Super Bowl LII will be played in Minneapolis Sunday night which means thousands of fans and celebrities from across the nation and around the world will be descending on Minnesota for The Big Game. Countless thousands more who, like myself, can’t afford tickets to The Big Game will be descending on the Minneapolis Convention Center for the Super Bowl Experience.
The Super Bowl Experience has been described as an indoor theme park and, based on the lines to run the 40-yard dash or kick a field goal, that description is accurate. I spent about four hours milling around the convention center and it was eerily reminiscent of my high school football playing days – a lot of standing around. There were also a lot of younger fans in attendance, so there were a few times where I felt like Homer Simpson in the power plant model-building contest.
Still, it was fun to run the 40, throw a Hail Mary pass and kick a field goal once I got up to the line of scrimmage.
For the record, my field goal attempt was the highlight of my night. Tucked it just inside the left upright from “40” yards out.
In between sprints and kicks I refueled with SpaghettiOs, Chunky Soup and Skittles.
If you haven’t tried Sweet Heat Skittles yet, just imagine Sriracha Skittles. (Yes, they were gross.)
There were also lots of other NFL, Super Bowl and Hall of Fame exhibits to peruse in between time spent waiting in line.
“It is a period of civil war. Breakthrough research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy, arbitrary and capricious disciplinary suspensions and declining television ratings have all cast a shadow over the game…”
The line to see the Vince Lombardi Trophy (through glass) had to be the longest line in the building. I decided to snap this picture from outside the line, in between fans walking up to it, and call it a day.
The Super Bowl isn’t in town often, so people will put down good money to try to take in the experience without thinking twice. That’s why I’m glad I went, but at $35 a ticket I won’t be running back. Good, not great. Ready to watch the game from my couch on Sunday.
Its difficult to see, hear, and read everything going on this week leading up to the Super Bowl, but this Colin Cowherd video below is an excellent use of your time. Cowherd goes into what makes the Patriots so damn successful; they’re a business operation.
“When you watch a Patriots game there is a trust between the fans and the team; they’ll get it right.” [after bad losses] “They immediately fix it because thats what the academics do in life.”
“The Patriots are the billionaires of the NFL. They have created a system that is reliable, consistent, without emotion. They are capable of avoiding cultural issues, rule changes, and injuries. They’re not beholden to any one employee. And what they did yesterday is what they’ve been doing for years. A systematic consistent dependable product.”
“They don’t lead the NFL in penalties, they don’t fumble, they don’t get emotionally crazy, they adapt constantly and they drive you crazy. And I never grew up as a Patriots fan, but the Patriots aren’t a football operation, they are a business operation.”
“Look at their Super Bowls, they are a David Tyree helmet catch from 6-1. They don’t blow anybody out. They never have. I’d argue in all seven Super Bowls they’ve been the least talented team, but they’re always the smartest, most reliable, most consistent, most prepared.”
“They are not a football team, they’re a business operation. They are boring. So is wealth.”
Whats the biggest size Fathead makes? Okay, double it and overnight that to me asap. Need this draping the entire side of my house before Super Bowl Sunday.
Doug Gottlieb is right – a win on Sunday won’t put Tom Brady ahead of Michael Jordan in the “greatest of all time” discussion. That’s because Brady is already ahead of him. A win on Sunday just puts Jordan further Brady’s rear view mirror.
As of today Jordan has six rings and Brady has five, but Brady’s five rings are far more impressive. Only one other person has five Super Bowl rings as a player, and that’s Charles Haley. Haley won two rings in the second half of the 49ers Montana dynasty and added three more with the Cowboys dynasty of the early 1990s. Haley is a college and pro-football hall of famer but certainly not a household name. Nine men have more NBA championship rings than Jordan. Of course Bill Russell leads that group with 11, but that group also includes Robert Horry who has seven. I don’t hear anyone bringing up his name in the G.O.A.T. discussion. With a win on Sunday Brady will have more rings than anyone else who ever played his sport, and that’s something Jordan will never be able to claim.
Brady’s detractors will point out that he went almost a decade without a championship. That’s a fair point and something I’ve pondered as well. Jordan never had a championship drought that long, but it did take him seven seasons to win his first ring. After that it was six in eight years. While Jordan dominated the 1990s, like Montana dominated the NFL in the 1980s, Brady has been a force in the NFL for two decades. Winning championships 15, and maybe 16, years apart speaks volumes about the length of Brady’s reign compared to the length of Jordan’s reign.
