- the SB Nation pro wrestling blog Cageside Seats picked it up.
All the telltale signs: Memory loss, mood swings, rage, seizures, etc. and so forth. Has been seeing the conditions worsen for two decades now, which would allow it to fall well within the WWE tenure that most of us probably had a good laugh or two at Adamle's expense.
Mr. Adamle, I am sorry. As a pro wrestling fan, I was almost assuredly one of them. Now we know why it all happened.
It was football. Again.
Mike Adamle was brought in to give some real-world name recognition to the product. He was an announcer and was placed into the character of General Manager of Monday Night RAW.
To say it went badly is one of the largest understatements in professional wrestling.
He didn't follow the action, botched names, just looked like he didn't know what he was doing or, often, where he even was.
They played it into an angle to at least get something out of Adamle, but what we know today changes all of this.
We all know Mike Adamle as an announcer -- standard sports announcer for many years, the original host of American Gladiators (the first version), etc.
What most of us probably didn't know is, before this, Mike Adamle played football. He played at Northwestern and actually was in the NFL with three different teams in six NFL seasons as a running back (Kansas City, the Jets, and Chicago -- thank you Pro Football Reference).
He's got dementia, epilepsy, seizures, and CTE, by his own admission. Interview with Chicago NBC 5 News today -- the SB Nation pro wrestling blog Cageside Seats picked it up.
All the telltale signs: Memory loss, mood swings, rage, seizures, etc. and so forth. Has been seeing the conditions worsen for two decades now, which would allow it to fall well within the WWE tenure that most of us probably had a good laugh or two at Adamle's expense.
Mr. Adamle, I am sorry. As a pro wrestling fan, I was almost assuredly one of them. Now we know why it all happened.
It was football. Again.
My 2,000th post...
Hard to believe.
Really hard to believe, and I kind of had to stop myself when I saw the number up there, because I already have the subject matter for Post #2,001.
I've said this repeatedly, mostly to my anonymous friend who has helped me with significant amounts of material, as well as the occasional kick in the ass, but, when I started this blog on October 7, 2010, I never believed the kinds of things we would find:
But it's hard for me to believe we are actually at Post #2,000. I'd like to thank the readers, few as they are, for taking the time to read my little catharsis. I will not lie: There are sports entities in this country that need to be burnt to the fucking ground (the first two mentioned universities are at or near the top of that list!).
I'd like to thank my anonymous friend (who is the one who has requested the anonymity, and is simply a researcher, no inside ties) for a lot of the material, suggestions, and the occasional correction.
I wish I could say I could thank the sports leagues for the material, but I don't. I used to fucking enjoy sports. Now I can't. Sunday was a perfect example of why. I literally was almost dragging my jaw on the ground at that restaurant, in utter disbelief they'd actually pull it off and insult the intelligence of anyone who has two brain cells left and still watches football...
As I said around the time of the election, I believe my time here is shorter now than ever, and I won't be around much longer. I know my name is squarely on Trump's "lists" through his connections with his "Celebrity Apprentice" shows. (And if you research several of my 2,000 posts, you will know through whom and what.) I've already said the only reason that I did not make one of the 12,000 Tweets the Secret Service is investigating on threatening Trump's life is that I am smart enough to know the cure (Mike Pence) is worse than the disease! Trump has a great insurance policy.
But as long as I'm here, God willing, I'll try to use my next few hundred or whatever posts to continue to ram it in the face of a corrupt sports culture worldwide.
Join me.
Really hard to believe, and I kind of had to stop myself when I saw the number up there, because I already have the subject matter for Post #2,001.
I've said this repeatedly, mostly to my anonymous friend who has helped me with significant amounts of material, as well as the occasional kick in the ass, but, when I started this blog on October 7, 2010, I never believed the kinds of things we would find:
- Penn State and Jerry Sandusky
- Baylor and the entire culture around the revenue-generating sports there
- The rise of Adam Silver and the fall of racist pig Donald Sterling (and the need for many more owners and officials to be ousted since!)
- The absolute explosion of awareness of head injuries and CTE in the lie which is the sport of football (one more example of which will be Post #2,001).
- The explosion of corruption in computer video-game "E-sports".
- The complete disregarding of any degree of intelligence by a propaganda organization masquerading as a sports league, with about the credibility of the WWE, if that. I'm looking right at you, Mr. Goodell!
- The complete disintegration of a world sports sanctioning body, supposing to be administering the world's most popular sport, into a morass of kickbacks, vote-buying, and match-fixing.
- A country, culture, and society in the United States that has taken the concept of "if you are important (in sports as in other regards), you can grab her in the pussy" and made an orange Oompa-Loompa with a bad combover and a worse Stone Cold Stunner sell it's President!
But it's hard for me to believe we are actually at Post #2,000. I'd like to thank the readers, few as they are, for taking the time to read my little catharsis. I will not lie: There are sports entities in this country that need to be burnt to the fucking ground (the first two mentioned universities are at or near the top of that list!).
I'd like to thank my anonymous friend (who is the one who has requested the anonymity, and is simply a researcher, no inside ties) for a lot of the material, suggestions, and the occasional correction.
I wish I could say I could thank the sports leagues for the material, but I don't. I used to fucking enjoy sports. Now I can't. Sunday was a perfect example of why. I literally was almost dragging my jaw on the ground at that restaurant, in utter disbelief they'd actually pull it off and insult the intelligence of anyone who has two brain cells left and still watches football...
As I said around the time of the election, I believe my time here is shorter now than ever, and I won't be around much longer. I know my name is squarely on Trump's "lists" through his connections with his "Celebrity Apprentice" shows. (And if you research several of my 2,000 posts, you will know through whom and what.) I've already said the only reason that I did not make one of the 12,000 Tweets the Secret Service is investigating on threatening Trump's life is that I am smart enough to know the cure (Mike Pence) is worse than the disease! Trump has a great insurance policy.
But as long as I'm here, God willing, I'll try to use my next few hundred or whatever posts to continue to ram it in the face of a corrupt sports culture worldwide.
Join me.
Tuesday, February 7, 2017
Paging Mr. Adam Silver: May be time to get rid of DeMarcus Cousins
I'm probably going to have to do some research on this.
