Gridiron Tales Week 3 Continued: Austin (Ekeler) 3:16 Says Edition

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Chargers Austin Ekeler presents problems for Raiders as a receiver | Las Vegas Review-Journal

Thursday: 1-2 (-1.17 units)

Season: 1-7 (-6.17 units)

Recap: CMC getting hurt helped no one, but we wish him a speedy recovery. Mooney had an interesting stat line, recording 4 catches for 20 yards and TD… ugh!

First Sunday Pick: Austin Ekeler O54.5 rushing yards at KC (-115) +104 with 20% DK profit boost

Fact #1: The Chiefs have allowed the fourth-most rushing yards to RBs through the first two weeks (260).

Fact #2: Ekeler has posted rushing totals of 57 and 54 yards, respectively this season.

Fact #3: Ekeler ran for over 90 yards in their first meeting last season.

Second Sunday Pick: Derrick Henry O102.5 rushing yards vs IND (-115) +104 with 20% DK profit boost

Fact #1: Henry’s last 3 rushing totals vs Indy: 149, 103 and 178.

Fact #2: Less you forge he ran for 182 on Seattle last week.

Third Sunday Pick: Davante Adams O86.5 receiving yards at SF (-115)

Fact #1: Adams went for 10-173-1 on this San Fran team last season.

Fact #2: Adams is also fresh off an 8-121-0 game on Monday vs Detroit.

I’m also going to sprinkle Adams anytime TD at -110 because he’s without one this season and that’s uncharacteristic as he hasn’t gone three straight games without a TD since November 2019.

Fifth and Sixth Sunday Pick: Matthew Stafford O26.5 completions vs Bucs (-120) +100 with 20% DK profit boost and Robert Woods O5.5 catches (-115)

Fact #1: These two teams clashed last season with Goff at the helm for the Rams and he went 39/51, 376 yds, 3 TD, 2 INT, so using the transitive property, Stafford should be able to do that or better since he’s an upgrade from Goff.

Fact #2: Darrell Henderson is out with a rib injury today and no team has successful rushing outings vs the Bucs anyway, so McVay will be calling passing plays early and often. Last season they attempted just 20 rushes.

Gridiron Tales Week 3: Back The Cats In Houston Edition

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Fantasy football running back depth charts: Safest backfields, committees, handcuffs for 2021 - DraftKings Nation

Last Week: 0-5 (-5 units)

Recap: A lot of bad things occurred; nothing more, nothing less.

First Thursday Pick: Christian McCaffrey O5.5 receptions (-115)

Fact #1: CMC has logged 9 and 5 catches, respectively, over the past two games and the latter came through roughly three quarters of play before he got hurt and did not return.

Fact #2: The Texans have given up an average of 4.5 catches to RBs over the first two weeks.


Second Thursday Pick: Chuba Hubbard O2.5 rec yards (-115)

Fact #1: After playing just 11% of the snaps in Week 1 vs the Jets (a close game), CMC’s injury + the score, raised that percentage to 25% in Week 2 vs the Saints.

Logic point #1: Many pundits except this game to be a very one-sided affair and at just 2.5 rec yards, he literally needs just one catch to make this come to fruition.

Fact #2: This will somehow be a game-long sweat!

Third Thursday Pick: Anthony Miller O22.5 rec yds (-120)

Fact #1: It’s his Texans debut!

Fact #2: Both Danny Amendola and Nico Miller are out with injuries.

Fact #3: I’m skeptical on the Panthers Defense because their first test was Zach Wilson in his NFL debut and their second test was the Saints without eight coaches, most of which were on the offensive side of the ball.

Gridiron Tales Week 2: Dak to Life, Dak to Reality Edition

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What would you do if the Cowboys offered Dak Prescott to the Jets? - Gang Green Nation

Last season: 25-18 (58.1%)

It feels so good to be back. I took Week 1 “off” from making official picks because I didn’t want to write prop suggestions based on feelings because I’m a stats and research kind of guy. Week 1 was enough of a sample size + I’ll very much utilize player history where applicable.

First Pick: Dak Prescott O26.5 completions at LAC (-105)

Fact #1: In 5 full games under Mike McCarthy, Dak’s completion totals are: 25, 34, 37, 14 and 42 last week.

Fact #2: At 55 points, this is the highest O/U this week, so points are expected to come early and often.


Second Pick: Jalen Hurts O19.5 completions vs SF (-130)

Fact #1: In 4 full games as the starter, Hurts has compiled completion totals of 17, 24, 21 and 27 last week.