As I briefly touched on last week, I wonder how much of Brady’s championship drought had to do with the constant turnover of offensive and defensive coordinators in Foxboro. The Patriots First Triumvirate of Bill Belichick, Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel was together from 2001-2005 and won three championships in four years. The Patriots Second Triumvirate of Belichick, Josh McDaniels and Matt Patricia has been in place since 2012 and now also has a chance of winning three championships in four years.
However, I also wonder how much of Brady’s championship drought had to do with the stiff competition of his era. Brady’s record in the postseason is 27-9. Of those nine losses, three came against Peyton Manning and two came against Eli Manning. Two more came against a legendary Baltimore defense. When Brady has lost in the postseason, it has usually been to all-time great quarterback, team or coach. But, Brady has also had his fair share of playoff wins against all-time great quarterbacks and teams.
The same can’t be said about Jordan. Sure, Jordan never lost in the NBA Finals, but do we award bonus points for him never being able to get by Boston’s Big Three? Or for taking four tries to get past Detroit’s Bad Boys? Jordan also never beat a team in the finals that would later go on to win a championship.
Jordan’s first championship came against the Lakers in the final year of Magic Johnson’s career (his 1996 comeback excluded). The Lakers got swept in the finals by the Bad Boy Pistons two years earlier, and wouldn’t win a championship as a franchise again until 2000 with Shaq and Kobe. Other than that, Jordan beat the Portland Trailblazers, Phoenix Suns, Seattle SuperSonics and Utah Jazz (twice) in the NBA Finals. Those four teams have won a combined two NBA titles, both in the 1970s before Michael Jordan even enrolled at the University of North Carolina. Goliaths they were not.
In a sport such as football, with the specialization required for each position, it’s tough to say that Brady, or anyone for that matter, is the greatest football player of all time. He is without a doubt the greatest quarterback, though. In basketball it’s a little bit easier, but Jordan never had to play against Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain or LeBron James. Even if you consider Jordan the greatest basketball player, though, Brady is so much further ahead of the rest of his field that I can’t see how Brady can’t rightfully claim the title of G.O.A.T.
So the XFL is back, it’s football re-envisioned, no thongs or concussions yadda yadda ok great.
As I told Dougie earlier the novelty has already worn off and it’s been two hours. HOWEVER, coming up with a dream team? Brotha, I’m your man. As a recovering draft nerd, I still dabble in discovering fringe pro players who may be looking for work. Here’s how my team would play out:
QB1: Dominique Davis
Davis was a HUGE recruit for BC. A dual-threat QB, he failed at school in Chestnut Hill and then failed at football at East Carolina. I think he’d venture down from the CFL for the right opportunity.
Clipboard Holder: Brady Quinn
The pride of Dublin, OH. He knows the game. He’s good looking. He likes being on TV. Done deal.
Emergency QB: JaMarcus Russell
Someone has to throw the hail mary.
RB1: Peyton Hillis
Over-muscled and ill tempered, Hillis once graced the cover of Madden. I have no doubt he’d jump at the opportunity to grace the bargain bin of Game Stop as the poster boy for XFL 20′.
RB2: Denard Robinson
Shoelace himself. The fastest guy I’ve ever watched. a college QB turned RB. Great 3rd down guy, get the ball in his hands and let him fly. Or watch his shoes come off. Entertainment is the name of the XFL game.
FB: Glenn Gronkowski
Sticking with Dougie’s pick here. You need a Gronk in the league.
WR1: Adarius Bowman
My dream comes true. Adarius Bowman playing under the bright lights on US soil. Another CFL guy, Bowman was a draft crush of mine wayyy back when. He was a specimen (6’3 220ish) of a WR coming out of OK ST and then….well then he ran a 4.8 at the combine. No bueno. It’s comeback season baby.
WR2: Chad Jackson
Ole Action Jackson. The first in a long line of Bill Belichick WR draft busts comes to seek his revenge.
WR3: Armanti Edwards
The QB who led App St’s upset over Michigan actually showed enough promise to be drafted in the 3rd round by Carolina as a WR. He too, is now in Canada.
TE: Zak Sudfeld
MINIIIII GROOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNKKK. The greatest preseason player ever comes back as the greatest XFL TE ever.
This is just the latest turn of the knife in the gut of Montreal baseball fans over the past 15 or so years. Vlad Guerrero, the last star of the Expos, nay, the last PRIDE of the Expos, Montreal’s beloved baseball team of yore, has chosen to enter the Hall of Fame as a Goddam Anaheim Angel (Blogger’s Note: Not a huge baseball guy anymore, per say, so IDK what the Halos call themselves these days location-wise). First they lost their team, now one could argue they’ve lost (see: been abandoned by) their identity.
