How to resolve AdBlock issue? Spring football cannot survive NFL offseason
The United States is a football-hungry nation. In fact, five of the top 10 and 19 of the top 50 television shows of 2019 were NFL games.
In a country starved for football, one would think that spring football leagues such as the revamped XFL would be an, uh, Xtreme success. However, after the second week of the league’s return, the ratings are already down.
NBA midseason predictions: Lakers land Larry O’Brien?
The NBA’s first season of parity in more than a decade has not failed to disappoint, but as the league heads into All-Star weekend, three teams have set themselves apart as the undisputed contenders to win the NBA Finals in June.
The one Eastern Conference team that has distanced itself from the pack throughout the season like a lion feasting on its prey is the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks have capitalized on yet another MVP-caliber season from Giannis Antetokounmpo to reach an NBA-best 46-8 record at the break.
LA bets on Betts: now it has to win
History will remember the evening of Feb. 4, 2020, as the time in which the Los Angeles Dodgers officially ran out of excuses and became the prohibitive favorites to win this year’s World Series.
The news broke around 6:15 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on Tuesday that LA had landed 2018 American League MVP Mookie Betts and left-handed starting pitcher David Price from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for a $50 In-N-Out gift card, a used Lakers ticket and a ham sandwich (a package including outfielder Alex Verdugo).
Astros cheating scandal reshapes MLB history
Artwork courtesy of @ChangoAsada/Twitter
When Major League Baseball blasted the Houston Astros with its punishment for their involvement in a sign-stealing scandal during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, the fallout was only beginning.
Houston stole the opposing pitchers’ signs through high-speed outfield cameras wired to monitors in the clubhouse. Subsequently, members of the organization would bang against trash cans in the dugout at its home games throughout the season to let batters know what type of pitch was coming, among other transgressions.
NFL must rectify Rooney Rule failure
The Rooney Rule is clearly not working. Instituted in 2003, the rule is a hiring policy requiring organizations to interview coaches of color for head coaching positions. Today, the number of African-American head coaches — three — is the same number as when the rule was implemented.
Time for Brady to bolt New England
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is undisputedly the best quarterback of all time — just let his six championships do the talking.
He has long been known for doing the most with the talent put around him, but this year his supporting cast was weak. That, combined with the GOAT being 42 years old, set up the Pats for a wild-card round playoff exit.
Dodgers must trade for final piece of the World Series puzzle
The Los Angeles Dodgers must make a significant trade after striking out on all the top MLB free agents this offseason.
LA entered this offseason as a contender for top free-agent pitchers Gerrit Cole and Stephen Strasburg, as well as third baseman Anthony Rendon. After last week's winter meetings, Cole is a New York Yankee, Strasburg stayed with the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals, and Rendon went down the 5 to play in Anaheim with the Los Angeles Angels.
NFL playoff reseeding would sow greater competition
Have you ever left the trash in the kitchen for weeks, months, or even years without taking it out? That’s what the NFL is doing, and has done, for years by not reseeding the playoffs.
In 2019, the dumpster-fire division is the NFC Least, er, East. The two teams tied for first place are the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys, each with matching 6-7 records.
The best college football bowl game names this year
The final College Football Playoff rankings will be released Sunday, at which point some combination of LSU, Ohio State, Clemson and a fourth team — either Utah or Oklahoma — will be squaring off for the national championship.
Almost as exciting are the nearly 40 other bowl games that will take place to celebrate the teams that were good, but not quite great, this year. But the best part of the bowls are the names of the games.
Jackson’s MVP run a true underdog story
Coming into the 2019 NFL season, Baltimore Ravens second-year quarterback Lamar Jackson was given 50-1 odds by the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook to win the 2019 NFL MVP.
These odds were actually cut in half from when he opened at 100-1 in June.
NFL’s PI challenge a complete blown call
It’s time for the NFL to bid farewell to its most recent and most significant rule change of the offseason: allowing coaches to challenge pass interference calls, or the lack thereof.
The league simply has decided that it will change a call about as often as you will go 80 miles an hour down the freeway in LA.