Fact #2: This is a 9ers team that let Jared Goff and the Lions creep back into last week’s Game with 38 completions on 57 attempts.


Third Pick: David Montgomery O63.5 rush yards vs CIN (-120)

Fact #1: In Week 1, Montgomery turned 16 carries into 108 yards and a score vs a Rams team that did not allow a 100-yard rusher all last season.

Fact #2: I know the Bengals held Dalvin Cook to 61 rush yards on 20 carries, but no one believes Cincy is on the same defensive playing field as the Rams.


Fourth Pick: Chris Carson O68.5 rush yards vs TEN (-115)

Fact #1: Carson turned 16 carries into 91 yards against the Colts, who allowed the third-fewest rushing yards to RBs last season.

Fact #2: In Week 1, the Titans allowed 53 rush yards to James Conner and 63 to Chase Edmonds. With Rashad Penny out, that’s even more breathing room for Carson to take more of the rushing attempts.


Fifth Pick: Christian McCaffrey O6.5 receptions vs NOLA (+105)

Fact #1: CMC caught all nine of his targets vs the Jets.

Fact #2: In 6 career games vs Nola, his reception totals are 9, 5, 8, 1, 9 and 7. New head coach, but the feeding doesn’t look like it will stop.

Not a Silver Linings Guy, But Despite the Loss, Mac Jones Gives the Patriots a W

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I was texting with a few buddies during the Patriots game and despite the backbreaking Damien Harris fumble and absolutely brutal way to lose a game, the most common exchange was “Cam Newton is never completing that pass.” And that’s not meant to dump on Cam Newton, who was by all reports a great teammate and team ambassador despite his middling performance on the field. But man what a difference it makes having a young, competent, and promising QB like Mac Jones on the field operating the offense like a vet.

Mac Jones wasn’t lighting it up and throwing for 400+ yards like Dak Prescott or throwing 5 touchdowns like Jameis Winston, but man he looked good. He looked smooth, he was never rattled (aside from that near fumble/lateral play) and he generally moved the offense down the field with precision. His passes were accurate and he frequently put the ball in places where only his receiver could get it.

And my god that wheel route play where Mac dropped it in a bucket!

*Chef’s kiss*

So while it was a heartbreaking way to lose and one that could seriously come back to bite the Patriots in the ass with it being a divisional game, I still came away from this feeling pretty good about where the Patriots are headed for the first time in a long time. Although I imagine Bill Belichick will be taking more of a Winston Wolf approach when it comes to doling out compliments in team meetings this week…

But if you’re a Patriots fan you have to be encouraged by what you saw on Sunday. For the first time in 2 years the Patriots were able to run an NFL offense. Granted, their $80 million tight ends weren’t exactly balling out, but the Pats are already nearly halfway to their total receptions by tight ends all of last season (18 catches) after ONE game (8 catches) this season. Mac did not play favorites, moved the ball around and hit 8 different receivers to keep the chains moving. The Pats definitely eased Mac Jones into the game with plenty of runs in the first half, but by the 4th quarter he looked completely comfortable and best of all he was MONEY against pressure.

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We don’t want to crown the kid as the savior after one game because there will be struggles as there are with any rookie, but the fact that the Patriots threw the ball 40 times Sunday just a few months removed from Mac’s last game at Alabama shows you just confident they are in the kid.

And while I think I speak for us all when I say we were a little concerned with his swag level after that awkward walk on draft night:

But in his first career start what song does he come out to? Mike Jones! (Who?) Not exactly Tom Brady and Hova, but going with a Houston rapper who was popping when Mac Jones was all of 7 years old is grade A, top level SWAG.

So while it’s unfortunate to be 0-1 and not take advantage of the Bills and Jets losing, after watching the way Mac Jones played in his first career game it’s hard not to have a feeling that eluded Patriots fans all of last year: hope.

Ginger Ale/Sox Fans Rejoice, the Schwarber Tee Has Arrived

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The Red Sox ain’t dead yet, which Nate Eovaldi and Hunter Renfroe made sure of last night practically willing the team to a must have W against the Rays. This team is moving in the right direction and reinforcements are on the way, but lets not forget about the big trade deadline acquisition, the Ginger Ale Man himself, Kyle Schwarber. All he’s done since arriving in Boston is hit .321 with 4 Home Runs and an OPS of .999 so if there was ever a new guy in need of a t-shirt it’s him.