For context, I actually know a bit about the maple syrupy ecosystem that is Monteal baseball twitter. That’s no lie, it’s a rabbit hole I have been down. And friends, It’s basically revisionist history 101. You see, I don’t doubt that folks from Montreal love baseball, hell I don’t doubt they loved the Expos as an idea, a concept. With that said, loving something via admiration is not the capitalistic way you express your fandom. You do that by, you know, showing up to watch your team play every once in awhile. So allow me to remind you that Montreal’s (Olympic?) stadium was routinely as empty as the Chinamen’s cars in The Departed. I remember being downright horrified the few times the Sox went up there for inter-league play. I think I asked my Dad if they were playing at a forgotten stadium in Chernobyl or something. The hot dog vendors were probably volunteers – both in terms of their time and the hot dogs. It was ridiculous. With allll of that said Montreal baseball twitter is in LOVE with baseball and obsessed with two things:
1.) Obviously getting the Expos back so no one can show up again, the rest of the league can get pissed off again, and the team can get relocated again to somewhere like fucking Temecula or something.
2.) Vladimir Guerrero. The cannon-armed right fielder who didn’t need no batting gloves.
Indeed I respect the fuck out of number 2. Vlad had it all. A 5-tool guy with a personality to boot. Just always seemed to love playing the game and enjoying the moment. So this must just absolutely SUCK for our neighbors to the French Canadian north. Instead of representing his original team, the team where he made his bones and is still largely remembered as the team he played for the most, Vlad will enter the Hall as a member of the team forever known as being at the center of the movie that would serve as JGL’s launch pad. Just a whole lot to cry aboot.
“What would you do if you could reimagine the game of football?”
Vince McMahon always has been and always will be the ultimate showman. Oh that ill conceived football league I launched in 2001 that only lasted one season? Well guess what, we’re doubling down and bringing it back! Vince said he’s here to “give the game of football back to fans.” What does that mean? Nobody knows! But it sure as shit fuels the hype machine.
Vince made the announcement on Twitter dot com because he’s savvy like that before taking questions from reporters. Highlights from the #XFL2020 press conference below:
8 teams, 40 man rosters, 10 game regular season, and a 4 team postseason with a Championship Game
“In the XFL the quality of the human being is going to be as important as the quality of the player.”(Soo you can sit down now, Greg Hardy.)
“There will be no crossover whatsoever of talent from the WWE.” (Thank god. Somebody get Gus Johnson on the line STAT.)
“As far as our league is concerned it will have NOTHING to do with politics and nothing to do with social issues….whatever our rules are, are what everybody will abide by….we’re here to play football.” (Sounds like Vince was not a fan of the kneeling.)
“It will just be a better game than what people are accustomed to.” (Sure!)
“There may not be a half time, sitting and watching a 3-3 1/2 hour game is laborious…we’re going to try to get to 2 hours.” (Now we’re talking.)
“Not sure about the individual of the He Hate Me…whether or not we do that we’re going to listen to football experts and what the fans want.” (If you don’t allow nicknames on jerseys don’t even bother, Vince.)
The season will begin at the end of January/early February (Fill that crippling void post-Super Bowl.)
So Vince was super dodgy about giving any actual details on the league, why he’s bringing it back, what exactly will be different etc. but it seems like he’s going to be giving himself more time to actually get something quality in place. Rather than rushing it, the XFL will begin play in 2020, so thats a 2 year window for Vince to get it together. Vince referenced the quality of play as the No. 1 thing that was lacking the first time around so we’ll see if 2 years is enough time to get some decent talent together.
I’m sure plenty of details and rumors will flood in over the coming days. But for now, lets get to whats really important. Whats my starting lineup for my first game in the XFL? This is assuming nobody is going to leave the NFL unless they hate money, so we’re going to have to dig deeper with some castoffs or guys that may be on their way out of the NFL.
QB1: Tim Tebow
QB2: Vernon Adams
RB1: Reggie Bush
RB2: Toby Gerhart
FB: Glenn Gronkowski
WR1: Terrell Owens
WR2: Ocho Cinco
WR3: Wes Welker
TE: Tim Wright
I had Money Manziel and Adrian Peterson penciled into my starting lineup, but then Vince dropped this line:
“You want someone who does not have any criminality whatsoever associated with them. In the XFL even if you have a DUI you will not play in the XFL so that would probably eliminate some of them…If Tim Tebow wants to play, he could very well play.”