The Sacramento Kings' DeMarcus Cousins has been suspended one game for receiving SIXTEEN technical fouls over the course of the current season. He was tossed for an altercation and an argument with the referees against Chicago. Should've been ejected for just the altercation, where he shoved one of the Bulls' assistants.
He was also fined $25,000 for flipping off somebody and making a vulgar comment (heading to the locker room: "FUCK GOLDEN STATE!!!") after the game before against Golden State.
Vlade Divac, the GM of the Kings, has already said he won't trade Cousins. Cousins was seen as a trade possibility. Scottie Pippen, as an analyst, believes Divac will trade him. (For what value? Cousins MIGHT play 15 games the rest of the year!)
The NBA suspends players one game for receiving their sixteenth technical foul over the season -- and another game for every pair of technicals thereafter.
Cousins has reached the limit in just 52 games. There were two more T's he received that were rescinded -- he has been called for 18 such fouls in 52 games. Only two other NBA players are in double-figures in this regard (Russell Westbrook and DeAndre Jordan).
(Statistics courtesy of teamrankings.com .)
This now represents the fourth year Cousins has been suspended by the NBA for reaching 16 technical fouls.
He's nowhere close to either the career or season record, though.
That goes to Rasheed Wallace, who is believed to have created this rule, after back-to-back years in which he holds the top two places in the T record book for a season, FORTY-ONE in 2000-2001 (ejected four times), and THIRTY-EIGHT the year previous (ejected six). He was so bad, the league actually instituted what became known as the "Rasheed Wallace Rule". You mouth off to the refs, you're T'd up automatically.
Ironically, he was banned seven games in 2003 for threatening the life of Tim Donaghy on a loading dock.
Wallace still led the league the last five years of his career.
Wallace was T'd up 317 times in his NBA career.
The Sacramento Kings' DeMarcus Cousins has been suspended one game for receiving SIXTEEN technical fouls over the course of the current season. He was tossed for an altercation and an argument with the referees against Chicago. Should've been ejected for just the altercation, where he shoved one of the Bulls' assistants.
He was also fined $25,000 for flipping off somebody and making a vulgar comment (heading to the locker room: "FUCK GOLDEN STATE!!!") after the game before against Golden State.
Vlade Divac, the GM of the Kings, has already said he won't trade Cousins. Cousins was seen as a trade possibility. Scottie Pippen, as an analyst, believes Divac will trade him. (For what value? Cousins MIGHT play 15 games the rest of the year!)
The NBA suspends players one game for receiving their sixteenth technical foul over the season -- and another game for every pair of technicals thereafter.
Cousins has reached the limit in just 52 games. There were two more T's he received that were rescinded -- he has been called for 18 such fouls in 52 games. Only two other NBA players are in double-figures in this regard (Russell Westbrook and DeAndre Jordan).
- Cousins was suspended last year, receiving 17 technical fouls. (Draymond Green, counting the playoffs, was the league leader with 21.)
- Cousins was second in the league two years ago with 15.
- Fourth in the league (and suspended) with 16 in 2013-14.
- Led the league and was suspended in 2012-13 with 17.
- Sixth in the league with 13 in 2011-12.
- Eighth in the league in his rookie year of 2010-11 with 15, a year in which Dwight Howard had 25 (which is the NBA record after the league went to the "16 T's = suspension" rule).
(Statistics courtesy of teamrankings.com .)
This now represents the fourth year Cousins has been suspended by the NBA for reaching 16 technical fouls.
He's nowhere close to either the career or season record, though.
That goes to Rasheed Wallace, who is believed to have created this rule, after back-to-back years in which he holds the top two places in the T record book for a season, FORTY-ONE in 2000-2001 (ejected four times), and THIRTY-EIGHT the year previous (ejected six). He was so bad, the league actually instituted what became known as the "Rasheed Wallace Rule". You mouth off to the refs, you're T'd up automatically.
Ironically, he was banned seven games in 2003 for threatening the life of Tim Donaghy on a loading dock.
Wallace still led the league the last five years of his career.
Wallace was T'd up 317 times in his NBA career.
And another case of CTE you will ignore as you jack off to the LI(E) of Tom Brady...
Frank Wycheck, the former Titans tight-end, told ESPN today (and Deadspin caught onto it) that he, too, now believes he has CTE...
He has all the telltale signs, and will donate his brain for CTE study upon his death. You can read the details at the Deadspin link above.
He has all the telltale signs, and will donate his brain for CTE study upon his death. You can read the details at the Deadspin link above.
NFL's top offseason priorities?? Well, here's a Super Fraud slant on Kevin Seifert...
With Donald Trump parading (metaphorically) through the streets of Boston today, Kevin Seifert decided to kick off the offseason coverage by giving ten of what he believes to be the NFL's top priorities.
So I'm going to Super Fraud-slant them:
#1: Address the ratings decline.
The NFL's ratings fell about 8% over the course of the season. Almost all of this decline was pre-Trump election coverage. Much of the change from the -14% pre-election, though, to -1% post-election, was attributed to the Cowboys.
Sports Media Watch reports today that Super Bowl LI(E) was the lowest-rated Super Bowl in seven years, at a 45.3. The last time this happened was also the last time Atlanta was in the game (1999), which the rating was the lowest that decade.
As such, my solution (as it would be for a number of these) is: Contract useless teams.
Seriously. No one -- and I do mean NO ONE -- wants to continue to see Cleveland and Jacksonville barf up the league. They are not the only two teams I would contract, given power to do so. That said, however, I think a large part of why a lot of people aren't watching (along with the Never-Ending Reality Show, awareness of the concussion/CTE issue, etc.) is that the league has done a very poor job of making more than, MAYBE, two or three teams actually relevant.
#2: Improve pace of game.
There are a number of solutions I would go well out of the box with on this one.
One of them is actually to stop allowing the referees to tamper the pace of the game on their own. There are a number of incidents in which teams watched the clock run out on them while the officials would not let them snap the ball.
Another is to simply get rid of the kickoff. I'll have a solution on that one later.
And third may be a complete rework of the game to begin with. Reduce the length of the quarters, but stop the clock more often, so that more of the actual running time is actual gameplay.
#3: Kickoff rule.
Here's my solution to the kickoff situation: Get rid of kickoffs entirely.
On any score outside a safety, the scoring team has two options: Give the ball to the other team at their own 25, or take the ball at your own 25, fourth and 20-25. (One play to get 20-25 yards -- make it difficult enough and obvious enough, like most onside kicks in the first place.)
