Tuesday, May 01, 2012
The Draft: The East Side Perspective
The Clarion Content is always on the lookout for new talent. We are big believers in collaboration and promoting good work where and when we see it. Many of you may not know it, but the Clarion Content was originally a sports heavy blog. In part, the Clarion Content was founded with intention of being a safe place to voice strong opinions. It would be our contention that sports, itself, is situated as one such realm in America.
In effort to be a generalist, truly communitarian rag, we believe sports must have its place. Bread and circuses or not, sports has a massive audience in America. The Editor-in-Chief is a sports fan. We have longed to find a way back to our sports roots for some time. We believe that moment is here.
We have joined forces with the East Side Perspective. It is an up and coming sports and culture website published in Chapel Hill. They are going to keep you up-to-date, sports fans, so that you can turn to the Clarion Content and get what it is you need; Durham, Arts, Culture and Sports, all in one place.
For even more sports articles from the East Side Perspective, check here. For music articles from the East Side Perspective check here.
We will be co-hosting a sports podcast with the Co-Founder of The Eastside Perspective, Matthew Creatore, asap, featuring plenty of special guest appearances.
So without further adieu let us offer you the first of what we hope will be many co-hosted columns from the East Side Perspective.
The Debate Of The NFL Draft: Luck Or Griffin?
Adam Cubbage
With the NFL draft fast approaching the Indianapolis Colts confirmed what many believed in that they are taking Andrew Luck, quarterback out of Stanford University, with the number one overall pick.
The question some had leading up to the draft was whether or not Robert Griffin III should have been chosen before him. Some say it was never a conversation to begin with, others, even two weeks ago, said otherwise. Let’s take a look at both and see if the Colts are making the right call.
A quick tale of the tape:
Both have the physical tools to succeed at the quarterback position in the NFL, with Robert Griffin III at a slight disadvantage because of his height. Usually when I look at the quarterback position, I look at more than raw numbers and controlled NFL Combine/Pro Day scenarios. One of my biggest determining factors is their experience in college, and this is where I think Luck separates himself significantly from Griffin.
Luck played his college career in the Pac-12 and had career numbers of 9,430 yards, 82 touchdowns, 22 interceptions, 67% completion and 162.8 QB rating. He started three years in the conference, with his best year being his sophomore season. He took many by surprise when he decided to bypass the NFL draft and return to Stanford to finish his degree.
Last season gave me the opportunity to see what he could really do at the position and he didn't disappoint. Without elite weapons, Luck led the Cardinal to the Fiesta Bowl and continued to put up big numbers as he had in past seasons. The main criticism last season was that he didn't have great arm strength - I couldn’t have disagreed with that assessment more because he didn't need to use such pace as often last season because the offense was more conservative due to the talent level around him. He later showcased his full arsenal in the BCS game against Oklahoma State and later during his Pro Day.
Robert Griffin, who competed in the Big 12, had numbers most can only fathom in a video game. Throwing for almost 4,000 yards and rushing for almost 700, he became Baylor's first ever Heisman Trophy winner and deservedly so. For putting Baylor on the radar of college football fans for all the right reasons, Griffin was truly amazing last season. There were, however, some issues with his overall game.
His arm is great, his speed is off the charts, but his ability to read and adapt to above average defenses worries me. While the likes of Texas, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State aren't pushovers, we can all agree that they weren't at the peak of their powers during his time at Baylor. His ability to make all of the throws is there, but I worry about him against NFL defenses because Griffin won't be able to improvise like he did much of the time in college in crucial moments when the pocket wasn’t there. I would also contend that while comparisons will be made, he isn't Michael Vick or Cam Newton.
Indianapolis is making the right choice in taking Luck over Robert Griffin III. Luck is more prepared for the NFL at this point because of his extra time in college and his knowledge of the position mixed with his physical attributes. Griffin, while immensely talented, could have benefited from another year in school. I don't see him as an immediate starter in the NFL, but someone who, with a year or two behind a veteran, could be a star in the league at the quarterback position.
In effort to be a generalist, truly communitarian rag, we believe sports must have its place. Bread and circuses or not, sports has a massive audience in America. The Editor-in-Chief is a sports fan. We have longed to find a way back to our sports roots for some time. We believe that moment is here.
We have joined forces with the East Side Perspective. It is an up and coming sports and culture website published in Chapel Hill. They are going to keep you up-to-date, sports fans, so that you can turn to the Clarion Content and get what it is you need; Durham, Arts, Culture and Sports, all in one place.
For even more sports articles from the East Side Perspective, check here. For music articles from the East Side Perspective check here.
We will be co-hosting a sports podcast with the Co-Founder of The Eastside Perspective, Matthew Creatore, asap, featuring plenty of special guest appearances.
So without further adieu let us offer you the first of what we hope will be many co-hosted columns from the East Side Perspective.
The Debate Of The NFL Draft: Luck Or Griffin?
Adam Cubbage
With the NFL draft fast approaching the Indianapolis Colts confirmed what many believed in that they are taking Andrew Luck, quarterback out of Stanford University, with the number one overall pick.
The question some had leading up to the draft was whether or not Robert Griffin III should have been chosen before him. Some say it was never a conversation to begin with, others, even two weeks ago, said otherwise. Let’s take a look at both and see if the Colts are making the right call.
A quick tale of the tape:
- Andrew Luck: 6'4", 234 lbs., 4.59 40-time, plus arm strength
- Robert Griffin III: 6'2 3/8", 231 lbs., 4.41 40-time, plus arm strength
Both have the physical tools to succeed at the quarterback position in the NFL, with Robert Griffin III at a slight disadvantage because of his height. Usually when I look at the quarterback position, I look at more than raw numbers and controlled NFL Combine/Pro Day scenarios. One of my biggest determining factors is their experience in college, and this is where I think Luck separates himself significantly from Griffin.
Luck played his college career in the Pac-12 and had career numbers of 9,430 yards, 82 touchdowns, 22 interceptions, 67% completion and 162.8 QB rating. He started three years in the conference, with his best year being his sophomore season. He took many by surprise when he decided to bypass the NFL draft and return to Stanford to finish his degree.
Last season gave me the opportunity to see what he could really do at the position and he didn't disappoint. Without elite weapons, Luck led the Cardinal to the Fiesta Bowl and continued to put up big numbers as he had in past seasons. The main criticism last season was that he didn't have great arm strength - I couldn’t have disagreed with that assessment more because he didn't need to use such pace as often last season because the offense was more conservative due to the talent level around him. He later showcased his full arsenal in the BCS game against Oklahoma State and later during his Pro Day.
Robert Griffin, who competed in the Big 12, had numbers most can only fathom in a video game. Throwing for almost 4,000 yards and rushing for almost 700, he became Baylor's first ever Heisman Trophy winner and deservedly so. For putting Baylor on the radar of college football fans for all the right reasons, Griffin was truly amazing last season. There were, however, some issues with his overall game.
His arm is great, his speed is off the charts, but his ability to read and adapt to above average defenses worries me. While the likes of Texas, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State aren't pushovers, we can all agree that they weren't at the peak of their powers during his time at Baylor. His ability to make all of the throws is there, but I worry about him against NFL defenses because Griffin won't be able to improvise like he did much of the time in college in crucial moments when the pocket wasn’t there. I would also contend that while comparisons will be made, he isn't Michael Vick or Cam Newton.
Indianapolis is making the right choice in taking Luck over Robert Griffin III. Luck is more prepared for the NFL at this point because of his extra time in college and his knowledge of the position mixed with his physical attributes. Griffin, while immensely talented, could have benefited from another year in school. I don't see him as an immediate starter in the NFL, but someone who, with a year or two behind a veteran, could be a star in the league at the quarterback position.
Labels: Eastside Perspective, NFL, sports
Monday, March 12, 2012
Bounties
The story is only a week old, and the NFL effective buried the lead by announcing the New Orleans Saints bounty scandal the same week star quarterback Peyton Manning became a free agent.
