Dunkin’ Does It Again!

By on • ( Leave a comment )

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

Image result for shut up and take my money

boston.com – Lifestyle running brand Saucony… has teamed up with Dunkin’ Donuts to create an orange and magenta-infused version of its Kinvara 9 in anticipation of the Boston Marathon. The collaboration honors the “symbiotic relationship between running, coffee and donuts,” according to a press release…

The Saucony X Dunkin’ Kinvara 9 is available to pre-order for both men and women starting Tuesday for $120. The orders will ship April 3, when the shoe will also be available at Marathon Sports locations and on marathonsports.com.

$120! That’s it? When I saw these bad boys on Twitter I thought the price would easily be higher than $300. I might have to stock up on these kicks because they are fresh.

I’ve always admired the “America Runs on Dunkin” campaign and this latest move fits that campaign, and their brand, to a T. Orange and magenta running shoes with donuts on them? That’s kind of funny! It’s good to see Dunkin’ not taking itself too seriously. I can’t imagine putting on a pair of running shoes with this lady staring at me:

Image result for starbucks logo

That logo would feel more at home on the iPad case of the self-important guy at Starbucks who sits there for three hours a day to complain about Brookline zoning laws on Twitter.

With a price of $120, these shoes might actually end up on the feet of some normal, everyday Dunkin’ drinkers. A win for the common man! Compare that to the Pizza Hut Pie Tops. One pair of Pie Tops on eBay is currently going for $2750. Any one who can afford a pair of Pie Tops probably hasn’t eaten Pizza Hut in decades.

Dunkin’ piggy backing on the Boston Marathon is another a great move. America runs on Dunkin’, but Boston is Dunkin’s home base. As a Bostonian, I love seeing Dunkin’ embrace its roots. I’d also love to see how many Dunkin’s are on the marathon route.

 

PS – This commercial is more than a decade old but I still can’t get this song out of my head. You’re welcome.

Nurmagomedov Vs. Ferguson Is 2 Weekends Away And I For One Am Steadily Knocking On Wood

By on • ( Leave a comment )

Blogger’s Note: It’s considered poor writing protocol to call someone by their first name but I’m exhausted so I’m just calling him “Khabib” from now on.

It wouldn’t be a hot take to say that apart from a fight featuring one of the token UFC Pay Per View Headliners (Jones, Lesnar, McGregor, etc.) Khabib vs. Tony Ferguson might be the most anticipated fight of this generation, at least.

Not only has this fight been anxiously awaited to see who strictly speaking is the better of these two specific combatants, but it also has the unique quality of having a constantly evolving set of macro-level stakes attached to it over the last couple of years. First it was the question of who is the heir to the 155lb throne, the next great fighter of the House That Penn Built. Then it was who is the best 155er other than Conor McGregor. Then it was who is the best in that division period, as for awhile it was unknown if McGregor would ever return. Now, it is a sort of amalgamation of all three.

So for the UFC 223 Main Event, in one corner you have Ferguson. He is ridiculously talented, although I find him to be 1000% obnoxious. Some folks have expertly taken pages from the Sonnen-McGregor self promotion playbook and used it their advantage. Tony Ferguson has used it to create a string of cringe worthy moments, only to double back and say that is what he was trying to do. Basically if peeing your pants is cool Tony Ferguson is Miles Davis. With all that said, he has refused to allow his talent to be ignored. Since losing to Michael Johnson in 2012 he has won 10 in a row, most recently capturing the Lightweight (interim?) title that he will defend against his Dagestani adversary. He leverages a long frame to enable his solid boxing, wrestling, and a particularly tricky, opportunistic submission grappling game.

Across from Ferguson will be the all at once enigmatic-yet-feared-for-a-reason Khabib. The path of utter destruction he has left behind him in the UFC cage has been cloaked in and footnoted by injury, failed weight-cuts, an annual absence due to Ramadan, and some simply unexplained inactivity. There have been times when he has been considered the unofficial king of the 155 division, a guy you couldn’t see losing to anybody if he could just get back in there; and there have been times where he has been gone long enough to allow guys like Ferguson to rise up and allow you to wonder if Khabib has continued to improve and grind enough to stay as elite as he has always looked. As a fighter, he’s just a brute. he employs sharp hands to set up a nearly unstoppable double-leg. From there, his suffocating top game allows him to unleash hellacious ground and pound as well as the occasional submission. He’s 25-0 for a reason.

