No Experience Required?

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super-bowl-li-patriots-patch-590x590On The 300s Podcast this week, we discussed whether or not previous Super Bowl experience would be a benefit for the Patriots heading into their Super Bowl LI matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. At first thought, I assumed previous Super Bowl experience would be a huge advantage for the Patriots.

The week leading up the Super Bowl is a gongshow. Media Day Opening Night is a just the beginning of a week full of distractions, and who blocks out distractions better than the Patriots? But Michael Salfino had an interesting piece in the Wall Street Journal on Friday, basically picking my assumption apart, piece by piece.

New England has 17 more players with Super Bowl experience (21) than the Falcons. In the last 40 Super Bowls, a team has held this advantage over its opponent 38 times. These teams are 16-22 in those games…

An edge at the game’s most important position didn’t matter either. Teams have had a QB with prior Super Bowl experience 19 times versus a team like the Falcons and Matt Ryan with none and are 9-10.

I stand corrected. Upon further reflection, this holds up pretty well over the last 15 years. Just off the top of my head, experience didn’t help the 2001 Rams, the 2007 Patriots, the 2009 Colts, the 2010 Steelers or the 2013 Broncos in the big game. It seems like Super Bowl veterans are just as liable to put up clunkers (Peyton Manning 2013) as Super Bowl first-timers (Cam Newton 2015).

The Super Bowl is such a colossal event that maybe no matter how many times you’ve been, each trip is its own adventure. We’ll see what events unfold this week, but I’m no longer under the impression that Brady’s six previous Super Bowl appearances give him the edge over Matt Ryan. I’d still take Brady over Ryan if I had my pick at QB but maybe Ryan and Atlanta’s blissful Super Bowl ignorance isn’t a shortcoming after all. Looking at the history of this game, maybe having no baggage is an advantage.

Episode 003 of The 300s Podcast: Countdown to Super Bowl 51, the First Annual NBA Jam Tournament and the Hunt for Big Mac Sauce

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In episode 003 of The 300s Podcast we touch on our Super Bowl 51 Preview, Tom Brady and Bill Belichick going for GOAT status, Introducing the First Annual 300’s NBA Jam Tournament and the Hunt for McDonald’s Big Mac Sauce:

No. 1 Offense vs No. 1 Defense? “I’ll take the No. 1 defense every time.”…”Is Atlanta a crappy sports city? They’ve lost two hockey teams.”…”How about Bartolo Colon? He started the same year as Turner Field. Dude outlasted a ballpark.”…”You know how many Super Bowls Bill Parcells won after Belichick left? Zero.” …”To get the fifth ring with this supporting cast of castoffs is even more impressive”….”NBA Jam – If we have 8 guys and 7 games, maybe 6 of them end in a buzzer beater. Down by 12? Don’t worry you’re gonna hit 6 shots in a row”…”There is no reason to have any kind of post game in NBA Jam. LeBron you are nothing more than a decoy”….”These are mouth breathers. Go to McDonalds and just ask for Big Mac Sauce, it’s free.”

Could Trader Danny Help Get Carmelo to the Clippers in Exchange for JJ Redick and Paul Pierce?

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CBS Boston – The Knicks desperately seem to want to move [Carmelo Anthony] and the Clippers are reportedly interested. The problem? The Clippers don’t really have the valuable assets necessary in order to make a deal happen. That’s where the Celtics come in, according to the Boston Globe...Well, there haven’t been any reports of specific players rumored to be involved, but CBS Sports.com’s Matt Moore has a breakdown of a trade the could work for everybody involved using ESPN’s Trade Machine. In Moore’s trade, the Celtics would get: Guard JJ Redick, small forward Paul Pierce, and forward Luc-Richard Mbah Moute. The Knicks receive: Forward Amir Johnson, forward Jonas Jerebko, and guard Austin Rivers. The Clippers receive: Forward Carmelo Anthony

Soo the Celtics can, in theory, give up Amir Johnson and Jonas Jerebko to get JJ Redick, Paul Pierce and Luc-Richard Mbah Moute?

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JJ Redick would be *deadly* on this Celtics team. Isaiah driving to the hoop and dishing out to a legitimate 3-point specialist? Buckets. And Paul Pierce would get to retire a Celtic. Granted I don’t know much about Moute, but I love that trade. Always been a huge Redick fan and all we have to give up is Amir and Jerebko? Best of luck guys. All just to help facilitate the Carmelo to LA for another first round playoff exit? Sure, sign me up.

Trader Danny is always lying in the weeds just waiting for shit like this. Oh you NEED to move a disgruntled, overpaid player? How can I be of assistance? Melo to the Clippers, lock it up. Draft Pick Danny doesn’t even have to give up any coveted second rounders!

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LeBron James Complains Cavaliers Aren’t Spending Enough; Have Actually Spent the Most Money in the NBA

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ESPN – Tension between LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ leadership is centered on payroll spending, multiple sources told ESPN. Gilbert paid $82 million in salaries and $7 million in luxury tax in 2014-15, when the Cavs reached the NBA Finals. Last season, when Cleveland won the championship, Gilbert paid $107 million in salaries and $54 million in luxury tax. The Cavs (30-14) are currently committed to $127.5 million in salaries and $27 million in luxury taxes for this season. They have spent more than any other NBA team over the three-year span.