This might also get rid of the score-commercial-kickoff-commercial situation as well.
#4: "My Cause, My Cleats", and associated uniform violation fines.
Solution: Any cleats which actually promote an actual cause or are an actual legitimate tribute are legal. No fine.
If you want to honor Craig Sager or bring mental health awareness or something to that effect, you're good. I understand why there are efforts to have the people have uniform cleats to sell in stores and the like to hardcore idiots, but the fact is that LEGITIMATE efforts to honor or promote causes should never be fined.
Now, if you are trying to pimp the latest rap star of the day, fine away. Especially if the league grows a brain, any abuse of the process should be fined.
#5: Chip technology on scores and ball placement.
It's conceded this one probably doesn't work, because you'd still need the eyeball test on when to check for the chip placement.
#6: Thursday Night Football
My solution: Get rid of it. Move the opener to the Saturday night before, if you must.
All Thursday Night Football was designed to do was to extend the National Religion another evening (Thursday night: Pro. Friday night: High School. Saturday: College. Sunday and Monday Night: Pro.) to basically make football a five out of seven day affair.
Again, and this dovetails into the "useless teams" argument: Look at some of the games put on the Thursday schedule to give every team a prime-time game: Jags-Titans, Ravens-Browns... I mean, they did a better job of stopping complete stinkers, unlike previous years.
The turnaround is insane, and for what real benefit? Get rid of TNF. The only Thursday which MIGHT work is Thanksgiving, and that's tradition. You might do well to give the Cowboys, Lions, and the two teams they are playing their byes the Sunday before Thanksgiving.
#7: Celebration Penalties and Unsportsmanlike Conduct
This was the largest Point of Emphasis this year in the NFL. No uncertain terms, it didn't work.
I'm really of two conflicted minds here, and hence my solution is an either-or: Either you go ahead and give the fans what they want and let the players have a personality, or you go all the way and anything which is not handing the ball to the ref is 15 and a toss.
First off, it's apparent that there is a very real possibility that Unsportsmanlike Conduct must become an ejection foul on ONE such penalty, not two. There is a conduct problem on-the-field in the NFL -- in fact, in all of football. It will have to be further addressed.
On the other hand, there is the real question: Why are we flagging the celebrations? If it is a function of what the league has said (with emphasis on "example for the children"), has the NFL forgotten that it is the only level of 100-yard football that even allows the spike after a touchdown, much less anything else?
If "example for the children" is a reason, the league will have to consider outlawing all post-touchdown (and post-sack) demonstrations, including AND ESPECIALLY the Lambeau Leap, etc. The NFL is the only level which allows it, no level of "the children" allows it. So, in another example of the league's hypocrisy, if part of this is "FOR THE CHILDREN!!!", then why is any demonstration allowed?
I have a feeling we will see something this off-season on that from Goodell.
#8: California.
The entire situation in the state of California, with respect to the NFL, is going to have to be addressed. (And this doesn't even take into account CalExit.)
The article notes that you already have two teams that are not wanted by their localities. San Diego has become the first city I know of to completely disown it's NFL team. And it's so bad that the Los Angeles Chargers will play in a stadium which seats only 30,000 people. They will actually play the next two seasons in Los Angeles' SOCCER STADIUM in Carson. And the Raiders? That Las Vegas situation has gone quite south in the last 30 days. And that whole situation in the Coliseum is not going to work.
The Rams are an utter joke. What you saw in the Los Angeles Rams in Season One was one of the biggest quit jobs in league history.
The 49ers are even worse of a joke, and the league should've stepped in on the basis of player misconduct and the complete mismanagement of the team since their last Super Bowl appearance.
Solution?? At least one of these four teams is going to have to go -- probably two. And bugger if I can say which one or two! Cases could be made for the removal of any of the four franchises. You'd obviously want to keep at least one LA team (or have a team in LA), but the fact is that none of these franchises (not even the Raiders, who had more wins than the rest of the state COMBINED (12, with SD 5, Rams 4, SF 2)) are healthy enough to be considered viable at this point.
#9: A true developmental league.
The NFL wants a third-party to actually make the infrastructure and proof-of-concept (as Seifert phrases it) for a developmental league.
This would make sense if we actually dialed back college football in this country. Until then, spare me. The fact is that it would actually serve the league better to admit that college football IS the developmental league and be done with it. Not even with the NFL name attached will most people accept "lesser football" (NFL Europe), much less the XFL failure.
Solution: A fuller partnership with college football and spare me any developmental league talk. As Michael Vick found out, and it precipitated his retirement, if you're not getting the call, there's some reason or another (rightly or wrongly) you aren't.
#10: Officiating technology.
The CFL actually did something this year, a centralized video official who could stop the game at any time and correct an egregious error.
Implement it if you must, but it's just another person to be in on an officiating screwjob if one takes place. Mike Pereira has already stated that he believes referees are getting advice from upstairs to begin with!
You note one thing that isn't on the list:
#11: The continuing explosion of head injuries.
I am reminded of a collision Deadspin caught in the Packer-Bear game, where the running back for Chicago lowered his head and the collision was so forceful that the logo got knocked off his helmet!
No uncertain terms: The game cannot be made safer. It can't. There is no solution for this but to create a flag-football situation (which, if marketed properly, would probably address a number of these other issues, come to think of it!!!)
So I'm going to Super Fraud-slant them:
#1: Address the ratings decline.
The NFL's ratings fell about 8% over the course of the season. Almost all of this decline was pre-Trump election coverage. Much of the change from the -14% pre-election, though, to -1% post-election, was attributed to the Cowboys.
Sports Media Watch reports today that Super Bowl LI(E) was the lowest-rated Super Bowl in seven years, at a 45.3. The last time this happened was also the last time Atlanta was in the game (1999), which the rating was the lowest that decade.
As such, my solution (as it would be for a number of these) is: Contract useless teams.
Seriously. No one -- and I do mean NO ONE -- wants to continue to see Cleveland and Jacksonville barf up the league. They are not the only two teams I would contract, given power to do so. That said, however, I think a large part of why a lot of people aren't watching (along with the Never-Ending Reality Show, awareness of the concussion/CTE issue, etc.) is that the league has done a very poor job of making more than, MAYBE, two or three teams actually relevant.