Perhaps, if you are not a sports fan you have not heard about the story. According to the NFL, the Saints had an organized bounty program to reward players for knocking opposing teams' players physically out of the game, cash bonuses for incapacitating them via injury.
The hue and cry about this discovery from the talking heads in the media, especially at ESPN1, has been ludicrous.
Our view, "What a bunchy of smarmy politically correct nonsense!"
The Clarion Content has no love for retired quarterback, and noted publicity hound, Brett Favre, but we think he got it right in this case. Favre said essentially, bounties or no bounties, it is a tough guy's league and people are basically trying to knock you out of the game on every play.
We at the Clarion Content cannot stand all the sanctimonious carping of the media mavens, like Dan Patrick, about how awful, how wrong, how devious these bounties the Saints put out on opposition players were.
Pul-leeze. The same folks who have been moaning about the NFL turning into flag football are suddenly horrified by bounties?? The same folks who were running weekly segments called "Jacked up!" and laughing their butts off at huge de-cleating hits are now disturbed by bounties??
Uh, huh, what?
It comes as a shock to you folks that the defenses were trying to knock quarterbacks and other star players out of the game? Really? That's a surprise?
Or it was the part where they were getting paid extra for it that bothered you morons?
Isn't that what their salary was for to begin with? NFL defensive players are performing a glorified version of the little kids' game, "Kill the Guy," week in and week out. Now somehow, because there are bonuses ponied up by the players involved its amoral?
What a crock!
Forgive the harsh language, but it is the same bullshit we see across a litany of other capitalist contexts. Whatever egregious violation of human rights or environmental degradation is being wrought, so long as it keeps costs down and it is largely behind closed doors or unreported, the mass of morons, will casually bury their heads in the sand and deny it is even happening. What Walmart/Nike/MNC X is paying little kids pennies a day in Asia to make our toys/clothes/crap? Eyes shut tight, head buried in sand, "No they aren't. No they aren't."
Undeniable mass media exposure brings said scandal to light, and the tune changes to "Oh wait, they are. Dang. Somebody needs to do something about that. Now! That's terrible."2
The standard political correct operating procedures see sanctimony rear its ugly head, and those caught out blantantly being abusive are punished, but real systemic change is never considered.3
In this case, sports is once again a microcosm of society. The reality is football is a hyper-violent sport. Kids are paralyzed and permanently injured playing the game every year. High school and college players sustain thousands of concussions annually, for a shot to make it into a pro league where the minimum annual salary is nearly $400 grand a year. Sudden traumatic death and/or disabling injury is an obstacle, but no kid ever thinks it is going to happen to them. Many serious injuries happen on otherwise seemingly innocuous plays.
Fans cheer the big hits. Violence sells.4
Pro football is a multi-billion dollar sport, and they play to win the game. To foolishly single out the New Orleans Saints, to pretend that their deliberate attempts to injure opponents are somehow unique is beyond ludicrous, it is civil hypocrisy of the most society annihilating sort. Don't hate the player, hate the game. Don't blame the player, change the game. Or accept that Americans are getting what we pay for, a brutal violent contest between highly compensated young athletes.
Notes
1One of the leading practitioners of yellow journalism today.
2A similar example: Joseph Kony has been running the LRA conscripting child soldiers and committing a litany of heinous crimes for more than twenty-five years, only now when the visual evidence is positively shoved down their proverbial throats are the masses reacting. During the reign of King George the II, more than 5 million people died from civil war in the Congo, there was no hullabaloo. No call for intervention, Americans, en masse, ignored the tragedy.
3This is why most American's are fine with the United States intervening in Libya and equally fine with the United States ignoring the wholesale slaughter in Syria. It is the left to the morally stolid, the John McCain's, Ron Paul's, Dennis Kucinich's, Noam Chomsky's of the world to point out the blatant hypocrisy. Alcohol related hazing is treated the same way. 1) Deny it. 2) Over-punish the individuals involved when tragedy occurs as it inevitably will periodically. 3) Ignore the system until it happens again in such a way that the horror is an unavoidable spectacle.
4Why do you think Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) took off just when they started trying to limit the violence in boxing? Why did NASCAR, for all its attempts to run and hide from its roots, suddenly bring back the "Rubbing is racing" mantra when attendance and ratings figures started to fall off a cliff? In America, violence sells.
Labels: economics, ESPN, Ethically questionable, NFL, sports, Sports Economics
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Interesting Links
A long time Clarion Content feature, "Interesting Links and Links of Interest," returns. Check out old posts below. Click here and scroll down.
The purpose of our Interesting Links pieces is to steer you to the entertaining, if off-beat, the fascinating, if less than earth-shattering, memes that populate the interwebs. Surely there are interesting links and fun stuff happening everywhere. If you see an interesting link you would like share, email it our way ClarionContent at Gmail dot com. (Type @ for at and . for dot. We are hoping to avoid additional junk in our in-box by switching up the nomenclature.)
Our first interesting link is to a piece by one of our favorite rock and roll interviewers, Chuck Klosterman. Klosterman has interviewed everyone from Bono to Noel Gallagher.1 He is also a sports fan. He has an acerbic, intellectual take that is frequently absent from the monosyllabic and cravenly devotional work characteristic of much sports writing.2
Here Klosterman takes a look at the Tim Tebow phenomenon and what it says about the fissures and bigger debates American culture. Tebow is polarizing. Why? It is a fascinating read, as interesting a cut on Tebow-mania as we have seen anywhere. If sports is a microcosm of society... then Tebow and the media's coverage of him hold an important mirror up to our collective selves. It asks questions about our cultural position on faith that are very relevant, especially on the precipice of a presidential election. Read the whole article here.
Our next interesting link is for those of you looking for something to do on the day after Christmas. Don't let the Monday blues get you down. December 26th is a day to get up and get down. Get out and dance around... LiLa will be hosting a CD release party at the Casbah on Main Street in downtown Durham. Check out this hilarious promo video. Hear music from the new album, "III" here.
Next up, more cool stuff to know about... The Nation's Restaurant News selected the winners of its 2011 Hot New Concepts award. Crave, FöD (Food on Demand), Mixt Greens, True Food Kitchen and Twisted Root Burger Company. These restaurants span the gamut from an American take on sushi to a concept from Sodexo, wherein guests place their orders on touch-screen kiosks, watch their food being made-to-order, and are alerted via their smart phones when their food is ready.
Our final interesting link is cat science related. The Clarion Content has long supported the widely held notion that cats are more elegant than dogs, now comes evidence from the New York Times Science section to prove it. Did you know cats lap their water faster than the human eye can see?3 Maybe not, but you surely knew that cats don't make those unseemly slurping and slobbering sounds that dogs do when drinking water.
The NY Times reports... "the cat’s lapping method depends on its instinctive ability to calculate the point at which gravitational force would overcome inertia and cause the water to fall." The study's author Dr. Roman Stocker said, "Three and a half years ago, I was watching Cutta Cutta [his cat] lap over breakfast." According to the Times, "he wondered what hydrodynamic problems the cat might be solving. He consulted Dr. Reis, an expert in fluid mechanics, and the study was under way." Rest assured, cats' inherent grace was verified. Read the whole article here.
Share your interesting links with us and read about them in our next edition.
1Don't worry, in searching for an appropriate name to pair with Bono, we had to look up who the heck Gallagher was too...the lead singer of Oasis.
2Bill Simmons, Nate Silver and Charles Pierce excepted.
3Four times per second.
The purpose of our Interesting Links pieces is to steer you to the entertaining, if off-beat, the fascinating, if less than earth-shattering, memes that populate the interwebs. Surely there are interesting links and fun stuff happening everywhere. If you see an interesting link you would like share, email it our way ClarionContent at Gmail dot com. (Type @ for at and . for dot. We are hoping to avoid additional junk in our in-box by switching up the nomenclature.)
