Remember when Jamie Collins was supposed to be the next Lawrence Taylor?
OK, maybe that’s a bit excessive, but the now 30-year-old linebacker is coming back to the place where his once supposed-to-be-storybook career all started six years ago. Earlier on Wednesday, there were rumors the two sides were simply “talking,” but we just recently got the official word from The Boston Globe‘s Jim McBride this afternoon that it’s a done deal:
The #Patriots have indeed signed Jamie Collins according to league source (@RapSheet was on it first). The linebacker will be present for some on-field work on Thursday.
This one has to be pretty sweet for Belichick. Back in 2013, the Pats used the first of their two second-round picks to select the linebacker with freakish athleticism and a record-setting Combine performance to his name. From the get-go, it was obvious that the Hooded One saw something special in Collins, and he was rewarded with 333 tackles, 12.5 sacks, and a Super Bowl victory (2014 – a game in which Collins had eight takedowns) over Collins’s first three seasons in the league, including the playoffs. The dude was also a turnover machine, with five picks and nine forced fumbles across that time as well. At times, it really looked like there was nothing he couldn’t do.
But then it all changed in 2016. After being named as a starter for the third-straight season and coming off a Pro Bowl year, things started to go a bit sour. A lot of people believe it was because Collins, who was in the last year of his deal at the time, was asking for boo koo bucks that the team simply wasn’t going to provide. (Apparently the dude wanted Von Miller-level money, which he just simply didn’t deserve.) Others say it was because he was becoming a bit too flashy, always going for the big play and doing his own thing instead of focusing on his assignments and playing his role. There were rumblings that he was also causing problems in the locker room.
Either way, Belichick saw the writing on the wall and banished Collins to Cleveland in October that season in exchange for a third-round pick. Some fans understood what was happening, while others were outraged (seriously, a lot people were PISSED) that we gave away the next “NFL legend.”
At first it looked like the Pats got hosed after Collins posted 69 tackles and two sacks across his first eight games in the Land. The ensuing offseason, Collins finally got his money, too, after signing a four-year, $50 million extension with the Browns. However, the following season, he played inconsistently across six games before ultimately tearing his ACL in November 2017.
Then he bounced back with a solid 104-tackle, four-sack performance in 16 games with Cleveland last year. Yet, for whatever reason, the Browns decided to cut him this past March. And here we are.
So while we may never really know exactly why he was shipped out in the first place, and though he may not be the superstar he was expected to become, this is a great signing for the Pats. As someone – maybe the ONLY one – who has opined about the team’s piss-poor linebacking play last season, I am stoked. (Also, I straight up called that this reunion would happen earlier this offseason. Just sayin’.):
Here’s to hoping a humbled and much more mature Collins redeems himself in Foxborough this season. His speed and explosiveness is something that was sorely missing on that side of the ball in 2018. (And hey! Maybe we can actually cover a running back now, too!)
Welcome back, J.C. I’m ready for a nice redemption story.
The second major of the season, the PGA Championship, tees off at Bethpage Black on Thursday morning with coverage starting at 1 pm on TNT. The PGA Championship actually got bumped up from its traditional August slot up to May after some schedule shuffling, which seems like a smart way to build off the momentum of the Masters Tournament to be honest. I blogged about the 2018 PGA Championship last year, which was an absolute show as Brooks Koepka barely edged out a surging Tiger Woods to win by two strokes. I also predicted that Tiger would win a major sooner than later after that event, which he did so just 8 months later. So not a big deal, but you’re welcome, Tiger.
This year’s PGA Championship is at Bethpage Black on Long Island, which to put it bluntly is a bitch of a course:
“The sign behind the first tee of the Black Course at Bethpage State Park says all you need to know about what the world’s best golfers will face when they tee it up in May. In the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage Black, only one player — Tiger Woods — finished below par for the tournament. In 2009, Lucas Glover won finishing at 4-under and only five players finished under par.” – PGA.com
So that sucks for these guys, but its also awesome for fans like me who are mediocre at golf. Seeing a world class golfer shank a shot and f bomb their way down the fairway just makes me feel better about shooting +4 on a Par 4 or as I like to call it “Double Par.”