So that probably eliminates Manziel, Peterson and basically half the available players out there. We’ll go with my guy Tim Tebow instead because they will let him do whatever the hell he wants. The first coach since Urban Meyers that will be willing to build an offense around Tebow. But in case he doesn’t want to leave his cushy job at ESPN/hitting cleanup for the Mets, then we’ll smuggle former Oregon QB Vernon Adams out of the CFL and let him do his damn thing. I cannot imagine anyone other than a running QB will have any success in the XFL.
Running the ball we’ve got old school thunder and lighting with my man Reggie Bush, who should have no problem carving up the scrub DII linebackers he’ll be playing against, and Toby Gerhart backing him up because…well…hey man slim pickings for running backs not on an NFL roster these days. The Pats have 5 running backs for christ’s sake.
We got Baby Gronk at fullback because how are you going to have the XFL without a Gronkowski in it?
Who are my go-to receivers? Easy. The first two guys I’m calling are T.O. and Ocho Cinco because ya just know those guys are rearing to go and would probably play for minimum wage at this point. T.O can still play, he’s just insufferable so nobody wanted him on their team….in the NFL. Then we got old reliable Wes Welker working the slot. Unless Vince is afraid of someone getting diagnosed with CTE in the first week of the season then he might not get cleared to play.
Then we got that bum Tim Wright playing TE because he’s another athletic freak that just has not been able to make it work in the NFL so to the XFL for you, Tim.
I’m sure theres plenty of names that will become available, but with Vince throwing a wrench into everything with his morality clause we could be seeing a lot of CFL or college players roaming the field.
2020 is so close, yet so far away. The XFL is back baby!
NESN – What Tom Brady is doing at age 40 defies all logic. The New England Patriots quarterback has a very real chance of finishing his age-40 season with an NFL MVP award, a Super Bowl MVP award and yet another Super Bowl championship. Most people attribute Brady’s incredible longevity to a combination of alternative wellness, all-time great coaching and, of course, skill. Some, like ESPN’s Dan Le Batard, wonder if there’s a more cynical theory, however. During Monday’s episode of “The Dan Le Batard Show,” the popular radio host essentially asked whether Brady is using performance-enhancing drugs. Le Batard tip-toed around the topic, and never specifically said “steroids” or PEDs,” but it was abundantly clear what he was talking about.
So Dan Le Batard took some time off from ugly crying on his own show to take a shot at the crown and insinuate Tom Brady is popping PEDs.
“And this is what I want to ask you: … When faced with a quarterback who is aging in a way that has no precedent in the history of aging, is there any particular reason that people aren’t questioning that?” Le Batard asked co-host Stugotz. “Man, we climbed into Peyton Manning … Peyton Manning doesn’t look the part on pharmaceuticals, and Al Jazeera was climbing around in his wife’s stuff, trying to get at the hormones. “And so what I’m asking you is, is it an unfair question to wonder whether, when facing something that has literally no precedent in the history of football or aging, to be like, ‘how?’“
What is Dan Le Batard even talking about here? We climbed into Peyton Manning? NO YOU DID NOT. This is exactly why people around here hate Peyton Manning. Guy got a total free pass from the media. The Peyton Manning comparison makes absolutely no sense. It was an absolute NON-STORY on ESPN, ya know Le Batard’s network, because the Manning Mafia hit the wrap it up box on that whole story real quick.
ESPN barely mentioned it and when they did they basically said, no you see Peyton wasn’t taking anything, his wife was just getting HGH shipments to a since-closed facility in a fucking strip mall in Indianapolis, even though they live in Denver.
And for the record, I don’t care if Peyton was taking horse tranquilizers from the Eastern Bloc. Do what you gotta do, especially if said remedies have you tossing 50+ TDs a year after a debilitating neck surgery.
I just know Brady would be on the cover of the New York Times and every other media outlet in the world would be screaming some nonsense about cheating if it came out he was having boxes of HGH shipped to Giselle.
Its times like these I need to remind myself and everyone around me to not do exactly what I’m doing right now and get all riled up. Tom Brady has 5 Super Bowl rings and people want to poke holes anywhere and everywhere they can. So Dan Le Batard, Rob Parker, and Max Kellerman can all go take a fat hike.