Our first interesting link is to a piece by one of our favorite rock and roll interviewers, Chuck Klosterman. Klosterman has interviewed everyone from Bono to Noel Gallagher.1 He is also a sports fan. He has an acerbic, intellectual take that is frequently absent from the monosyllabic and cravenly devotional work characteristic of much sports writing.2
Here Klosterman takes a look at the Tim Tebow phenomenon and what it says about the fissures and bigger debates American culture. Tebow is polarizing. Why? It is a fascinating read, as interesting a cut on Tebow-mania as we have seen anywhere. If sports is a microcosm of society... then Tebow and the media's coverage of him hold an important mirror up to our collective selves. It asks questions about our cultural position on faith that are very relevant, especially on the precipice of a presidential election. Read the whole article here.
Our next interesting link is for those of you looking for something to do on the day after Christmas. Don't let the Monday blues get you down. December 26th is a day to get up and get down. Get out and dance around... LiLa will be hosting a CD release party at the Casbah on Main Street in downtown Durham. Check out this hilarious promo video. Hear music from the new album, "III" here.
Next up, more cool stuff to know about... The Nation's Restaurant News selected the winners of its 2011 Hot New Concepts award. Crave, FöD (Food on Demand), Mixt Greens, True Food Kitchen and Twisted Root Burger Company. These restaurants span the gamut from an American take on sushi to a concept from Sodexo, wherein guests place their orders on touch-screen kiosks, watch their food being made-to-order, and are alerted via their smart phones when their food is ready.
Our final interesting link is cat science related. The Clarion Content has long supported the widely held notion that cats are more elegant than dogs, now comes evidence from the New York Times Science section to prove it. Did you know cats lap their water faster than the human eye can see?3 Maybe not, but you surely knew that cats don't make those unseemly slurping and slobbering sounds that dogs do when drinking water.
The NY Times reports... "the cat’s lapping method depends on its instinctive ability to calculate the point at which gravitational force would overcome inertia and cause the water to fall." The study's author Dr. Roman Stocker said, "Three and a half years ago, I was watching Cutta Cutta [his cat] lap over breakfast." According to the Times, "he wondered what hydrodynamic problems the cat might be solving. He consulted Dr. Reis, an expert in fluid mechanics, and the study was under way." Rest assured, cats' inherent grace was verified. Read the whole article here.
Share your interesting links with us and read about them in our next edition.
1Don't worry, in searching for an appropriate name to pair with Bono, we had to look up who the heck Gallagher was too...the lead singer of Oasis.
2Bill Simmons, Nate Silver and Charles Pierce excepted.
3Four times per second.
Labels: Durham, food, interesting links, music, NFL, Politics, Pop Culture, sports
Sunday, September 11, 2011
NFL Preview thoughts
The Clarion Content is a dangerous source for predictions. We would almost recommend betting in directly opposition with our thoughts, save for this is what we are indeed thinking. This year we have had time for even less research than we have done in some years past, some sports talk radio, a podcast here or there, Grantland is about the sum total of it. Henceforth, we will only have a sentence or two about most teams, and for some even less.
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys
We agree with former Super Bowl winning Cowboys QB Troy Aikman that it is put up or shut up time for this core group of players. Gut instinct feel, this team collapses, they break it up and start over with a high draft pick. Last year's start was indicative, not a fluke.
New York Football Giants
We keep hearing how banged up they are on the defensive side of the ball. Eli Manning threw a ton of interceptions last year. This feels like a down year for the G-Men.
Philadelphia Eagles
They have assembled a defense of stars this year. But the offense looks vulnerable, lucky for them the NFC East looks very mediocre this year. Michael Vick has always been fragile. The Eagles wideouts are small and injury prone. Andy Reid is a horrible game manager and an even worse play caller. The Eagles consistent failure to develop a running game will see them come up short of the ultimate prize. (This must all sound so familiar to Donovan.)
Washington Redskins
Well, they got rid of Albert Haynesworth. But aren't they going with Rex Grossman at quarterback? We have never believed in Mike Shannahan.
NFC North
Green Bay Packers
The Super Bowl champs look great. We like Bill Simmons theory that the NFL lockout actually helped ameliorate the typical Super Bowl hangover. The Packers weren't feted the way most champs are. Did it help keep them hungry?
Detroit Lions
Apparently, it was Matt Millen, not ownership after all. The Lions are poised for a breakout season. Ndamukong Suh looks like he could be the defensive MVP. The only question mark is quarterback Matt Stafford.
Chicago Bears
We do not believe in Jay Cutler, we never have. They still have no number one wideout. We like Coach Lovie Smith. Is the defense aging? .500 at best...
Minnesota Vikings
It is just not going to be a happy career for Donovan McNabb... Maybe, maybe if Adrian Peterson stays healthy all year, their season will be less than disastrous.
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons
They are a chic Super Bowl pick. We like, not love, Matt Ryan. We think Julio Jones will eventually be an asset, but the lockout didn't help him. And what about their cornerbacks? Up to the task? This team takes a step back.
Carolina Panthers
The biggest question facing the Panthers this season is what position Cam Newton will play after the Panthers draft Andrew Luck. Tight-end? The Panthers resigned the stars of their 2-14 team. They still have no #2 wide receiver. We think Duke Blue Devil football wins more games than the Panthers this season. 0-6 in the division seems certain.
New Orleans Saints
Darren Sproles is the perfect Reggie Bush replacement and might even be an upgrade. Drew Brees is a wizard. We will take brains over brawn every day.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Nobody believes in Tampa quarterback Josh Freeman more than Bill Simmons, not his mom, not his coach... There must be a reason. We haven't seen enough to make up our minds on young Mr. Freeman. The Bucs appear to be the classic case of a team that suddenly faces a harder schedule and backs up. They are in a tough division.
NFC Worst
Arizona Cardinals
Kevin Kolb reminds us of the illustrious Scott Mitchell. Did they get worse defensively? This division is so bad that anything is possible.
San Francisco 49ers
If not for Alex Smith we would pick them to run away with this division. Why are they still sticking with Alex Smith? Andy Dalton would lead this team to a division title. Graham Harrell could probably be plucked from the Packers practice squad and lead this team to a division title. (We are assuming 7 and 9 will be enough again to win the West again.)
Seattle Seahawks
When did they give up on Charlie Whitehurst? Tavaris Jackson couldn't hack it in Minnesota with Adrian Peterson and a good o-line. What is he going to do here?
St. Louis Rams
We are not sold on Sam Bradford. Stephen Jackson is a useful asset. Do they have enough other offensive weapons? Says here no.
Division winners: Philadelphia, Green Bay, New Orleans, other
Wild Cards: Tampa Bay and Detroit
Conference Champ: New Orleans
Drew Brees is a winner on and off the field
AFC East
Buffalo Bills
We like quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. They need to find ways to utilize C.J. Spiller. Receiver Steve Johnson has skills too. The Bills are improving in a tough division.
Miami Dolphins
Bad ownership is destabilizing the franchise by undermining the head coach. We don't think Chad Henne is the problem, he might even be okay eventually, but not in this trainwreck of a situation. Brandon Marshall needs the departed Ricky Williams to tutor him in the way of karma.
New England Patriots
Why is everyone so enamoured with Belichek and company signing a bunch of aging defenders? Because the Junior Seau addition worked out so well? If these were the Al Davis led Raiders they would be getting killed for the same additions. Lucky for the New England defense, Tom Brady is on the other side of the ball.
New York Jets
Mark Sanchez is not getting any better. He looks great on a poster, less so on the field. Can the Ryan and the Jets defense carry them to the playoffs again?
AFC North
Baltimore Ravens
The last hurrah or the beginning of the other shoe dropping? We like the offense. This is the year the Anquan Boldin signing pays off. Ray Rice is dominant. Ricky Williams is a good change-up The o-line is pretty solid. Joe Flacco is a winner. Can the defense do its part? Is the window still open? Just maybe.
Cincinnati Bengals
We like quarterback Andy Dalton. And the Bengals won't be as bad as people think, oh they'll be bad all right, just not as bad as people think. Andy Dalton wants no part of the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. (Although, maybe he should, as it would hasten his departure from the black hole that is Bengal land.)