#2: Improve pace of game.
There are a number of solutions I would go well out of the box with on this one.
One of them is actually to stop allowing the referees to tamper the pace of the game on their own. There are a number of incidents in which teams watched the clock run out on them while the officials would not let them snap the ball.
Another is to simply get rid of the kickoff. I'll have a solution on that one later.
And third may be a complete rework of the game to begin with. Reduce the length of the quarters, but stop the clock more often, so that more of the actual running time is actual gameplay.
#3: Kickoff rule.
Here's my solution to the kickoff situation: Get rid of kickoffs entirely.
On any score outside a safety, the scoring team has two options: Give the ball to the other team at their own 25, or take the ball at your own 25, fourth and 20-25. (One play to get 20-25 yards -- make it difficult enough and obvious enough, like most onside kicks in the first place.)
This might also get rid of the score-commercial-kickoff-commercial situation as well.
#4: "My Cause, My Cleats", and associated uniform violation fines.
Solution: Any cleats which actually promote an actual cause or are an actual legitimate tribute are legal. No fine.
If you want to honor Craig Sager or bring mental health awareness or something to that effect, you're good. I understand why there are efforts to have the people have uniform cleats to sell in stores and the like to hardcore idiots, but the fact is that LEGITIMATE efforts to honor or promote causes should never be fined.
Now, if you are trying to pimp the latest rap star of the day, fine away. Especially if the league grows a brain, any abuse of the process should be fined.
#5: Chip technology on scores and ball placement.
It's conceded this one probably doesn't work, because you'd still need the eyeball test on when to check for the chip placement.
#6: Thursday Night Football
My solution: Get rid of it. Move the opener to the Saturday night before, if you must.
All Thursday Night Football was designed to do was to extend the National Religion another evening (Thursday night: Pro. Friday night: High School. Saturday: College. Sunday and Monday Night: Pro.) to basically make football a five out of seven day affair.
Again, and this dovetails into the "useless teams" argument: Look at some of the games put on the Thursday schedule to give every team a prime-time game: Jags-Titans, Ravens-Browns... I mean, they did a better job of stopping complete stinkers, unlike previous years.
The turnaround is insane, and for what real benefit? Get rid of TNF. The only Thursday which MIGHT work is Thanksgiving, and that's tradition. You might do well to give the Cowboys, Lions, and the two teams they are playing their byes the Sunday before Thanksgiving.
#7: Celebration Penalties and Unsportsmanlike Conduct
This was the largest Point of Emphasis this year in the NFL. No uncertain terms, it didn't work.
I'm really of two conflicted minds here, and hence my solution is an either-or: Either you go ahead and give the fans what they want and let the players have a personality, or you go all the way and anything which is not handing the ball to the ref is 15 and a toss.
First off, it's apparent that there is a very real possibility that Unsportsmanlike Conduct must become an ejection foul on ONE such penalty, not two. There is a conduct problem on-the-field in the NFL -- in fact, in all of football. It will have to be further addressed.
On the other hand, there is the real question: Why are we flagging the celebrations? If it is a function of what the league has said (with emphasis on "example for the children"), has the NFL forgotten that it is the only level of 100-yard football that even allows the spike after a touchdown, much less anything else?
If "example for the children" is a reason, the league will have to consider outlawing all post-touchdown (and post-sack) demonstrations, including AND ESPECIALLY the Lambeau Leap, etc. The NFL is the only level which allows it, no level of "the children" allows it. So, in another example of the league's hypocrisy, if part of this is "FOR THE CHILDREN!!!", then why is any demonstration allowed?
I have a feeling we will see something this off-season on that from Goodell.
#8: California.
The entire situation in the state of California, with respect to the NFL, is going to have to be addressed. (And this doesn't even take into account CalExit.)
The article notes that you already have two teams that are not wanted by their localities. San Diego has become the first city I know of to completely disown it's NFL team. And it's so bad that the Los Angeles Chargers will play in a stadium which seats only 30,000 people. They will actually play the next two seasons in Los Angeles' SOCCER STADIUM in Carson. And the Raiders? That Las Vegas situation has gone quite south in the last 30 days. And that whole situation in the Coliseum is not going to work.
The Rams are an utter joke. What you saw in the Los Angeles Rams in Season One was one of the biggest quit jobs in league history.
The 49ers are even worse of a joke, and the league should've stepped in on the basis of player misconduct and the complete mismanagement of the team since their last Super Bowl appearance.
Solution?? At least one of these four teams is going to have to go -- probably two. And bugger if I can say which one or two! Cases could be made for the removal of any of the four franchises. You'd obviously want to keep at least one LA team (or have a team in LA), but the fact is that none of these franchises (not even the Raiders, who had more wins than the rest of the state COMBINED (12, with SD 5, Rams 4, SF 2)) are healthy enough to be considered viable at this point.
#9: A true developmental league.
The NFL wants a third-party to actually make the infrastructure and proof-of-concept (as Seifert phrases it) for a developmental league.
This would make sense if we actually dialed back college football in this country. Until then, spare me. The fact is that it would actually serve the league better to admit that college football IS the developmental league and be done with it. Not even with the NFL name attached will most people accept "lesser football" (NFL Europe), much less the XFL failure.
Solution: A fuller partnership with college football and spare me any developmental league talk. As Michael Vick found out, and it precipitated his retirement, if you're not getting the call, there's some reason or another (rightly or wrongly) you aren't.
#10: Officiating technology.
The CFL actually did something this year, a centralized video official who could stop the game at any time and correct an egregious error.
Implement it if you must, but it's just another person to be in on an officiating screwjob if one takes place. Mike Pereira has already stated that he believes referees are getting advice from upstairs to begin with!
You note one thing that isn't on the list:
#11: The continuing explosion of head injuries.
I am reminded of a collision Deadspin caught in the Packer-Bear game, where the running back for Chicago lowered his head and the collision was so forceful that the logo got knocked off his helmet!
No uncertain terms: The game cannot be made safer. It can't. There is no solution for this but to create a flag-football situation (which, if marketed properly, would probably address a number of these other issues, come to think of it!!!)
Monday, February 6, 2017
Super Farce LI(E): Additional extentions of remarks...