With. All. Of. That. Said this is the 4th Goddam motherfucking time this fight has been booked. The pull out record (nice) stands at 3-1 in favor of Ferguson, who once had to back out due to a knee injury, allowing Khabib to show up to Tampa 5 pounds overweight and beat the bag out of poor Darrell Horcher. On Khabib’s side, as I mentioned, injury and an always interesting battle with the scale has been his main Achilles heel(s). I honestly believe he has the weight under control thanks to Fighters Who Love Food whisperer Tyler “Melee” Minton, whose nutritional guruness has proven to be most effective for a number of weigh-in degenerates these days.

With all that said, fuck just “hoping” this thing happens. Here’s what I want to see: I want Khabib and Ferguson allowed nowhere but their beds. Not even a couch. I’ve slept on couches, bad things can happen. Have someone carry them to and from the sauna, people slip in there. For exercise to aid them in cutting weight, use that lat pulldown-ish rubber band workout that people on “My 600lb Life” do supine in order to lose a quick 80lb so that they can get live saving lap band surgery or some shit. Get these guys to the scale and then into the octagon, but due NOT get my hopes up again. 2018 has sucked, They have TWO lightweight contests on the main card for UFC 223. Do you think that’s a coincidence? Nope. Because if either Tony Spazzmaticweirdo or Khabib Tiramisu can’t make it to the cage we are going to see something like Ferguson-Iaquinta or Khabib-Felder in the MAIN EVENT OF A UFC PPV. I love Paul Felder. I love Ragin Al Iaquinta (if you’re reading this Mr. Ragin I mean no disrespect) but to see either of them headlining a PPV in a title fight at this point in their careers would be beyond disappointing. What’s that? Cashmeousside vs. Jedrzejczyk would probably be moved up to the Main Event slot? Fucking fantastic. No. Put Ferguson and Khabib in the same pads as the over-protected kid in the beginning of “The Little Giants” and let’s find out two Saturdays from now who gets their red panty night.

Are the Giants Finally Souring on Odell Beckham Jr? Sign Me Up!

By on • ( Leave a comment )

ESPN – New York Giants co-owner John Mara is not ruling out the possibility of trading receiver Odell Beckham Jr., or withholding a contract extension, in the wake of a viral social media video that was posted earlier this month. Mara, speaking Sunday to reporters at the NFL owners meeting, said there is a “possibility” that the Giants will let Beckham play in 2018 on the final year of his rookie contract. Asked if it was possible that Beckham could be on another team’s roster when the season begins, Mara said: “I can’t answer that one way or the other. We’re certainly not shopping him. Again, when you’re coming off a season when you’re 3-13 and played as poorly as we played, I wouldn’t say that anyone is untouchable.”

Hilarious. After years of enabling, coddling, and placating Odell Beckham the Giants have finally had enough of his shit.

“I think too often he allows himself to be put in bad situations and needs to use better judgment,” Mara said in a stern public rebuke.”As I’ve said before,” Mara said, “I’m tired of answering questions about Odell’s behavior and what the latest incident is. I think he knows what we expect of him, and now it’s up to him.”

The pretending to be a dog pissing on the field:

The infamous boat picture:

Add in the most recent incident; a video of ODB and friends lining up “powdery white substances” and John Mara has finally snapped like the principal in Billy Madison.

ODB is a nutcase, he’s immature, he’s volatile, and he’s downright unpredictable. And I will take him on my team TOMORROW.

Absolute game changer of a talent. Despite his off field issues, its not like he’s ever done anything *that* bad. Just some excessive partying, maybe a little (alleged) recreational drug use, and some histrionics on the sidelines. I’ll accept that if it gets me ODB. Granted this dude probably has a shelf life similar to the one Randy Moss seemingly had everywhere he went. No matter how talented the guy was, after a few years every team eventually had had enough of him.

I finally got around to watching the last episode of Tom vs Time last night and like most of the Boston media has said about the finale; it didn’t make me feel great. Theres a lot of talk from Brady  questioning his own motivation and commitment and the trade off between football and being a father. Questions that quite honestly weren’t being asked so loudly by our 40-year-old QB even just a few weeks ago.

Whether its a leverage play or a money play or whatever it ultimately is, it reminds me and every Patriots fan in New England that this thing is just about over. The bar is closing. The bouncers may not be escorting you out the front door just yet, but the lights are on, and the last song of the night is playing. As we all come out of our stupor of having drank 8 Bud Lights (Super Bowls) over the past several hours (2001-2018) the question becomes abundantly clear. Where are we going next?