Cleveland Browns
This is a team headed in the right direction. We like what Colt McCoy showed last year. They have some weapons on offense. But, the top of the division is amongst the NFL's elite. So .500 appears to be a best case scenario.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Everyone is talking about the Ravens aging defense, but the Steelers are actually older. In fact, we heard they are going to start the oldest defense of this millennium. James Harrison had two off-season surgeries. Predator Ben Roethlisberger and the offense will likely drag them into the playoffs, and if they do, anything can happen.
AFC South
Houston Texans
It doesn't seem like even Gary Kubiak could screw this up. No Payton Manning? Could he and the Texans get a bigger gift? If they don't win the title this year, he gets fired and they break the thing up.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts season changed when Payton Manning got injured. Kerry Collins is a joke. The rest of the roster is less than talented. Even stud defensive ends Mathis and Freeney are less valuable on a team that does not have the lead all the time. We are, however, the last sports page in America to believe in Curtis Painter. In Purdue's Joe Tiller we trust, it says here if Painter gets the keys in time, he leads a late charge for a Wild Card berth that comes up just short.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Well, until they shocked us by cutting David Garrard last week, we were predicting the Jags would win the division. We like head coach Jack Del Rio. He has moxie. Maurice Jones-Drew has enough heart for three men. But what other talent is on the roster? On a team now led by a journeyman quarterback? No playoffs for them.
Tennessee Titans
We cannot believe the Titans were dumb enough not to be able to retain either Vince Young or Jeff Fisher. In this mess of a division, keeping just one of them might have been enough to get the team to the playoffs this season. Then again, maybe it is a better to bottom out and get into the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. The Titans figure to be about that bad.
AFC West
Denver Broncos
May as well play Tim Tebow, it is not like they have anything else going for them. Maybe Tebow inspires divine intervention on their behalf?? Mile High fans haven't seen back to back teams this bad since the early 70's.
Kansas City Chiefs
This is the year when Matt Cassell shows us why Tyler Thigpen and Matt Leinart have played ahead of him. K.C. got an easy schedule and lots of breaks last year. This team is backing up. We think Jamaal Charles is powerful running back, but they do not have enough weapons around him.
Oakland Raiders
We like Jason Campbell. We have believed in his leadership since his Auburn days. We love the way he throws the ball. The Raiders went 6 and 0 in the division last year. Why did they have to fire Coach Tom Cable and subvert it all? Answer: Al Davis.
San Diego Chargers
Phillip Rivers is a winner. Absent Norv Turnerm, we would be picking this team to the Super Bowl. They have a gaudy array of offensive weapons and a lousy division to beat up on. How will they find a way to lose in the playoffs this year? No idea, but we can't wait to find out.
Division winners: New England, Baltimore, Houston, San Diego
Wild Cards: New York Jets and Pittsburgh
Conference Champ: Baltimore Ravens
Ray Rice is a dominant force, with a defense that has one last hurrah left.
The Super Bowl winner?
Says here the New Orleans Saints and Drew Brees make it 2 out of 3, beating the Ravens of Baltimore in Ray Lewis's final game.
NFC East
Dallas Cowboys
We agree with former Super Bowl winning Cowboys QB Troy Aikman that it is put up or shut up time for this core group of players. Gut instinct feel, this team collapses, they break it up and start over with a high draft pick. Last year's start was indicative, not a fluke.
New York Football Giants
We keep hearing how banged up they are on the defensive side of the ball. Eli Manning threw a ton of interceptions last year. This feels like a down year for the G-Men.
Philadelphia Eagles
They have assembled a defense of stars this year. But the offense looks vulnerable, lucky for them the NFC East looks very mediocre this year. Michael Vick has always been fragile. The Eagles wideouts are small and injury prone. Andy Reid is a horrible game manager and an even worse play caller. The Eagles consistent failure to develop a running game will see them come up short of the ultimate prize. (This must all sound so familiar to Donovan.)
Washington Redskins
Well, they got rid of Albert Haynesworth. But aren't they going with Rex Grossman at quarterback? We have never believed in Mike Shannahan.
NFC North
Green Bay Packers
The Super Bowl champs look great. We like Bill Simmons theory that the NFL lockout actually helped ameliorate the typical Super Bowl hangover. The Packers weren't feted the way most champs are. Did it help keep them hungry?
Detroit Lions
Apparently, it was Matt Millen, not ownership after all. The Lions are poised for a breakout season. Ndamukong Suh looks like he could be the defensive MVP. The only question mark is quarterback Matt Stafford.
Chicago Bears
We do not believe in Jay Cutler, we never have. They still have no number one wideout. We like Coach Lovie Smith. Is the defense aging? .500 at best...
Minnesota Vikings
It is just not going to be a happy career for Donovan McNabb... Maybe, maybe if Adrian Peterson stays healthy all year, their season will be less than disastrous.
NFC South
Atlanta Falcons
They are a chic Super Bowl pick. We like, not love, Matt Ryan. We think Julio Jones will eventually be an asset, but the lockout didn't help him. And what about their cornerbacks? Up to the task? This team takes a step back.
Carolina Panthers
The biggest question facing the Panthers this season is what position Cam Newton will play after the Panthers draft Andrew Luck. Tight-end? The Panthers resigned the stars of their 2-14 team. They still have no #2 wide receiver. We think Duke Blue Devil football wins more games than the Panthers this season. 0-6 in the division seems certain.
New Orleans Saints
Darren Sproles is the perfect Reggie Bush replacement and might even be an upgrade. Drew Brees is a wizard. We will take brains over brawn every day.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Nobody believes in Tampa quarterback Josh Freeman more than Bill Simmons, not his mom, not his coach... There must be a reason. We haven't seen enough to make up our minds on young Mr. Freeman. The Bucs appear to be the classic case of a team that suddenly faces a harder schedule and backs up. They are in a tough division.
NFC Worst
Arizona Cardinals
Kevin Kolb reminds us of the illustrious Scott Mitchell. Did they get worse defensively? This division is so bad that anything is possible.
San Francisco 49ers
If not for Alex Smith we would pick them to run away with this division. Why are they still sticking with Alex Smith? Andy Dalton would lead this team to a division title. Graham Harrell could probably be plucked from the Packers practice squad and lead this team to a division title. (We are assuming 7 and 9 will be enough again to win the West again.)
Seattle Seahawks
When did they give up on Charlie Whitehurst? Tavaris Jackson couldn't hack it in Minnesota with Adrian Peterson and a good o-line. What is he going to do here?
St. Louis Rams
We are not sold on Sam Bradford. Stephen Jackson is a useful asset. Do they have enough other offensive weapons? Says here no.
Division winners: Philadelphia, Green Bay, New Orleans, other
Wild Cards: Tampa Bay and Detroit
Conference Champ: New Orleans
Drew Brees is a winner on and off the field
AFC East
Buffalo Bills
We like quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. They need to find ways to utilize C.J. Spiller. Receiver Steve Johnson has skills too. The Bills are improving in a tough division.
Miami Dolphins
Bad ownership is destabilizing the franchise by undermining the head coach. We don't think Chad Henne is the problem, he might even be okay eventually, but not in this trainwreck of a situation. Brandon Marshall needs the departed Ricky Williams to tutor him in the way of karma.
New England Patriots
Why is everyone so enamoured with Belichek and company signing a bunch of aging defenders? Because the Junior Seau addition worked out so well? If these were the Al Davis led Raiders they would be getting killed for the same additions. Lucky for the New England defense, Tom Brady is on the other side of the ball.
New York Jets
Mark Sanchez is not getting any better. He looks great on a poster, less so on the field. Can the Ryan and the Jets defense carry them to the playoffs again?
AFC North
Baltimore Ravens
The last hurrah or the beginning of the other shoe dropping? We like the offense. This is the year the Anquan Boldin signing pays off. Ray Rice is dominant. Ricky Williams is a good change-up The o-line is pretty solid. Joe Flacco is a winner. Can the defense do its part? Is the window still open? Just maybe.