- My anonymous bullshit detector was resting off after drinking a bit than was planned Sunday night. My friend got up about 6:30-ish or whatever, with about nine minutes to go in the game, with the Falcons up 28-12. My friend knew immediately (shadowing that day I had in Cam Newton's national title year when Alabama laid down for Auburn) that the game would go to overtime. My friend refuses to watch the NFL due to the head injuries, etc. and so forth, and hasn't for nine years.
- And, wouldn't you know it? League MVP Donald Trump (Matt Ryan was just a placeholder this year -- as I think we finally have found the one thing -- with the ratings and all -- bigger than the NFL!) congratulating his good friends the GOAT player and the GOAT coach after the game.
- I don't know what makes me more flummoxed about all this -- that the NFL actually went through with this, or the simple fact that, in front of an audience exceeding 100 million in the United States, they carried out one of the largest insults to the intelligence of any person who has ever watched a football game and is aware of the game's rules and how the game is meant to be played. If this game were any degree of believed-legitimate, the coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback of the Falcons would all be looking either for prison jumpsuits or new jobs this morning. Any person (outside of the fools who are Patriot fans in the first place) who actually believes last night's game was not a scripted farce is, bluntly, probably beyond reach.
- We can debate (and there has already been some, in the light of the media's Tom Brady Victory Lap) about whether Tom Brady has been placed beside Michael Jordan in the American Sports Parthenon. However, there is one thing that I have noticed: Michael Jordan was the Corporate Champion. Tom Brady is the Political Champion -- taking Jordan's corporate rigging/scripting agendas and parlaying them into the political arena, and he has for the last 15 years. Much of what I believed played into the election of President Oompa-Loompa is that it no longer matters what you do, pending your political position in society. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the football manifestation of such: Tom Brady.
- My anonymous friend (who is sitting in the room while I type this) just made a point that made everything make sense: I had thought, in the lead-up to the Super Bowl, the NFL would just let the Patriots run up the score and win by some ridiculous margin for Brady's #5. Wait a second, says my friend... If they're going to put Brady over "Joe Cool" Joe Montana, why wouldn't it be with a comeback never seen (and not close to being ever seen -- the previous largest Super Bowl comeback was a mere ten points!!)?
- EDIT TO ADD 12:45 PM 2/6: And, in what has to be one of the least surprising articles I've seen on the Univision-owned sites, new African-American affairs site "The Root" has this article today: "The Trap House vs. the White House: Why Black America Needed the Falcons to Win". And if you needed any more example of why the Falcons DIDN'T win and were ordered to take a dive...
Sunday, February 5, 2017
Super Farce LI(E): They. DIDN'T!!!!
First off, before I do anything, thank you to Romano's Pizzeria of my hometown (they have several locations in nearby cities) for being a gracious host. Shade on the pricy side, but there you go.
Before I get to the obvious, some other thoughts that would've centered this post had the NFL not pulled the most obvious shenanigans in history!!!
Nope, they went the other route:
The Atlanta Falcons participated in throwing Super Bowl LI at the orders of the National Football League to install Tom Brady as next to Jordan in American sports.
What you saw tonight would be IMPOSSIBLE without the cooperation on every conceivable level on the part of the Falcons. And, as long as it's on the league's direction, it's completely above-table and legal.
At least two different easy opportunities to put the game out of reach with field goals, intentionally botched to facilitate the 25-point comeback. Several different passes where passing made no abject sense, especially since there was success on the ground against the Patriot defense!
But that was never the idea. Atlanta was not supposed to win this Super Bowl. Tom Brady was. Bill Belicheat was.
Oh, and the overtime touchdown? New England covered the -3 and the game went over!
You got suckered and the only thing I have to say on it is that I am stunned they actually went through with it in this manner!!!
Before I get to the obvious, some other thoughts that would've centered this post had the NFL not pulled the most obvious shenanigans in history!!!
- Shocked at the very conciliatory and unifying tone the NFL and FOX Television took to the broadcast. From the pre-game "tradition" to Johnny Cash's "Old, Ragged Flag" to the salute to the Hall of Famers from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (Lester Hayes is not well, people...) to multiple commercials preaching tolerance and acceptance in this day and age, even FOX, I think, is getting the picture that President Oompa-Loompa is taking it a bit too goddamned far.
- Lady Gaga is fucking hot. And very talented. That is all.
- (Except I damn well hope she didn't land on her microphone in the padded area she jumped into at the end of the show.)
- Commercials were largely nothing to write home about this year. Several quite funny ones, but nothing of that transcendent Super Bowl level.
- George H.W. Bush is not well. No, I didn't agree with all, or even remotely most, of his policies. He is not long for this Earth, but at least has attempted to carry the legacy of being a former President very well.
- Luke Bryan appeared off on several of his notes on the National Anthem.
- Interesting they included several Black singers from "Hamilton" in the presentation, singing "America the Beautiful".
- Early bad no-call benefiting New England on a Late Hit.
- Another no-call after the first touchdown benefiting Atlanta on pass interference.
- Most of the refereeing was on point in this. There were several close calls on the sidelines and on other regards of catches and I didn't see a one where the call was egregiously bad except maybe those two..
- ... and the fact that three consecutive New England first downs on a first half drive were awarded by defensive holding calls (though all three were correct! -- the only question is how often that happens on every such play!!)
- And, with about 2:30 to go in the third quarter, New England is down 28-3, though driving.
Nope, they went the other route:
- Touchdown with about 2 minutes to in the third quarter -- Gostkowski bonks the extra point, and it's 28-9 Atlanta.
- Atlanta, after the onside kick and a good pass, gets 2nd and 1 at the NE 32. Three plays later, (holding penalty, incompletion, sack), its 4th and 19 at the Atlanta 49. That's one field goal off the boards. That one makes it 31-9 to start the 4th quarter, and they're pretty much home.
- New England, still looking quite a bit disorganized, somehow stumbles their way into a six-minute, 12-play drive which culminates with a Gostkowski field goal for 28-12.
- First two plays out are runs. Third and 2 at the Atlanta 35, they... PASS?????
- Or at least they try to. Matt Ryan fumbles (correctly called), and the Patriots get the ball at the Atlanta 25. Five plays later, Brady to Amendola, plus the two, for 28-20 with six minutes to go.
- So Atlanta passes AGAIN. And, yes, they get two long passes off to get down to the New England 22 with about four minutes to go and New England has all their timeouts. At this point, three runs into the line get a 35ish yard field goal attempt to go up 11 with between 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 minutes to go, depending on how many of the three timeouts Belicheat wants to save.