After yet another Patriots comeback and an epic Eagles beatdown in Philadelphia the matchup for Super Bowl LII is set. For the Patriots, the Blitz for Six is fully on. For the Eagles, it’s a chance to cap off a Cinderella run with a back-up quarterback as they look to claim their first Super Bowl championship. Now that I’ve had a a few hours to digest both games from yesterday, here are a few thoughts from championship Sunday.
Like Belichick said, Brady’s injury didn’t require open-heart surgery but you wouldn’t know it by the way the team talked about it during the week. Especially with Brady wearing Hamburger Helper gloves to his Friday press conference and telling reporters “we’ll see” when asked if he would play. As a Patriots fan I understand the need to control the flow of information to prevent the opponent from gaining any advantage, but this smug routine does get old at times. I can’t blame the rest of the country for getting sick of it.
Back to Brady, he looked great yesterday. Even with the early deficit Brady looked great out of the gate. He completed 26 of 38 passes for 290 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. The zero interceptions stat might get underplayed this week. Despite his better than 3-to-1 TD-to-INT rate during the regular season, it’s just better than 2-to-1 in the postseason. The first two games of this postseason might just be the best two games he has ever had to open a postseason.
Danny Amendola Is A Playoff Beast
Can’t disagree with Dion Lewis. It’s hard to think of another player who has upped his game in the playoffs as much as Amendola has. While certainly a good player, he’s never been selected to a Pro Bowl. In 111 regular season games Amendola has averaged 3.8 receptions per game, 37.0 yards per game and has scored 19 touchdowns. In 12 playoff games, all with New England, he’s averaged 4.1 receptions, 46.4 yards and has scored 6 touchdowns.
In just this post season he’s got 2 touchdowns and is averaging 9 receptions and 98 yards per game. Without Julian Edelman and Rob Gronkowski, it was Amendola who helped Brady pull yesterday’s game out of the fire.
James Harrison Came Up Big
ESPN.com – After totaling three tackles and a quarterback hit against the Jaguars, Harrison has 11 tackles in three games with the Patriots. He has shown a knack for pressing opposing quarterbacks late in games, in obvious passing situations.
The same exact thought went through my head when I saw that hug. It would seem all but certain that this triumvirate’s final act is coming up. Against the Eagles. To make it 3-out-of-4 for the Patriots.
When it’s all said and done and they’re making the Brady/Belichick 30 for 30, I’d be interested to see Belichick compare this triumvirate to the Patriots First Triumvirate of himself, Charlie Weis and Romeo Crennel. Weis and Crennel were Belichick’s contemporaries. McDaniels and Patricia have been his students, his prodigies. How does that affect their relationships, the decision making processes? Also, does it explain the 10 year gap in championships? The First Triumvirate was in place 2001-2004. The Second Triumvirate has been in place since 2012.
Did Case Keenum Play His Way Out of Minnesota Last Night?
I certainly think so. It was a nice story and a fun run, but how can you hand him the keys to that franchise? With all the momentum the Vikings had from the game-winning touchdown against New Orleans the week before, Keenum hit Kyle Rudolph for a 25-yard touchdown to go up 7-0 on Philadelphia last night. Minnesota then gets the ball back up 7-0.
Keenum then proceeds to throw a pick-six and the rest of the game went to hell in a hand basket for the Vikings. Keenum would throw another pick and lose a fumble as the Eagles scored 38 unanswered points. His final numbers were 28-of-48 passing for a TD with 2 INTs.
Up until last night that Minnesota defense looked legitimate. Mike Zimmer seems like a solid head coach who doesn’t do stupid things to give games away (see Tomlin, Mike). If I were him, I’d take my chances and go quarterback shopping this offseason. It’s a formula that has worked well for other teams in similar situations before, most recently the Denver Broncos in 2016.
Which Nick Foles Will the Patriots See?
In his three starts to close the regular season Foles completed only 47 of his 87 pass attempts (54.02%), but did throw 5 touchdowns to just 2 interceptions. In two playoff games he’s completed 49 of 63 pass attempts (77.78%) and thrown 3 TDs and no picks. Has he “figured it out?”
Blake Bortles went 13-of-15 for 155 yards and a touchdown in the first half against the Patriots yesterday, but just 10-of-21 for 138 yards in the second half. Will the Patriots be able to make similar adjustments on Foles? Will they have to?
Tom Brady will be fine. Did you see his hands? They’re beautiful.
Although I gotta say that press conference today made me a little nervous. TB12 shows up rocking gloves again and then dodges any questions about not only the injury, but he was noncommittal on even playing Sunday.
The 300s 