And with that long drunken analogy laid out, my point is the Patriots have painted themselves into a corner where they are unabashedly in Win Now mode. By trading your backup and potential franchise QB this is exactly what you signed off on. Now is not the time to carefully plan for the next 10 years. Now is the time to maximize your HOF quarterback and get any piece you can to help win that 6th Super Bowl. Bring me anyone and everyone that can help Tom Brady get a ring for his incredibly lonely left hand. Quite simply, no more half measures.

I wanted Aqib Talib. I did not get him. I wanted Richard Sherman. I did not get him. I wanted the Honey Badger. I did not get him. What I want does not matter because I don’t run the Patriots, but the Patriots are going to have to pull off a couple of big moves if they want to solidify themselves as the team to beat for one or two more runs at this thing.

Bringing in ODB would be exactly that kind of move.

Is This the Meanest Celebration in MMA History?

By on • ( Leave a comment )

My goodness. For what its worth Drew Chatman, the guy front flipping off his unconscious opponent, was DQ’d with the guy napping on the canvas getting the much deserved W. Either way I would NOT want to be Chatman in any type of rematch. Or maybe a morality seeking enforcer goes looking for Chatman to teach him a lesson about respecting the game.

Reminds me of my slightly less “disrespecting the dead” and more “catching em all” type of rubbing it in celebration:

Jets Rescind Offer to Ndamukong Suh and I’m Confused

By on • ( Leave a comment )

For the New York Jets to seemingly be the favorite to sign Ndamukong Suh as recently as Friday to suddenly change course and rescind their offer on Sunday, I have only one question for Suh:

For a team that has employed all sorts of degenerates to seemingly have an offer (reportedly the biggest offer) on the table for Suh and yank it back is beyond strange. Did he do something to make the team hesitant to deal with his off the field baggage?? Or is he just pissing teams off by asking for way more money than he deserves?

Its strange for a team that usually lets the GM handle all football business to suddenly have the CEO jumping in and killing a deal. And going out of his way to make it known they took their offer off the table.

I would think of Suh is just holding out for a monster contract the Jets would just say that. “We think Suh is an excellent player, but we realized we are too far apart in contract negotiations and have opted to go in another direction.” Nope, instead we get the mysterious “Our offer has been rescinded and I would rather not tell you why” answer from the CEO.

After signing a 6 year $114M contract with the Dolphins in 2015, Suh is obviously looking to make big money once again. Except he has to remember that he just got cut from said contract and he is now 31 years old. Plus his sack totals have gone down in each of the last 4 seasons from 8.5 in 2014 to 6 in 2015, to 5 in 2016, to 4.5 in 2017. He also had jut 29 tackles, his fewest in a season since 2012. Not a great combination of factors for a guy looking to reset the market and go to the highest paying team, regardless of anything else.

Seeing as its 2018 I’m sure more info will come out on this situation before I have dinner tonight, but we’ll keep an eye on it. Would have been fun, besides fearing for TB12’s health and well being, to watch and hate Suh twice a season for a couple more years though.

Paul Pierce is NOT Going to Be Happy With What Ray Allen Had to Say About Him

By on • ( Leave a comment )

The Boston Globe – In an upcoming book, titled “From the Outside: My Journey through Life and the Game I Love,” the retired guard opens up about his relationships not only with the sport, but also with past teammates and coaches…“Allen also appreciated Garnett’s everlasting tenacity — an intangible trait that he felt didn’t necessarily light up the stat sheet. “He never took a game off. A possession off,” he wrote. “I can’t say that of anyone else I played with, and I played with some of the best.”…”Paul Pierce, on the other hand, would explicitly announce he was “taking the night off” when matched up against a player who wasn’t considered to be elite. Pierce’s attitude ticked Allen off. He was sure to express his disapproval to Pierce, who eventually no longer joked about taking it easy.

I just don’t get you Ray Allen. I feel like I’m dealing with Rocket Raccoon here.

Here I thought Ray and KG and Pierce and Rondo (not really) were all trying to smooth things over so they could reunite for the 10 year reunion of the 2008 championship. But instead Ray is in open rebellion against the crown. He’s currently promoting a new book, which takes plenty of shots at Rondo, who clapped back with a haymaker, and now he’s accusing Paul Pierce (the guy who was literally just inducted into the Celtics HOF) of dogging it.

“No player should ever have a night off,” Allen wrote. “The worst player in the NBA would not be in the NBA if he weren’t good, which means he has the potential to beat you on any given night. And if you think you have to put forth a greater effort against the top players, you clearly aren’t giving enough of an effort against everyone else.”