Cincinnati Bengals
We like quarterback Andy Dalton. And the Bengals won't be as bad as people think, oh they'll be bad all right, just not as bad as people think. Andy Dalton wants no part of the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. (Although, maybe he should, as it would hasten his departure from the black hole that is Bengal land.)
Cleveland Browns
This is a team headed in the right direction. We like what Colt McCoy showed last year. They have some weapons on offense. But, the top of the division is amongst the NFL's elite. So .500 appears to be a best case scenario.
Pittsburgh Steelers
Everyone is talking about the Ravens aging defense, but the Steelers are actually older. In fact, we heard they are going to start the oldest defense of this millennium. James Harrison had two off-season surgeries. Predator Ben Roethlisberger and the offense will likely drag them into the playoffs, and if they do, anything can happen.
AFC South
Houston Texans
It doesn't seem like even Gary Kubiak could screw this up. No Payton Manning? Could he and the Texans get a bigger gift? If they don't win the title this year, he gets fired and they break the thing up.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts season changed when Payton Manning got injured. Kerry Collins is a joke. The rest of the roster is less than talented. Even stud defensive ends Mathis and Freeney are less valuable on a team that does not have the lead all the time. We are, however, the last sports page in America to believe in Curtis Painter. In Purdue's Joe Tiller we trust, it says here if Painter gets the keys in time, he leads a late charge for a Wild Card berth that comes up just short.
Jacksonville Jaguars
Well, until they shocked us by cutting David Garrard last week, we were predicting the Jags would win the division. We like head coach Jack Del Rio. He has moxie. Maurice Jones-Drew has enough heart for three men. But what other talent is on the roster? On a team now led by a journeyman quarterback? No playoffs for them.
Tennessee Titans
We cannot believe the Titans were dumb enough not to be able to retain either Vince Young or Jeff Fisher. In this mess of a division, keeping just one of them might have been enough to get the team to the playoffs this season. Then again, maybe it is a better to bottom out and get into the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. The Titans figure to be about that bad.
AFC West
Denver Broncos
May as well play Tim Tebow, it is not like they have anything else going for them. Maybe Tebow inspires divine intervention on their behalf?? Mile High fans haven't seen back to back teams this bad since the early 70's.
Kansas City Chiefs
This is the year when Matt Cassell shows us why Tyler Thigpen and Matt Leinart have played ahead of him. K.C. got an easy schedule and lots of breaks last year. This team is backing up. We think Jamaal Charles is powerful running back, but they do not have enough weapons around him.
Oakland Raiders
We like Jason Campbell. We have believed in his leadership since his Auburn days. We love the way he throws the ball. The Raiders went 6 and 0 in the division last year. Why did they have to fire Coach Tom Cable and subvert it all? Answer: Al Davis.
San Diego Chargers
Phillip Rivers is a winner. Absent Norv Turnerm, we would be picking this team to the Super Bowl. They have a gaudy array of offensive weapons and a lousy division to beat up on. How will they find a way to lose in the playoffs this year? No idea, but we can't wait to find out.
Division winners: New England, Baltimore, Houston, San Diego
Wild Cards: New York Jets and Pittsburgh
Conference Champ: Baltimore Ravens
Ray Rice is a dominant force, with a defense that has one last hurrah left.
The Super Bowl winner?
Says here the New Orleans Saints and Drew Brees make it 2 out of 3, beating the Ravens of Baltimore in Ray Lewis's final game.
Labels: NFL, Predictions
Friday, September 02, 2011
NFL has good guys too
The Clarion Content and many other media outlets are found of dragging the NFL and other sports leagues through the mud when one of their players does something ethically questionable. In the effort toward some kind of proportion, we want to highlight when we see something extraordinarily good, too. Regular readers of the Clarion Content's politics site, will know that our editors are suckers for a good hero story.
In this case, Baltimore Ravens rookie wideout, Tandon Doss, gave us an opportunity to both credit an NFL good deed and tell you a hero story. Indiana University alum, Doss said it wasn't his intention, he was merely thinking about a pregame meal when he strolled into 5 Guys Burgers and Fries in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
Doss found a fight in progress. One man with a knife was holding the restaurant manager captive while another beat him. Apparent the knife wielding man had been fired in the days previous. Doss, who humbly downplayed his role, was quoted in the Baltimore-Sun, "I saw the guy on the ground bleeding, and I saw a guy on top hitting him. So I stopped it."
The manager suffered a cut on the chin. Doss said, "I mean, it was two dudes on one. I was trying to help the situation out. I broke it up."
Read more here.
In this case, Baltimore Ravens rookie wideout, Tandon Doss, gave us an opportunity to both credit an NFL good deed and tell you a hero story. Indiana University alum, Doss said it wasn't his intention, he was merely thinking about a pregame meal when he strolled into 5 Guys Burgers and Fries in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.
Doss found a fight in progress. One man with a knife was holding the restaurant manager captive while another beat him. Apparent the knife wielding man had been fired in the days previous. Doss, who humbly downplayed his role, was quoted in the Baltimore-Sun, "I saw the guy on the ground bleeding, and I saw a guy on top hitting him. So I stopped it."
The manager suffered a cut on the chin. Doss said, "I mean, it was two dudes on one. I was trying to help the situation out. I broke it up."
Read more here.
Labels: NFL
Monday, August 01, 2011
Free agency quick hits
The NFL's free agency flurry like many rushed decision-making processes is filled with gaffes.
We think that the Cardinals are out of their collective gourds to give up a good cover corner for the unproven Kevin Kolb, a guy who has had exactly one, big success in a meaningful game in his career to-date. Why were the Eagles and offensive guru Andy Reid so ready and willing to part with guy?
And what is up with everyone fawning of the Patriots and Belichek's swooping in and grabbing aging past their prime, big name guys? How well did that work for them with Junior Seau? In fact, what are they the new Raiders? Not only are they going old, but they are going with old dudes who are known to have bad or disruptive attitudes. When was the last time they had success doing following this route? Corey Dillon in 2004? Guess, one could argue that it worked with Randy Moss...
Anyway, we are not buying it this time.
We think that the Cardinals are out of their collective gourds to give up a good cover corner for the unproven Kevin Kolb, a guy who has had exactly one, big success in a meaningful game in his career to-date. Why were the Eagles and offensive guru Andy Reid so ready and willing to part with guy?
And what is up with everyone fawning of the Patriots and Belichek's swooping in and grabbing aging past their prime, big name guys? How well did that work for them with Junior Seau? In fact, what are they the new Raiders? Not only are they going old, but they are going with old dudes who are known to have bad or disruptive attitudes. When was the last time they had success doing following this route? Corey Dillon in 2004? Guess, one could argue that it worked with Randy Moss...
Anyway, we are not buying it this time.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
NFL Labor strife
Why are the NFL owners aggressively going on the warpath against the players?
In the post King George the II economy, there are a bunch of franchises struggling with cash flow (in some cases needed to service their debt). Struggling to sell out the stadium, no new luxury boxes, no new PSLs and no new naming rights money on the horizon in: Buffalo, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Nashville, San Diego...
No doubt these greedy old white men (billionaires) are wealthy beyond belief already, but the reason they want a cash grab back from the players (millionaires) is that they don't have as many new revenue streams as they did in the 1990s. (Much like the rest of the America...)
The increase in value of their franchise is only realized when they sell. And 97% of these guys are going to own their team for the rest of their lives.
This year is the perfect time for the owners to attack because they have secured a deal with their television contracts where they get paid-in-full even if there is a labor stoppage.
In the post King George the II economy, there are a bunch of franchises struggling with cash flow (in some cases needed to service their debt). Struggling to sell out the stadium, no new luxury boxes, no new PSLs and no new naming rights money on the horizon in: Buffalo, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Jacksonville, Nashville, San Diego...