Buy yours now before the Sox go on a deep playoff run and you’re stuck without a crisp new tee.

Celtics Re-sign Robert Williams for 4 Years So Time Lord Shirts Are Now Essential

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The Celtics have been anything but idle this offseason so it’s hard to fault them for not at least trying to improve after last season’s flameout. Among those moves is the 4-year $54 million contract extension for Robert Williams III, which means Time Lord shirts are now essential. (Swipe swipe)

Time Lord really has become a cult figure amongst fans in Boston as you either stan for the freakishly athletic, rebound grabbing big man with silky smooth passing skills or you rail against the undersized, oft injured backup center.

I fall into the former category and so do a lot of our readers, evidenced by the fact that the Time Lord shirt is by far our best selling shirt.

While it may seem like splitting atoms to fans, the contract isn’t fully guaranteed with a portion of the deal based on incentives tied to playing time (something that has eluded Williams due to injuries).

Williams can earn just over a $1 million each season if he hits those incentives, which mostly hinge on his playing time. The big man can earn $446,000 per year if he plays 69 or more games, according to Brian Robb of MassLive. Should he hit that mark, Williams can earn even more if the Celtics make it to the conference semifinals and/or conference finals.

Hitting the 69 game mark is no guarantee for Williams, considering the 23-year-old has never played in more than 52 games over his three NBA seasons. Injuries have long been his nemesis, and he’ll have to shake that to earn the maximum value over the life of his extension with Boston. – via CBS Boston

I admit I was a bit surprised at the size of this deal when I first saw it, $10 million +/- a couple mil for a big man that can run the floor is not outrageous. If Williams can continue to improve, both his game and his 18.9 minutes per game, then this contract will end up being a solid deal for the Celtics.

Obviously if he continues getting hurt and playing less than 52 games a season then this deal could end up being a problem. The one thing I will say though is this is an easily tradable contract because of William’s potential as a player, but more importantly the relatively low average annual value. So while this does eat into the Celtics cap space, it does not preclude them from making a deal for someone like Bradley Beal should that opportunity present itself.

Not to mention the benefit of keeping your best player happy by re-signing guys he actually wants to play with.

As I’ve said here in the past, I am a huge jersey guy and as part of that I refuse to buy any player’s jersey unless they’ve recently signed a contract extension because I’ve been burned before. Robert Williams III is now locked into the C’s long terms plans so if you haven’t done so already, go get yourself a Time Lord shirt and get ready for the season.

Marcus Smart Isn’t Going Anywhere and That’s a Good Thing

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As Phil Jackson once told Toni Kukoc when the Bulls were trying to sign the Euro amidst a lot of waffling and hesitation, “shit or get off the pot kid.” Reports recently surfaced that the Celtics had offered Marcus Smart a contract extension earlier this month and the team had not heard back from the point guard’s agent. I’m sure there were some hurt feelings with all of the trade speculation being thrown around, but this deal solidifies Smart as a part of the Celtics plan for the (at least immediate) future.

The Celtics have had a rocky past year with a gigantic missed opportunity in the NBA bubble playoffs, followed up by a .500 season and getting dusted in the first round by Brooklyn, then their biggest offseason move being a salary dump of their oft injured point guard, Kemba Walker. So the C’s needed some good news, or at least some sense of stability, and thats what the Marcus Smart signing is right now.

There have been tons of reports over the last couple of years that Smart rubs some of his teammates the wrong way or that he even butts head with former head coach turned GM Brad Stevens, but it would appear much of that was overblown. Sure the Celtics could be thinking a bird in the hand is better as their reasoning for re-signing Smart, but I cannot fathom Stevens with all of his intimate knowledge of the Celtics roster and team dynamics would bring Smart back if he was such a problem. His teammates seem to be happy about the deal too so there’s that.

Does he jack up too many shots he has no business taking? Yup. Does he think he’s just as important as future MVP Jayson Tatum? Probably. And is he an emotional roller coaster of a player? 100% But sometimes a team needs that fiery, get in your face type guy, especially on a team who’s best player in Tatum is just not an emotional leader. Enter, Marcus Smart.

The money might seem like a lot at first glance (4 years at $77 million), but when you see the stupid money getting thrown around the NBA then this deal is practically frugal in comparison. Especially if Smart makes the majority of starts at PG or even ends up splitting duties with Dennis Schroder (who in an all-time mental lapse turned down said stupid money in the form of an $80+ million offer from LA and is now playing for the C’s on a 1-year midlevel exception).