- So what happens? By the end of the sequence, Atlanta is FOURTH AND THIRTY-FIVE at New England's 47!! Run for -1 should've been OK. Then a sack, a holding call, and an incompletion. That's two intentionally botched field goal opportunities.
- Incompletion.
- Incompletion.
- 3rd down pass for 16.
- Incompletion with pass interference on Atlanta not called.
- Pass for 11, out of bounds on the run.
- Pass for 18 with a Tyree-level catch -- confirmed on replay, and the correct call. Atlanta basically had to challenge it though.
- Pass for 25.
- Two-minute warning.
- Pass for 13.
- Pass for 9
- White with the 1 yard touchdown.
- Brady gets the 2 and we're drawn with 55 seconds left.
- Pass for 7.
- Pass for 12.
- Pass for 19.
- Pass for -3, as Atlanta did snuff out that swing pass.
- Pass for 15.
- Pass for 10.
- Interference on Atlanta in the end zone -- good call.
- Incomplete.
- And White for the game-winner, and Brady is now alongside Michael Jordan as on the American sports Parthenon as the GOATs (and Foolish and Wretched Rigged One-Dimensional Ballhogs).
The Atlanta Falcons participated in throwing Super Bowl LI at the orders of the National Football League to install Tom Brady as next to Jordan in American sports.
What you saw tonight would be IMPOSSIBLE without the cooperation on every conceivable level on the part of the Falcons. And, as long as it's on the league's direction, it's completely above-table and legal.
At least two different easy opportunities to put the game out of reach with field goals, intentionally botched to facilitate the 25-point comeback. Several different passes where passing made no abject sense, especially since there was success on the ground against the Patriot defense!
But that was never the idea. Atlanta was not supposed to win this Super Bowl. Tom Brady was. Bill Belicheat was.
Oh, and the overtime touchdown? New England covered the -3 and the game went over!
You got suckered and the only thing I have to say on it is that I am stunned they actually went through with it in this manner!!!
Official Super Bowl LI(E) Prediction. You're all suckers.
Donald Trump is being interviewed by Bill O'Reilly for the Super Bowl pre-game show.
If you need to know anything else of the affairs of today, there it is.
You'll probably see him again just before the ceremonies pre-kickoff on FOX, when FOX does their tradition of post-9/11 Super Bowls. I forget if it's the Pledge of Allegiance or the Gettysburg Address, but FOX has a patriotic expression of national pride just before turning the broadcast over to the pre-game ceremonies. (To be fair, it had Obama when he was President.)
(And a reminder from my anonymous friend and Deadspin that the Patriots and Falcons were the top two teams exposed in a 2012-2015 report regarding the Federal government paying for patriotic events (color guards, reunions, etc. and so forth and so on) at NFL contests. Falcons #1, Pats #2.)
But I felt this two weeks ago when the match-up was made and the point spread first set at New England -3.
This is a sucker's bet of MASSIVE proportions, in my opinion, and I may look stupid about 7:30 or so Pacific tonight.
I'll begin by freely admitting that there are several angles on the Falcons.
The problem, for me, is that this entire season has become revolved around our new President. Fascination with him destroyed the ratings for the league pre-election, and the fact he was made President in one of the largest-scale (perceived) "upsets" in history basically shook up every conceivable narrative in this country.
So much so that there are even people who are allies of the Orange Oompa-Loompa who would wish he'd get out of the way so people could sleep at night.
The thing is, it cannot be underestimated that this entire Patriots run (now in it's 16th NFL season with the Patriots going to seven Super Bowls in the timeframe) is almost-certainly the first US government-engineered sports dynasty. From the first "win" fifteen Super Bowls ago, to the State of the Union address, to the numerous breaches of at least corporate law (if not criminal) Belicheat and the Patriots have gotten away with against various teams over the last decade and a half...
It also cannot be underestimated that Brady, Belichick, and Kraft are three rich White men (emphasis on WHITE!!!) who openly support Gropenfuhrer II -- President GrabHerInThePussy. It's been kind of tap-danced around and all, probably as part of what my friend would call the Kabuki Theater surrounding all of this, but would it not be almost appropo for Trump to call the Patriots' locker room (or even on the field) after the game and congratulate his friends.
And then there's the angle on the league's own propaganda ends -- if Brady wins another, it's #5. No player in the most blessed of positions (please note my snark!) has ever won 5 of these. I've heard Dana White already demand a blowout because he already calls the Pats (his team) the GOAT and Tom Brady the GOAT. Tom Brady, ONCE he wins #5 -- today or the day he retires! -- will be placed alongside the other Foolish and Wretched Ballhog in the American Sports Parthenon.
As much as the Northeast did vote against Trump, it is still fact that the Northeast is still largely White -- in fact, Boston was one of the last sports cities to integrate (which see the stories surrounding Bill Russell!). Downtown Atlanta is so Black, the Braves ran from there and are building their new stadium in suburban Cobb Country to try to bleach their fanbase.
I know a lot of people are talking this is going to be an up-and-down the field video-game score affair.
I think it will be -- one way, for the Patriots.
With the obvious caveat that, if the ratings tank too much, they'll have to orchestrate it closer, my pick is Patriots 44 - Atlanta 10, so we must all bow head and bend knee to Belicheat and Brady.
And pardon me while I barf up my lunch.
If you need to know anything else of the affairs of today, there it is.
You'll probably see him again just before the ceremonies pre-kickoff on FOX, when FOX does their tradition of post-9/11 Super Bowls. I forget if it's the Pledge of Allegiance or the Gettysburg Address, but FOX has a patriotic expression of national pride just before turning the broadcast over to the pre-game ceremonies. (To be fair, it had Obama when he was President.)
(And a reminder from my anonymous friend and Deadspin that the Patriots and Falcons were the top two teams exposed in a 2012-2015 report regarding the Federal government paying for patriotic events (color guards, reunions, etc. and so forth and so on) at NFL contests. Falcons #1, Pats #2.)
But I felt this two weeks ago when the match-up was made and the point spread first set at New England -3.
This is a sucker's bet of MASSIVE proportions, in my opinion, and I may look stupid about 7:30 or so Pacific tonight.
I'll begin by freely admitting that there are several angles on the Falcons.