Tiger and Koepka will be paired together so that makes for A+ golf entertainment right out of the gates as the winners of the past two major tournaments will be teeing off next to each other.
Of course heading into this weekend the main storyline is going to be can Tiger do it again?
Tiger Woods (+1100) is playing his first event since winning the Masters in April and is one of the favorites to bring it home. For the first time in a while it feels like he deserves that distinction too. Old Tiger is gone, but New Tiger is still a pretty dominating player when he’s on his game.
“Tiger Woods broke through at the Masters to pick up his 15th major championship and first major win since 2008 at the U.S. Open. Can he make it 16 and pull within two of Jack’s record at Bethpage? Well, history would say it’s quite possible. Tiger Woods conquered the first two legs of the grand slam back in 2002. The courses he played? Augusta National and Bethpage Black.” – PGA.com
There was a great article on ESPN the other day about how all the young guys are chomping at the bit because they all want to play against Tiger at his best. To which David Duval told all the millennials to go get their shinebox: “The hell you do,” Duval said.
After winning the Tour Championship, Woods noted how many of the young players lauded his comeback and said they wanted to go against him.
“Well, all right,” Woods said. “Here we go.”
Brooks Koepka (+1100) is your defending champ after winning the 2018 PGA Championship so coming into the weekend as one of the favorites feels about right. Especially after he finished just one stroke behind Tiger at the Masters and if not for some shaky putting could have earned himself another major (as well as some nice pocket change for you favorite blogger). Koepka for whatever reason seems to shine at the biggest events; he’s won three of the last 9 majors and in those 9 majors he’s placed in the top 6 a total of 6 times. So expect him to show up at Bethpage this weekend.
Dustin Johnson (+1000) is the favorite to take home the Wanamaker Trophy and its well earned, finishing one stroke back of Tiger at the Masters and oh yea he currently sits as the No. 1 ranked golfer in the world. Johnson is a solid bet, but he has been pretty up and down in recent tournaments. His last 6 finishes have been 28th, 2nd, 40th, 6th, 5th, and 1st.
Xander Schauffele (+2500) – My man Xander still gets no respect despite finishing ONE stroke behind Tiger (and losing me hundreds of dollars) at the Masters. The guy was one stroke (and a classic Tiger performance) away from winning a green jacket and he is yet again 25-1. I’m gonna ride with Xander here for my long shot because he looked like a major winner in the makings at Augusta.
Rory McIlroy (+1100) – I am fully expecting Tiger to stunt on Rory this weekend after the young Irishman said last year that he’s got no fear of Tiger.
“…asked if players were going to have to “deal with Tiger now for a few years.”
“Not Tiger that Phil [Mickelson] and Ernie [Els] had to deal with,” McIlroy said. “It’s a different version. … I wouldn’t say we’re worried about him, but he’s one of those guys who is always in there with a shot.”
Do I believe that?
Rory has been playing very well this year though with eight Top 10 finishes in his last 10 events, including a W at the Players Championship, so he’s not a bad bet to win this major.
Rickie Fowler (+1800) – Probably the most dangerous guy on this list to never win a major. Fowler started off the year pretty rough with a 47th place finish at the Players Championship and a 17th place finish at the Valero Texas Open, but he’s rebounded to 9th at the Masters and 4th at the Wells Fargo Championship most recently. I love watching Rickie play, mainly because he’s a tatted up guy thats my age playing against a lot of old boring golfers. Plus you have to respect his game after he wifed up legendary pole vaulter Allison Stokke who went viral a few years back for making people pay attention to pole vaulting.
Jordan Spieth (+4000) – Jordan has great odds at +4000, but the guy’s game is incredibly volatile. Spieth is either dominating the field or he is out of it before we even get to Sunday. In fact he’s been awful this year. Currently ranked No. 39 in the world, he’s failed to finish in the top 20 yet in 2019, and hasn’t won a tournament since 2017. He’s a big name who just needs to cross off the PGA Championship to complete the career grand slam, but he’s far from his best right now.