How bout this fuckin guy? Less than a week after throwing all his teammates under the bus, LeBron is now coming after management! Dude is a child. Things aren’t going his way and he is lashing out at everyone else. Windhorst, watch your back.

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But the worst part is he’s subtly ripping the team for not spending enough, when in reality the Cavs have spent THE MOST MONEY IN THE NBA over the past 3 years. Dan Gilbert probably secretly wants this guy dead. Gilbert paid $50 million in luxury taxes last year. Hey Bron Bron, even the guy who owns Quickens Loans is saying pump the brakes on opening the checkbook.

Liquid Gold in a Bottle

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I take the fast food beat at The 300s seriously. Very Seriously. I was planning on heading over to my local Taco Bell yesterday to get my hands on the new Naked Chicken Chalupa that I wrote about earlier this month. That plan was placed on hold, though, when I heard McDonald’s was planning to give away 10,000 bottles of Big Mac Sauce.

[Nice job stealing the spotlight away from Taco Bell yesterday, McDonald’s! I didn’t see Taco Bell on the NBC Nightly News!]

Unfortunately for my Boston colleagues, Boston was not selected as one of the locations for this giveaway. Thankfully, a McDonald’s not too far from my undisclosed location was selected.

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Here’s the part where I’d love to tell you about what a zoo it was. But it wasn’t. I got there 20 minutes early,  was 21st in line, and they gave out approximately 100 bottles. The line was cordial, respectful and honestly painless. The line got going at 1 pm, and I walked out with my bottle at 1:02. Good work McDonald’s!

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When I got home, I fought the urge to put this puppy on eBay. Curiosity got the best of me, though, and all of the hassle to mail a bottle of salad dressing didn’t seem worth the fifty-odd bucks I’d probably pocket after fees and shipping.

The verdict? Pretty good. It’s impossible to recreate the Big Mac in your kitchen, but this sauce makes a homemade version a little more believable than Thousand Island dressing does. You won’t make many, though. At 11.4 ounces, I feel like my bottle is almost half gone after one night.

Of course this giveaway is also meant to highlight the new Grand Mac and Mac Jr. that McDonald’s recently introduced.

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The Grand Mac (aka McKinley Mac) has been a secret menu item for years, but now I won’t need to speak in code to order one. Seems like a no brainer; it’s basically a Double Quarter Pounder with Big Mac Sauce swapped in for ketchup. The original Big Mac is a bit skimpy, to be honest. I probably won’t be trying the Mac Jr. any time soon for that reason, but the Mac Jr. could be a solid late-night menu option for some.

Like any new fast food menu offering, it’s for a limited time only. We’ll see how long that is, but it’s a moot point. McDonald’s won the day, again. Sorry, Taco Bell. You gotta beat the champ to be the champ. But you’re a competitor, and I look forward to your next crazy concoction. It’s a great time to be in the fast food game.

 

Justin Tucker Just Kicked a 75 Yard Field Goal

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Granted it was off a tee in sunny Orlando, but goddamn is that impressive. I can’t believe the record in an NFL game is 64. Even that seems absurd. But I think I need to watch the Pro Bowl on Sunday just to see Justin Tucker campaigning on the sidelines for the coaches to let him attempt an 80 yarder. Tucker said it himself he thinks he could hit one from 84 yards out.

Los Angeles Chargers Coach Thinks He’s Still in San Diego; Cue the BASEketball Reference

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Hilarious. The team hasn’t even been in LA for a week and the new guy in charge just called them the wrong city. Rough first presser for Anthony Lynn. Thats what ya get for moving 2 hours south, Chargers! You’re basically the same exact thing to anyone not from California. That’s a reasonable game day tailgate commute. Takes me 2 hours to get home from a Patriots game and I live in Boston. But I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t post this classic clip from BASEketball because it is the same EXACT situation. Trey Parker and Matt Stone predicting the future from 19 years ago, who would’ve guessed.

Brace Yourselves, Ads On Jerseys Have Arrived

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Here we go. Logos on NBA jerseys have arrived. I talked about how disastrous this would be for jersey guys last April and I haven’t changed my mind. One little GE patch isn’t the end of the world, but guys come on…you just slapped a washing machine logo on one of the most iconic jerseys of all time.

But my point is, this won’t be the end of it. The NBA isn’t going to just stitch one logo on a jersey, pocket the money and move on. No, no, no. In fact according to Darren Rovell, a bunch of owners already asked Wyc Grousbeck how much GE paid to have that logo on the Celtics jersey. I believe it was reportedly $7 million. So yea, I’m sure owners will just do that once and be done with it.

Nope, sooner than later the NBA is going to look like a goddamn La Liga game or a NASCAR race with all the advertising vomited onto jerseys.

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And that is the No. 1 thing I hate about soccer; you don’t even know what the freaking team name is by looking at the jersey. That’s insane. If you weren’t a soccer fan, what would you think the name of this team is?

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You’d think it was the Chevys or something. You would not know this is Manchester United OR a team from Manchester at all. So a quick preview of what to expect from NBA jerseys sooner than later:

 

PS – If anyone thinks that adding logos to jerseys will stop or even reduce the onslaught of commercials during an NBA game you are outside of your mind. Teams and owners will continue to squeeze blood out of a stone because we are all sheep who will sit through 12 commercials in the last 2 minutes of a game.