- As my friend points out, they were the top-receiving team of government funds for "paid patriotism".
- I fully concede that the league would take great joy in having it's first 2017-18 broadcast from a sparkling new billion-dollar-plus stadium.
- If the Falcons win this one, they are young enough to become the new "young guns" of the NFL and win several more. There are many who view this as the NFL's "new blood" angle, and I can't see them wrong in this regard. The defense is young, the offense is #1 in the league.
- There is, of course, the babyface angle.
- And the fact that the Patriots might still be (by some estimates) in the league doghouse.
The problem, for me, is that this entire season has become revolved around our new President. Fascination with him destroyed the ratings for the league pre-election, and the fact he was made President in one of the largest-scale (perceived) "upsets" in history basically shook up every conceivable narrative in this country.
So much so that there are even people who are allies of the Orange Oompa-Loompa who would wish he'd get out of the way so people could sleep at night.
The thing is, it cannot be underestimated that this entire Patriots run (now in it's 16th NFL season with the Patriots going to seven Super Bowls in the timeframe) is almost-certainly the first US government-engineered sports dynasty. From the first "win" fifteen Super Bowls ago, to the State of the Union address, to the numerous breaches of at least corporate law (if not criminal) Belicheat and the Patriots have gotten away with against various teams over the last decade and a half...
It also cannot be underestimated that Brady, Belichick, and Kraft are three rich White men (emphasis on WHITE!!!) who openly support Gropenfuhrer II -- President GrabHerInThePussy. It's been kind of tap-danced around and all, probably as part of what my friend would call the Kabuki Theater surrounding all of this, but would it not be almost appropo for Trump to call the Patriots' locker room (or even on the field) after the game and congratulate his friends.
And then there's the angle on the league's own propaganda ends -- if Brady wins another, it's #5. No player in the most blessed of positions (please note my snark!) has ever won 5 of these. I've heard Dana White already demand a blowout because he already calls the Pats (his team) the GOAT and Tom Brady the GOAT. Tom Brady, ONCE he wins #5 -- today or the day he retires! -- will be placed alongside the other Foolish and Wretched Ballhog in the American Sports Parthenon.
As much as the Northeast did vote against Trump, it is still fact that the Northeast is still largely White -- in fact, Boston was one of the last sports cities to integrate (which see the stories surrounding Bill Russell!). Downtown Atlanta is so Black, the Braves ran from there and are building their new stadium in suburban Cobb Country to try to bleach their fanbase.
I know a lot of people are talking this is going to be an up-and-down the field video-game score affair.
I think it will be -- one way, for the Patriots.
With the obvious caveat that, if the ratings tank too much, they'll have to orchestrate it closer, my pick is Patriots 44 - Atlanta 10, so we must all bow head and bend knee to Belicheat and Brady.
And pardon me while I barf up my lunch.
Saturday, February 4, 2017
As you all worship Highest Mass of Super Bowl LI(E) tomorrow, another death to the game's altar...
Another person we will conveniently forget tomorrow, so I will deign to write about him today...
Suicide death of a former NFL player -- Benny Perrin.
Played under Bear Bryant, four years in the NFL.
And it's pretty clear that it was CTE.
Not only the suicide... He was one of the plaintiffs in the concussion lawsuit dismissed in favor of our Lords and Saviors in the NFL.
So I know you will conveniently forget when your death rate goes up if your team loses tomorrow...
Suicide death of a former NFL player -- Benny Perrin.
Played under Bear Bryant, four years in the NFL.
And it's pretty clear that it was CTE.
Not only the suicide... He was one of the plaintiffs in the concussion lawsuit dismissed in favor of our Lords and Saviors in the NFL.
So I know you will conveniently forget when your death rate goes up if your team loses tomorrow...
Friday, February 3, 2017
And, in the "You Can't Make This Up" Department...
My anonymous friend is a golf fan.
My anonymous friend is NOT a Tiger Woods fan.
So, tonight, we had to laugh when my friend saw the World Golf Rankings and saw Tiger Woods at...
#666.
My anonymous friend is NOT a Tiger Woods fan.
So, tonight, we had to laugh when my friend saw the World Golf Rankings and saw Tiger Woods at...
#666.
Mothers of dead CTE sacrifices to the altar of the National Religion want their due time...
(Deadspin)
Mothers of dead CTE victims, laid at the altar of football, tried to bring awareness to the disease at a Monday press conference.
With cutouts of CTE victims like Dave Duerson in the background, their mothers talked about a new partnership with Mayo Clinic, and had a former NFL player talking about simply outlawing tackle football below the age of 14.
Media Count: 3.
No one fucking cares anymore, it seems.
Mothers of dead CTE victims, laid at the altar of football, tried to bring awareness to the disease at a Monday press conference.
With cutouts of CTE victims like Dave Duerson in the background, their mothers talked about a new partnership with Mayo Clinic, and had a former NFL player talking about simply outlawing tackle football below the age of 14.
Media Count: 3.
No one fucking cares anymore, it seems.
Complete re-edit/retraction/explanation: I'll still make the point, but...
Earlier today, I saw this and actually thought the NBA screwed Atlanta on this one.
Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN posted this little gem...
In the David $tern NBA, there'd be no doubt that I would call the game rigged. I want to give Adam Silver SOME benefit of the doubt for the good he's done the league since becoming Commissioner, but this appeared an egregious one.
So it gave me the chance to go over something I philosophically believe about rigged games, sports conspiracy theories, etc.
If I've seen one site use numerology and what I consider hocus-pocus relating to rigged games and what they believe is going on, I've seen many.
I don't believe in such things. I believe numbers can be used to show trends and the like which can indicate rigged games (especially by slanted refereeing, etc.), but I think a lot of the "3+4 = 777" numerology discredits the whole situation -- and I think that's the idea.
All you have to do is watch a lot of this and respond to what obviously is going on and called contrary to what actually goes on.
This is the kind of stuff people need to be looking for to see about rigged games, not hocus-pocus. Look for the sleight of hand, not the magic trick itself.
I had said this was a prime example.
It's *NOT*!!! My friend/external bullshit detector/historian/source/etc. and so forth took many long looks at this one before coming to the conclusion...
THE CALL WAS CORRECT!!! I have to retract the rigging claim.
Why? SB Nation has the better angle on this one...