The average annual value of Smart’s extension will range from $17-$21 million over the 4 years of the deal, which this past season wouldn’t have even cracked the Top 50 highest paid players in the NBA. Smart averaged a career high in points at 13.1 per game with 5.7 assists and 3.5 rebounds last year, not to mention is a 2x All-Defensive first team selection as arguably the best defender in the game at times. So this deal is far from outrageous.

Are this the fireworks that fans were hoping for? No of course not, but it’s a…smart…move that also allows the Celtics to keep their financial flexibility heading into the big ticket summer of 2022.

That is if you buy into the hype of a superstar signing in Boston, which I am less than certain on. I’m a little tired of always looking ahead to *next* summer for the real monster moves the Celtics never make. Sure they signed Al Horford, Gordon Hayward, and Kemba Walker to max contracts in the last handful of years, but 2/3rds of those relationships had ignominious endings. Hopefully Brad taking over for Danny Ainge in the front office and Horford returning helps, at the minimum, improve the Celtics’ public perception problem around the league.

The 2021-22 Celtics may not be better on paper, but I think this is a situation where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. You now have Smart, Tatum, and Jaylen Brown all signed long term for big money so in theory all should be comfortable in their roles. You have culture building locker room veterans in Horford and Enes Kanter, added scoring off the bench in Schroder, and brought in a new coach that seemingly will be better equipped to connect with players as a youngish black man in Ime Udoka with the credibility of being a former player and coming from the Gregg Popovich coaching tree (whom Tatum just played for at the Olympics). Could this team end up being nothing more than another likable, plucky, 7 seed based on talent alone? For sure. But if Tatum and Brown continue to improve and this team can actually have defined roles for guys with consistent scoring off the bench, then I think Celtics could surprise a lot of people next season.

Red Sox Call Up Top Prospect Jarren Duran

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Chaim Bloom and the Red Sox have finally called up 24-year-old outfield prospect Jarren Duran and is set to make his major league debut against the Yankees Thursday night. The reason I say “finally” is because Duran has been absolutely dominating at Triple-A Worcester hitting 15 HR with 32 RBIs and a .946 OPS in just 46 games. Not to mention 12 swiped bags.

Technically Duran is the Red Sox’ No. 3 prospect, but with guns like these I’m willing to make an exception on the word play.

Duran was a 2018 7th round draft pick out of Long Beach State University so he’s not exactly a can’t miss prospect. Although he is another standout graduate of the Cape Cod Baseball League so the sticker on my cooler remains highly prescient. But my goodness does Duran have some tools. The kid can also fly so expect plenty of Jacoby Ellsbury comparisons early on. Check out the scouting report on his speed in the breakdown below via Boston.com

MLB.com’s scouting profile on Duran lists his speed at a 70 on a scale from 20 to 80. He puts that speed to good use on the base paths.

“Duran’s best offensive tool is his plus-plus speed,” the profile reads, “which helps him routinely beat out grounders and makes him a dangerous basestealing threat, as evidenced by his 70 swipes in 199 games during his first two pro seasons.

SoxProspects.com rates Duran as having “true plus plus speed” and here’s what they had to say about his power potential:

Power: Plus raw power after 2020 swing adjustments. Increased strength and added loft in swing allow him the drive the ball to all fields, but especially to the pull side. Showed improved power at 2020 alternate training site, and quickly showed that his swing changes work in real games in 2021, significantly changing his in-game power projection. Prior to 2020 change, had below-average raw power with a swing not geared for over-the-fence power. Speed also leads to more doubles and triples on hard-hit line drives, inflating his power numbers somewhat. Above-average power potential.

I think it’s safe to say the people are excited. It’s go time baby.

Bubba Watson is Out Here Breaking Clubs Like Happy Gilmore

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Bubba is getting his money’s worth out here today because it cannot be cheap to replace a professional golfer’s finely tuned driver, let alone a fully customized pink one.

And he STILL bombs a better drive than any of us will hit all season. The PGA Tour’s favorite dad just making it look easy out there in his J’s. Now in fairness this isn’t exactly Patrick Reed having a conniption because he couldn’t get the ball out of the rough, but it’s still funny nonetheless.

True story I once knew a guy who broke four (4!) rental drivers at the driving range because he was the size of linebacker but had never actually played golf before. Nothing like a real strong wrist snap at the bottom of your swing to destroy some perfectly usable equipment. No word if they legit just pasted his photo on the wall with a red line through it after that.