No doubt these greedy old white men (billionaires) are wealthy beyond belief already, but the reason they want a cash grab back from the players (millionaires) is that they don't have as many new revenue streams as they did in the 1990s. (Much like the rest of the America...)
The increase in value of their franchise is only realized when they sell. And 97% of these guys are going to own their team for the rest of their lives.
This year is the perfect time for the owners to attack because they have secured a deal with their television contracts where they get paid-in-full even if there is a labor stoppage.
Labels: NFL, Sports Economics
Thursday, January 27, 2011
You want how much for parking?!?
Cowboy Stadium, home of this year's Super Bowl
Just when you thought, dear readers, that the $200 Dallas officials want to charge fans to stand outside the Super Bowl and watch the game on large screen television was the most outrageous rip-off you were going to hear about it; it has been trumped.
Because, your $200, or for that matter if you paid way more for tickets inside the building, does not include parking. Now the locals wouldn't attempt to gouge you for parking, would they?
ESPN reports that some lots are charging as much as $900.
That's right, $900!!! For the f*cking parking!!! At least you can tailgate and there is a porta-potty included at the $990/per North Collins spot which is only a tenth of a mile from Cowboys Stadium.
Willing to park a little further away? NFL sponsored parking a little over a mile away from the stadium will only run you at $71.40 Six Flags over Texas, but bear in mind, you cannot tailgate there.
Hmmmm, why do they call it the No Fun League?
Labels: NFL, Sports Economics
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
L.A. Football?
AEG football stadium project, artist's conceptual drawing
If you are a fan of the Minnesota Vikings, this note from Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback column in Sports Illustrated has got to make you very nervous. "I hear the new AEG football stadium project in Los Angeles is very close to a stadium naming rights deal with Farmers Insurance, and the insurance company will pay at least $400 million over 20 years if the deal is consummated. Which I expect to happen."
The Vikings and the Jacksonville Jaguars are the two franchises most likely to move to Los Angeles. It has been sixteen years since the NFL has had a team in L.A., that is a long time. There are definitely powerful forces at work trying to get Los Angeles a team, even if they do not agree on where to put it. The Clarion Content hates to be cynical, but it is worth noting that a time of labor strife, like the looming potential NFL lockout, might offer just the cover a franchise needed to ditch its existing fanbase.
Commissioner Roger Goodell weighed-in at the league's owner's meetings, "The No. 1 thing for us to make the economics work in Los Angeles is going to be a new collective bargaining agreement. I don’t think it is a coincidence that we have not had a new stadium built since we had an end to this collective bargaining agreement in 2006."
Look for follow-ups on how this story plays out in the coming months.
Labels: NFL, Sports Economics
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Can they play the next one in Minnesota?
This guy is going to need help...and maybe a hat
We have, by now, likely all seen the amazing video highlights of the roof's collapse at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. This collapse led the Vikings and the Giants to reschedule their Sunday game for Monday night in Detroit. The NFL did the fans of the beleaguered city a solid and let them attend the game for free. Good job NFL.
NFL execs also pointed out the amazing job done by the Lions franchise in preparing the facility for an unscheduled game only 24 hours after a Lions home game. Vikings officials are facing an equally difficult challenge. Can the roof of the Metrodome be repaired in time to host a Monday game against the Bears this week? The speculation in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune is no.
The quest for a home field would then turn to other sites. The smaller TCF Bank Stadium, home of the University of Minnesota's Golden Gophers, is being considered. It is an outdoor stadium. The Gophers season is over so it has been winterized, shut down. It will need the water turned back on, facilities heated and tested, and all by Monday night. Odds are the Vikings will have to be carpetbaggers again.
Labels: NFL, sports, Sports Economics
Monday, December 13, 2010
Favre streak over
Gehrig
An unfathomable streak of one era, a streak that stood for generations ended here...
Favre
A mind-boggling streak of another era ended here, will it stand for generations?
Peter King, the hall of fame quality NFL columnist for Sports Illustrated, had a fascinating note about Brett Favre's consecutive game streak in his column this morning. It will be no doubt picked up all over the place, since Favre was unable to play tonight with numbness in his hand, bringing to an end his record 297 straight started streak. King pointed out in his "Factoid of the Week That May Interest Only Me,
"One of my best friends in the business, longtime Lions beat guy Mike O'Hara, sent me a great note last night regarding Brett Favre's consecutive-game streak perhaps ending tonight in Detroit. Lou Gehrig's streak of 2,130 consecutive games played ended in the same city seventy-one years ago. "He left old Briggs Stadium, had a cup of coffee at a diner, and walked to the team hotel,'' O'Hara messaged.
I looked it up, and O'Hara was spot on. Gehrig's streak ended on May 3, 1939, when a weakened Iron Horse bowed out of the lineup for the first time in 14 years. Incredibly, the man he replaced 14 years earlier, Wally Pipp, was in the small crowd of 11,000 that day at Briggs Stadium, looking on as Gehrig brought the lineup card to home plate. Gehrig then sat in the dugout for the rest of the game. Gehrig would never play another game. Six weeks later, he was diagnosed with ALS, the disease that now bears his name.
If Favre doesn't play tonight, his streak of 297 straight starts (321 including postseason games) will end at Ford Field, 1.3 miles from where Gehrig sat in the dugout at Briggs (later Tiger) Stadium."
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Stevie Johnson got it going on
Stevie Johnson is the Buffalo Bills rookie sensation at wide receiver. He has had a monster start to his career, with six TDs and nearly 600 yards on a struggling team, in just the first ten weeks. It turns out, however, Mr. Johnson, aka Steve Styles, is multi-talented.
We heard our man free-styling on Jim Rome today and had to dig a little deeper. Check him out. He has got some skills.
We heard our man free-styling on Jim Rome today and had to dig a little deeper. Check him out. He has got some skills.
Labels: college football, NFL, Pop Culture
Monday, November 01, 2010
Favre on Favre
"Brett Favre's comments in the lockerroom after Sunday's Vikings game with the New England Patriots, "I was shocked that I was able to play and move around the way I was. My prayers were answered. I wanted the chance to play. I wanted the chance to play and play at a high-enough level to give us a chance to win. I didn’t want to play just to play. I didn’t want to come in for one play to get a start; I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to come in and help this team win. It was touch-and-go even before the game today."
Wait a minute. Brett? Brett? You guys lost the game, didn't you?
Ahhh, the narcissism. As the Vikings season goes down the drain, Favre is focused on one thing, and one thing only, himself. It is a delight to see him end his wildly overrated career this way. All that is left is for him to throw that pick six, that taint, on his final pass of the season, and it will be a Grimm's fairy tale ending.
Friday, September 17, 2010
NFL Ticket follow-up
The Clarion Content, long believers that American sport is in the process of getting its economic comeuppance as part of a larger national economic shudder, saw this note today.
The San Diego Chargers home opener, against the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday, will not be shown on local television after they failed to sell out a home game for the first time since 2004.
Even the NFL is not immune to economic malaise.
The San Diego Chargers home opener, against the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday, will not be shown on local television after they failed to sell out a home game for the first time since 2004.
Even the NFL is not immune to economic malaise.
Labels: NFL, Sports Economics
Sunday, September 12, 2010
NFL Preview, 2010, the AFC
The AFC is far superior to the NFC this year...
South
Indy over 11
Tennessee over 8.5 (Wild Card)
Houston under 8
Jacksonville under 7
North
Baltimore over 10
Cincinnati over 7.5 (Wild Card)
Pittsburgh under 9
Cleveland over 5.5
West
San Diego over 11
Denver over 7.5
Oakland over 6
Kansas City under 6.5
East
New England over 9.5
Miami over 8.5
NY Jets under 9.5
Buffalo over 5.5
New England over Tennessee in the AFC Title Game
South
Indy over 11
Tennessee over 8.5 (Wild Card)
Houston under 8
Jacksonville under 7
North
Baltimore over 10
Cincinnati over 7.5 (Wild Card)
Pittsburgh under 9
Cleveland over 5.5
West
San Diego over 11
Denver over 7.5
Oakland over 6
Kansas City under 6.5
East
New England over 9.5
Miami over 8.5
NY Jets under 9.5
Buffalo over 5.5
New England over Tennessee in the AFC Title Game
Labels: NFL, Predictions, sports
NFL Preview, 2010, the NFC
See you in the NFC Championship Game...