The ball bounces off the backboard on the side AWAY FROM THE CAMERA, swishes the outside of the net, no basket...
Still, an opportunity to make an important point before Super Farce LI(E), even with egg on my face.
Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN posted this little gem...
Three referees on the floor ruled that not a basket. That would've been a TYING THREE-POINTER in the last 15 seconds, and Atlanta stole one in Houston 113-108.Wait this did NOT go in?#whileyouweresleeping pic.twitter.com/lPymskz830— Mike & Mike (@MikeAndMike) February 3, 2017
In the David $tern NBA, there'd be no doubt that I would call the game rigged. I want to give Adam Silver SOME benefit of the doubt for the good he's done the league since becoming Commissioner, but this appeared an egregious one.
So it gave me the chance to go over something I philosophically believe about rigged games, sports conspiracy theories, etc.
If I've seen one site use numerology and what I consider hocus-pocus relating to rigged games and what they believe is going on, I've seen many.
I don't believe in such things. I believe numbers can be used to show trends and the like which can indicate rigged games (especially by slanted refereeing, etc.), but I think a lot of the "3+4 = 777" numerology discredits the whole situation -- and I think that's the idea.
All you have to do is watch a lot of this and respond to what obviously is going on and called contrary to what actually goes on.
This is the kind of stuff people need to be looking for to see about rigged games, not hocus-pocus. Look for the sleight of hand, not the magic trick itself.
I had said this was a prime example.
It's *NOT*!!! My friend/external bullshit detector/historian/source/etc. and so forth took many long looks at this one before coming to the conclusion...
THE CALL WAS CORRECT!!! I have to retract the rigging claim.
Why? SB Nation has the better angle on this one...
The ball bounces off the backboard on the side AWAY FROM THE CAMERA, swishes the outside of the net, no basket...
Still, an opportunity to make an important point before Super Farce LI(E), even with egg on my face.
Thursday, February 2, 2017
Super Farce LI(E): WAY TOO QUIET.
And I thought LAST YEAR was quiet.
This year is making last year loud in comparison.
And, look, I get it: Tomorrow's State of the League lie-fest notwithstanding, it's clear Goodell is telling everybody to knock it off.
It's so quiet that this little tidbit is probably good for a post: The last time the Super Bowl was in Houston and the Patriots were playing, Justin Timberlake was getting Janet Jackson naked by the end of that song.
Yep, THAT.
(One of the reasons I am shocked the league allowed for Lady Gaga this year.)
Anyhow: Lady Gaga was asked about that and whether, given Gaga's penchant for being a little out-of-the-box, something might happen on Sunday.
She laughed, asked if we wanted to blame that on the Patriots (that works! :) ), and said things will be "nice and tight" on Sunday.
So the Concerned Mommies of America won't need to worry.
This year is making last year loud in comparison.
And, look, I get it: Tomorrow's State of the League lie-fest notwithstanding, it's clear Goodell is telling everybody to knock it off.
It's so quiet that this little tidbit is probably good for a post: The last time the Super Bowl was in Houston and the Patriots were playing, Justin Timberlake was getting Janet Jackson naked by the end of that song.
Yep, THAT.
(One of the reasons I am shocked the league allowed for Lady Gaga this year.)
Anyhow: Lady Gaga was asked about that and whether, given Gaga's penchant for being a little out-of-the-box, something might happen on Sunday.
She laughed, asked if we wanted to blame that on the Patriots (that works! :) ), and said things will be "nice and tight" on Sunday.
So the Concerned Mommies of America won't need to worry.
Super Farce LI(E): Not even the cops are getting some of this...
I heard part of the story last week.
Doritos, as part of the Super Bowl, unveiled a unique bag for this year's Super Bowl.
It doubles as a breathalyzer. You breathe into the bag, and it turns green, your BAC is below a certain point. Red, and you better get somebody else to drive.
That didn't stop some police from taking a shot at the entire project last week:
Yep, that's the Lawrence, Kansas Police Department's Twitter account, completely missing the entire point Doritos is making out of this!
And, now that the story behind the bag is coming out, doubly so!!!
According to numerous media sources, but I found it from Arash Markazi at ESPN: Delanie Walker played in Super Bowl XLVII, and his aunt and uncle were at the game to see him play.
It would be the last day of their lives -- both lost their lives in a car crash, with a drunk driver.
Walker used that as an impetus to partner with Doritos to create the breathalyzer.
So thank you Delanie Walker and boo on the Lawrence PD for completely missing the point.
Doritos, as part of the Super Bowl, unveiled a unique bag for this year's Super Bowl.
It doubles as a breathalyzer. You breathe into the bag, and it turns green, your BAC is below a certain point. Red, and you better get somebody else to drive.
That didn't stop some police from taking a shot at the entire project last week:
If you have to blow into a Tostitos bag to know if you're intoxicated, for the love of all that is holy, DO NOT DRIVE https://t.co/gnTcIIL7Oj— Lawrence Police (@LawrenceKS_PD) January 26, 2017
Yep, that's the Lawrence, Kansas Police Department's Twitter account, completely missing the entire point Doritos is making out of this!
And, now that the story behind the bag is coming out, doubly so!!!
According to numerous media sources, but I found it from Arash Markazi at ESPN: Delanie Walker played in Super Bowl XLVII, and his aunt and uncle were at the game to see him play.
It would be the last day of their lives -- both lost their lives in a car crash, with a drunk driver.
Walker used that as an impetus to partner with Doritos to create the breathalyzer.
So thank you Delanie Walker and boo on the Lawrence PD for completely missing the point.
Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Super Farce LI(E): Commercial banned because GNC sells NFL-banned substances.
GNC is not allowed to air an ad during the Super Bowl.
At least 3% of all products GNC sells, Yahoo! reports today, have banned substances by the league.
As a result, and with no merit to the content of the ad, the NFL threw GNC off the list of commercials to air on Sunday's bloodfeast.
It's also not a question of law: Nothing GNC sells is against American law (that we know of), just against the NFL performance-enhancing rules.
At least 3% of all products GNC sells, Yahoo! reports today, have banned substances by the league.
As a result, and with no merit to the content of the ad, the NFL threw GNC off the list of commercials to air on Sunday's bloodfeast.
It's also not a question of law: Nothing GNC sells is against American law (that we know of), just against the NFL performance-enhancing rules.
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