How I imagine Paul Pierce responding to Ray’s completely random shot?

What’s the matter with you Ray? If you want to get into pissing matches with Rondo thats one thing. You guys always hated each other and everyone knew it. He even refers to his teammate and starting point guard as a “role player” that was wrecking the chemistry of the Celtics.

“Rondo, eager to adopt an even bigger role, was “altering the dynamic that had worked so well for [the team] in 2008.” “I didn’t have quite the same feeling about the direction we were heading in as I had the year before,” Allen wrote. “No Ubuntu in this group.”

Jesus dude. But to start talking shit about the captain? The guy whose number 34 now hangs in the rafters? The one guy who could bring you back into the Celtics family? Welp ya done fucked that up now.

Its a shame, but it doesn’t look like Ray Allen and his old Celtics teammates will ever be buddies again. And I gotta say I have to believe that has more to do with Ray than it does the other three guys. This isn’t Mean Girls. Rondo, KG, and Pierce aren’t ganging up on Ray because he didn’t wear pink on Wednesday.

This is a microcosm of all the little things we always heard. Like how Ray never showed up to his teammates’ charity events when they all showed up to his? Stuff like that on top of how he skipped town to join his team’s blood rival and help the other guys win a title? I wanna let bygones be bygones, but it seems like Ray Allen does not.

PS – I legitimately may have to buy Ray’s book for the Kevin Garnett stories alone. The Boston Globe mentions yet another story of KG trying to get Joakim Noah to kill himself.

“When Joakim Noah once congratulated Garnett on a step-back jumper and asked if he could teach him the shot — an exchange Allen said was common between players in the NBA — Garnett responded, “Get off my dick.”

Are the Patriots Thinking of Bringing in Johnny Manziel for Real?

By on • ( 1 Comment )

I have always lusted after Johnny Manziel; the dude just balls out. Plus I’m 5’8″ so any short mobile QB a la Doug Flutie will always get the first crack at my heart. I was actually kinda pissed the year Manziel won the Heisman because I was kind of hoping he might slip to the Patriots, but his huge year at A&M ended any hopes of that. Now as Joey B wrote about earlier today, Manziel was throwing at the USD Pro Day. To which we all said, ah thats good for him to maybe start taking some steps to get back on track, get in front of some scouts etc. But then…then… I saw this tweet.

Are the Patriots….in on Johnny Manziel?

The Patriots just happen to be in the market for a young, developmental QB after trading away Jimmy G. Who better to take the Johnny Football comeback bid and make it a reality than Bill Belichick? The Pats love to kick the tires on undervalued assets so this would be a good fit. Hell, Manziel even said he would play for free in a recent interview.

Manziel is 25 so he’s young, it would seem like he’s back in football shape, and the guy has been eating humble pie for the better part of the last 2 years. Not to mention he’s playing in the Spring Developmental League and potentially the CFL just to get another shot in the NFL so he’ll have no problem holding Tom Brady’s clipboard.

MAKE IT HAPPEN BILL. BRING ME JOHNNY FOOTBALL.

Sam Darnold Wows Scouts by Throwing at His Pro Day in the Rain. Where Have I Seen This Before?

By on • ( Leave a comment )

ESPN – Given an out, USC quarterback Sam Darnold declined to move up his throwing session at his school’s pro day on Wednesday, choosing instead to throw under a steady rain in front of a throng of NFL decision-makers. “I don’t think it would have been fair to change the schedule with all of the other guys training for the pro day,” Darnold said. “So I just wanted my guys to be comfortable — my teammates — that was first and foremost. “But I also think it was a perfect opportunity to be able to throw in the rain and show these guys I could throw in the rain.”

Look I get it, Darnold has played in sunny and perfect Southern California for the past couple of years so he wants to show the scouts he’s not soft. But this is EXACTLY how the Buffalo Bills became infatuated with that bum EJ Manuel.

I remember it like it was yesterday. Scouts were going nuts because Manuel could grip it and rip it while water was falling from the sky, which is as we know a huge indicator of NFL success.

“Manuel set himself apart from other prospects after impressing coaches when he threw well during a thunderstorm at a private workout with the Bills’ brass in Tallahassee, Fla.”

The Bills play in Orchard Park, NY which is basically a hellhole with winters that would rival Winterfell. So the Bills saw a guy that could play in conditions less than 70 and sunny and thought, HAVE TO HAVE IT. Discounting the fact that he was highly mediocre at Florida State, but hey if he can throw in the rain at a Pro Day then he must be the next Montana.