NFC South
Home of the defending champs.
New Orleans Saints over 10.5 wins
They have only the faintest suggestion of a running game. But Drew Brees is damn good, and he has a whole lot of receivers. His number three guy, Robert Meachum caught nine touchdowns!!! The Saints defense pairs well with Brees because they are at their best when they can pin their ears back and rush the passer.
Atlanta Falcons over 9 wins (Wild Card)
We like Michael Turner coming back off injury. We think that the Falcons will get four relatively easy wins out of the Panthers and Bucs. The Clarion Content is not as high on Matt Ryan as a lot of other folks, but we think he can be a steady, if not spectacular contributor.
Carolina Panthers under 7.5
The Panthers season starts and ends with the quarterback. Matt Moore does not inspire any confidence here in Durham simply because he beat up a few teams after the Panthers seasons was over last year. Losing Julius Peppers was addition by subtraction and the Panthers D-line is better than people realize. They still don't have a number two receiver. We like the one, two punch at running back. They have a good coach in John Fox, but he is a lame duck. Ultimately, it comes back to the QB, and there is no way Matt Moore leads them to a .500 record.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers under 5.5
This team is going nowhere. Head Coach Raheem Morris is in waaaaaay over his head. Starting Quarterback Josh Freeman looks lost and overwhelmed as well. Cadillac Williams coming off of about six knee surgeries does not inspire confidence. This could be a 2 and 14 season. Enjoy the Rays post-season, Tampa, you fair-weather fans, you!
NFC North
Four high profile quarterbacks.
The Green Bay Packers over 9.5
They are prohibitive favorites in this division. Aaron Rodgers is getting very close to entering the top tier of quarterbacks. There defense has shown flashes, it reminds us of the Saints, opportunistic sacks and turnovers when their offense gets them ahead.
The Minnesota Vikings under 9.5
The Sidney Rice injury hurts them badly. Percy Harvin is a knucklehead who is not prepared to be Favre's number one wide receiver. Luckily they have Adrian Peterson, as well as stout offensive and defensive lines. Unfortunately, they also have the horrifyingly bad Brad Childress. Will Favre be back next year?
The Detroit Lions over 5
They have got a tough defensive line, led by Kyle Vanden Bosch and Ndamukong Suh. Matt Stafford should improve at least slightly. They have some weapons for him, Calvin Johnson and Nate Burleson. Javod Best will be decent. They will thrill their fans early and fade toward the end.
The Chicago Bears under 8
Jay Cutler blows and is getting worse. He is approaching the Jeff George depths for least effective big arm quarterback ever. Million dollar arm, ten cent brain, if the cliche fits... Mike Martz, who is a riverboat gambler, is the worst possible offensive coordinator for him, takes lots and lots risks, requires lots and lots of good reads. The Bears cannot count on Matt Forte to dominate. Their defense has aged and gotten very brittle. This is Lovie Smith's last year in Chicago. Could be a 3 and 13 season.
NFC West
Not a good division.
San Francisco 49ers over 8.5
Mike Singletary has worked wonders by the Bay. If they had any kind of quarterback at all, they might be a Super Bowl threat. Unfortunately, Alex Smith could not throw a ball through a plate glass window. Frank Gore is a very solid running back. Patrick Willis is in the conversation for the best defensive player in the league.
Arizona Cardinals over 7.5
They are going to miss Kurt Warner and Carlos Dansby, not mention the toughest wide receiver in the league, Anaquan Boldin. Larry Fitzgerald is much less of a weapon without Warner throwing to him and Boldin helping to draw defenders to the other side of the field. We think Beanie Wells will be much improved, though he starts the year banged up. The bottom of the division is awful, but the Cards won't sneak into the playoffs.
Seattle Seahawks under 7.5
How can the Matt Hasselback era not be over yet? Really? Why trade for Charlie Whitehurst then? No matter, Pete Carrol will likely have growing pains adjusting to the NFL from USC. The offensive line is in disarray. They are bringing back Lions' bust Mike Williams who has been out of football for the last two years. Why? Their defense... we like linebackers Lofa Tatupu and Aaron Curry, but there are nowhere near enough playmakers and ball hawks on this team.
St. Louis Rams under 5
They are definitely in the running for the worst team in the league. Sam Bradford is overrated and has no targets. Seriously, name a Rams wideout. Steven Jackson has got to be getting tired of people beating the heck out of him. The offensive line is a sieve. Defensive end Chris Long is heading towards first round bust status, meaning there is only one above average player on this defense, safety, Oshiomogho Atogwe.
NFC East
Not as a good a division as you might think...Parity doesn't equality quality.
Dallas Cowboys over 9.5
The Cowboys biggest question mark, before the playoffs start, is their offensive line. They have no dominant offensive lineman. This was one of their cornerstones in their Super Bowl era. They do have two solid running backs and an excellent regular season quarterback in Tony Romo. Can they get enough pass rush to cover for their mediocre corners? As a squad, they are just barely better than a declining NFC East. Their coach and QB have a history of early playoff exits.
New York Giants over 8.5 (Wild Card)
They will suffer from the aging of their offensive line and the injury decline of Brandon Jacobs. Ahmad Bradshaw is not strong enough to carry the load. Eli Manning is good and has a passel of talented young receivers. He is much better when he is paired with dominant running game. (Who isn't?) Their defensive line looks great, but their linebackers and corners have some question marks. Everyone is acting like safety Kenny Phillips is 100% back. Will he be? We are waiting to see it on the field. Not a team you want to face in a first round playoff game.
Washington Redskins under 7.5
Hey Philly fans, we still love Donovan McNabb! He is injury prone, but will appreciate playing with Santana Moss. Unfortunately, he has no other wideouts. (Still that's one more than they used to give him in Philly.) How old is Joey Galloway? 40? 50? The Redskins also have a running backs with tons of mileage Clinton Portis and Larry Johnson. The defense is the same story, aging, big name guys. Can they be productive? Does future Hall of Famer London Fletcher have anything left? Can they get anything out of Albert Hanesworth? 7, 8, 9 wins would be a success for start for Shannahan.
Philadelphia Eagles under 8.5
It is all about the quarterback in Philadelphia. Did they make the right call selecting Kevin Kolb over Donovan? We are not sold. The Eagles have had a habit of getting rid of their vets a year or two too early. That said, it was probably time to let Brian Westbrook go after a great career. However, they did not find a replacement that we are impressed with, LeSean McCoy averaged only 4.1 yards a carry while rushing for 650 yards total last season. Blech! Yes, DeSean Jackson has breakaway speed, but the rest of their wideouts are very average. Andy Reid is an awful game manager. The Eagles look vulnerable to a big fall to the Clarion Content. Say about 6 and 10...
We will take the Saints over the Packers in a shootout of an NFC Championship Game.
Labels: NFL, Predictions, sports
Thursday, September 09, 2010
Even the NFL
The National Football League has been considered impregnable in recent years. The one goose that would continue laying golden eggs no matter what happened to the world around it. The Clarion Content has been warning of sports comeuppance for sometime now, and in our view, even the NFL will not be immune.
We saw this note in the New York Times today, that lends further credence to this belief.
"The N.F.L.’s season ticket sales have declined for the third year in a row. Depending on final numbers, season ticket sales will be down between 1 percent and 2 percent, said Eric Grubman, the league’s executive vice president for business ventures.
He said overall attendance declined to 16.6 million last year from 17 million in 2008."
Labels: NFL, Sports Economics
Thursday, April 08, 2010
Not so cool
Just this very morning the Clarion Content was penning a piece about the entitled athletes at the University of Kentucky, they are not alone, many young American athletes feel like they are bulletproof. The system they inhabit through the college years (at many institutions) encourages them to feel that way. It does not demand accountability or respect. Unfortunately, even for star athletes the world can be a cold, hard, cruel place with fierce expectations and rules.
These days of adulation are long gone for Charles Rogers
In that vein, we ran across this cautionary tale, a follow-up to a piece we wrote back in September of last year. Former Detroit Lions wide receiver, first round draft pick and Michigan State star, Charles Rodgers was ordered to repay the team $6.1 million of a $9.1-million signing bonus because of his 2005 suspension for substance abuse. Rogers's lawyer had argued he owed $305,882 for the 4 weeks he was suspended. The team cut him the following season. U.S. District Judge Julian Cook ruled against Rogers on Monday.
Rogers's life has continued down a dark path since he parted ways with the Lions. The Detroit Free Press reports, "He was sentenced to 93 days in jail in January for probation violation after Novi police found him slumped over a table at a Novi restaurant. He was put on probation after Novi police found him passed out behind the wheel of vehicle in September 2009."
All young athletes should remember that they are part of society, not exempt from it. College athletic programs are responsible for conveying this message to their athletes. Young people who seemingly have it all, can often fall the hardest. The professional leagues have taken some steps toward warning and training their young athletes, but by that time it is too late for so many.
These days of adulation are long gone for Charles Rogers
In that vein, we ran across this cautionary tale, a follow-up to a piece we wrote back in September of last year. Former Detroit Lions wide receiver, first round draft pick and Michigan State star, Charles Rodgers was ordered to repay the team $6.1 million of a $9.1-million signing bonus because of his 2005 suspension for substance abuse. Rogers's lawyer had argued he owed $305,882 for the 4 weeks he was suspended. The team cut him the following season. U.S. District Judge Julian Cook ruled against Rogers on Monday.
Rogers's life has continued down a dark path since he parted ways with the Lions. The Detroit Free Press reports, "He was sentenced to 93 days in jail in January for probation violation after Novi police found him slumped over a table at a Novi restaurant. He was put on probation after Novi police found him passed out behind the wheel of vehicle in September 2009."
All young athletes should remember that they are part of society, not exempt from it. College athletic programs are responsible for conveying this message to their athletes. Young people who seemingly have it all, can often fall the hardest. The professional leagues have taken some steps toward warning and training their young athletes, but by that time it is too late for so many.
Labels: Ethically questionable, NFL, Sports Economics
Thursday, March 18, 2010
This is how we do it
An example to children and athletes everywhere, New England Patriots defensive end Ty Warren is turning down his $250,000 off-season workout bonus and returning to college instead. Warren is attending classes at Texas A&M. He says that he has his eye on the potential 2011 NFL lockout. He doesn't want his kids to look at him as a man without a degree, unable to earn a living without football.
Warren says he plans to take five classes this off-season. He has said he is working out every morning, dropping his kids off at school and then heading to school himself. This is the first time in Warren's eight NFL seasons with New England that he will not attend their off-season workout program. Warren is on pace to graduate next Spring.
Read the whole story here at espn.com.
Labels: NFL, Pop Culture, sports, Sports Economics
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Ouch
The Clarion Content has been hearing for sometime about the likelihood of an NFL lockout for the 2011 season. It is only recently that we heard about the threat of the same from the NBA. We have been saying the American sports industry was going to get its comeuppance for some time. A double lockout in two of America's three biggest sports, that sounds about like the sports armageddon that we have been forecasting.
Bill Simmons, our favorite sports columnist, has been warning for a while that many NBA franchises are bleeding cash. The Clarion Content's own analysis and research supports Simmons conclusions. There are just not enough fannies in the seats. America's biggest professional sports, especially the NBA and NFL, made this problem for themselves by raising outrageously the prices of their individual game tickets. (Note: of late baseball teams, led by the Yankees and Red Sox, have been following suit.) These ticket prices are ostensibly a sustainable model in the NFL, fans after getting soaked for their personal seat licenses, only have to pay for 11 or so home games, including the preseason. In basketball, fans are expected to pay for 41 homes games. The NBA knew that they were pricing out the average fan, and they did not care. They thought that they would be able sustain sales though corporate ticket purchases.
They did not anticipate the economic reckoning that has come to America. Corporations are no longer dishing out big bucks for sporting events, whether we are talking about sponsorships or season tickets. The NBA is paying an enormous price. They are willing to admit publicly that ticket revenues are down 8-9% year-to-date. This means they are likely much worse off in some cities. As Simmons says, you can see the Monet paintings in the crowd shots behind the basket. (Empty seats create an impressionistic hue.)
The NBA must have started to come to terms with this reality. Commissioner David Stern, interviewed yesterday on the BS Report, didn't blanch at the subject of contraction. He said he hoped to avoid it, but hardly ruled it out. That was a huge shock to the Clarion Content, even if it was negotiation related posturing. Although the collective bargaining agreement is good through the end of next season rather than this one, the NBA submitted an initial proposal to the Players Union this week, just in time for their annual player representative meeting at the NBA All-Star Game in Dallas.
The proposal is jaw-dropping. It offers up draconian measures: minimum salary would be reduced by as much as 20 per cent, the total value of a maximum contract for a veteran would drop below $60 million (less than half of its current level), contracts would only be 50% guaranteed as opposed to the 100% guarantee they have now, there would also be a hard salary cap that teams could not violate (no more Bird rule, no more mid-level exemption), and first-round draft picks would have their salaries cut by about one-third. Those are across the board cuts exempting no one.
Three years ago we would never have seen the players accepting anywhere near close to that offer. Now? Will there be a lockout? Contraction? A settlement? Neither side can go long without income. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires July 1, 2011.
Bill Simmons, our favorite sports columnist, has been warning for a while that many NBA franchises are bleeding cash. The Clarion Content's own analysis and research supports Simmons conclusions. There are just not enough fannies in the seats. America's biggest professional sports, especially the NBA and NFL, made this problem for themselves by raising outrageously the prices of their individual game tickets. (Note: of late baseball teams, led by the Yankees and Red Sox, have been following suit.) These ticket prices are ostensibly a sustainable model in the NFL, fans after getting soaked for their personal seat licenses, only have to pay for 11 or so home games, including the preseason. In basketball, fans are expected to pay for 41 homes games. The NBA knew that they were pricing out the average fan, and they did not care. They thought that they would be able sustain sales though corporate ticket purchases.
They did not anticipate the economic reckoning that has come to America. Corporations are no longer dishing out big bucks for sporting events, whether we are talking about sponsorships or season tickets. The NBA is paying an enormous price. They are willing to admit publicly that ticket revenues are down 8-9% year-to-date. This means they are likely much worse off in some cities. As Simmons says, you can see the Monet paintings in the crowd shots behind the basket. (Empty seats create an impressionistic hue.)
The NBA must have started to come to terms with this reality. Commissioner David Stern, interviewed yesterday on the BS Report, didn't blanch at the subject of contraction. He said he hoped to avoid it, but hardly ruled it out. That was a huge shock to the Clarion Content, even if it was negotiation related posturing. Although the collective bargaining agreement is good through the end of next season rather than this one, the NBA submitted an initial proposal to the Players Union this week, just in time for their annual player representative meeting at the NBA All-Star Game in Dallas.
The proposal is jaw-dropping. It offers up draconian measures: minimum salary would be reduced by as much as 20 per cent, the total value of a maximum contract for a veteran would drop below $60 million (less than half of its current level), contracts would only be 50% guaranteed as opposed to the 100% guarantee they have now, there would also be a hard salary cap that teams could not violate (no more Bird rule, no more mid-level exemption), and first-round draft picks would have their salaries cut by about one-third. Those are across the board cuts exempting no one.
Three years ago we would never have seen the players accepting anywhere near close to that offer. Now? Will there be a lockout? Contraction? A settlement? Neither side can go long without income. The current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires July 1, 2011.
Labels: NBA, NFL, Sports Economics