Welp, in Buffalo he ended up throwing for 3500 yards and 19 TDs in the air with another 320 yards and 4 TDs on the ground…in 4 years.

Let this be a cautionary tale to the NFL scouts with a Top 5 pick in this year’s draft. Select Sam Darnold because you like his body of work, because you think he’s intelligent, hell do it because you think he’s less likely to get arrested than Baker Mayfield. But don’t be the Buffalo Bills and draft a guy because he can throw a tight spiral in a shower.

Johnny Manziel to Throw at University of San Diego Pro Day

By on • ( 1 Comment )

PFT– According to Bruce Feldman of Sports Illustrated, Manziel will be the quarterback throwing to receivers at the pro day workouts at the University of San Diego on Thursday morning.

One quick thing to address off the bat: please note the use of Mr. Manziel’s government name in this headline rather than his “Football” moniker. We here at The 300s are known to practice Journalism and I feel that is often forgotten.

Now that that is out of the way we can kind of sort through what is going on here.

It’s fairly important to first understand how a lot of these pre-draft showcases/work outs are structured and run before really looking at the opportunity Johnny Football (FUCK) has in front of him. In case you aren’t read up on your pageantry, have no fear friend, your pal Joey B has you covered. I used to be a draft nerd and I suppose I still am one to an extent as much like being a fan of anything pop culture or sports related, once you’re in, and it continues to exist, you’re always going to be sort of drawn to it. So let’s get down to brass tacks.

A Pro Day is sort of like an athletic program’s NFL Combine, the event where every player declared for the draft and deemed noteworthy by the league (they fuck that part up a lot) is, in front of a slew of pro scouts from every team and at a central location, run through both a standard set of drills and then another subset based on their position(s). At a pro day, in front of a group of scouts that choose to attend for specific players, players from the same football program can run through a very similar if not exact set of drills that they performed at the Combine but at their college athletic program’s facilities. This gives players a second chance to show what they can do but in a familiar environment (e.g they can run the 40 on the same track they always run on) while being directed by coaches they are comfortable with and working through the drills with fellow participants they know. There are exceptions of course. For instance, a lot of smaller schools’ players will work out at the Pro Day held by a larger school. I wish I could tell you how, for instance, Tuskegee players have the option to attend Troy’s pro day but I actually have no idea. Also, not all players involved in these drills are familiar with each other, both because of the aforementioned school inclusions and because of eligibility rules, which is where our Mr. Manziel (“J”) comes in.

For wide receivers, they obviously have to run routes and show off their speed, separation ability, change of direction, etc. They also need to show they can catch the ball, and so someone has to throw it to them. The problem is that their most recent starting QB might still have eligibility left, in which case he is not allowed to participate, the rest of his QBs might not yet be ready for the tasks and thus may make him look bad, or, in some cases, there simply may just not be anyone around. In the case of the University of San Diego in the year of our Lord 2018, they needed someone to toss the rock to the WRs participating in their pro day and have called in Johnny Manziel (::brushes shoulder off::) from the bullpen.

I personally think this is a great idea for the former first round pick. Why? Two big reasons in particular.

First, it’s a controlled environment. He is there for the receivers looking to enter the league so there will be nothing inhibiting what he is doing. There will be no pass rush, no motion or rolling out of any sort, and he will probably know the routes he will be throwing ahead of time. To elaborate on that last point, even if the routes aren’t disclosed to him it’s more than likely just the basic full WR route tree. He’s been through this before.

The second reason, and the reason I like this move the most and think it is sly and savvy as fuck, is that it shows humility. It’s humbling. Those two words would have not been within a paragraph of Johnny Manziel’s (I’m too respected by this point so I’m done with the jokes) name a few years or even months ago. At pro days, you never know who the QBs are. Their names are never mentioned. Once in awhile it will be a grad assistant or something from that school who was a starting QB a few years past so they bring it up for nostalgia sake (Hey! Look who’s tossin passes, it’s Tyler Palko!) but that’s about it. They’re the men behind the curtain. But in order to get out there and get seen and let it be known that he’ll do those two things by any means necessary, Manziel is willing to put on that cloak of anonymity and take on this fairly thankless role on Thursday. It’s brilliant.

Everyone loves a good comeback story. We’re seeing it with Tiger Woods this year. I think this is a legit step for Johnny Manziel to truly, surely prove he is serious about getting back in the league in any capacity. I’ll be waiting to hear how he looks Thursday, if we even do.