Here are the rest of the odds for the 2019 PGA Championship courtesy of OddsShark and Bovada as of Tuesday afternoon. I cut it off at +15000 because after that you get into some real long shots that won’t even make the cut.
Dustin Johnson +1000
Brooks Koepka +1100
Rory McIlroy +1100
Tiger Woods +1100
Rickie Fowler +1800
Jon Rahm +2000
Justin Rose +2000
Jason Day +2200
Francesco Molinari +2500
Xander Schauffele +2500
Tommy Fleetwood +2800
Tony Finau +3300
Bryson DeChambeau +3500
Hideki Matsuyama +4000
Jordan Spieth +4000
Patrick Cantlay +4000
Sergio Garcia +4000
Matt Kuchar +4500
Adam Scott +5000
Bubba Watson +5000
Paul Casey +5000
Gary Woodland +6600
Henrik Stenson +6600
Louis Oosthuizen +6600
Marc Leishman +6600
Patrick Reed +6600
Phil Mickelson +6600
Webb Simpson +6600
Ian Poulter +8000
Jason Kokrak +10000
Kevin Kisner +10000
Rafa Cabrera-Bello +10000
Aaron Wise +12500
Branden Grace +12500
Cameron Smith +12500
Charley Hoffman +12500
Hao Tong Li +12500
Jhonattan Vegas +12500
Keith Mitchell +12500
Lucas Glover +12500
Matt Wallace +12500
Matthew Fitzpatrick +12500
Ryan Moore +12500
Scott Piercy +12500
Alex Noren +15000
Billy Horschel +15000
Brandt Snedeker +15000
Byeong-Hun An +15000
C.T. Pan +15000
Charles Howell III +15000
Daniel Berger +15000
Eddie Pepperell +15000
Emiliano Grillo +15000
Graeme McDowell +15000
Jim Furyk +15000
Joel Dahmen +15000
Keegan Bradley +15000
Here we go guys, this is where the fun really starts. Two of these teams are just four W’s away from the NBA Finals and thank god we won’t be subjected to Golden State vs Cleveland V. No mas. Just look at Rocky as the best example of this. Rocky 1-4 were all awesome and exciting flicks with Rocky 5 being one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen. So I’m psyched for some fresh blood this year. But I digress, lets take a look at the Conference Finals matchups.
Golden State Warriors (1) vs Portland Trail Blazers (3) (Game 1 – Tuesday at 9 pm)
In what ultimately made little difference for the Rockets, Kevin Durant will be out yet again for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night. Durant is one of the top 3 players in the entire league, but lets not forget just how stacked this Warriors team still is with Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. Thats a 2x MVP, a 5x All-Star, and a 3x All-Star/Defensive Player of the Year. Soo yea the Warriors are still in good shape.
Kevin Durant is out for at least Game 1 of the WCF, source tells ESPN. He’s not being re-evaluated until Thursday so it’s “unlikely “ he plays Game 2 either.
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) May 13, 2019
It doesn’t sound like Durant is particularly close to returning either though and if he misses multiple games in this series then it starts to become a legitimate threat to the Warriors’ NBA Finals streak.
Unless you’re watching a ton of NBA games, I don’t think many casual fans realized just how good the Portland Trail Blazers are. Everyone knows how good Damian Lillard is 25.8/4.6/6.9 with a ridiculous 28.4 in the playoffs, but his shot just was not falling in Game 7 (13 pts).
Enter CJ McCollum, who is a bad, bad man. After averaging “just” 21 points per game in the regular season, McCollum has jacked that up to 25.6 in the playoffs, including 37 points in a ridiculous Game 7 performance against Denver.
Don’t forget about the brother on brother battle we’ll see with Steph Curry vs Seth Curry. Okay so maybe its not that big of a matchup with Seth only averaging 7.9 ppg to Steph’s 27.3 in the regular season but hey it’s still pretty cool to see two brothers playing against each other in the Western Conference Finals. Man, genetics are a trip.
While I can’t pick against the defending champs until I see them stumble, I really really like this Portland team. I just don’t know if they’ll be able to defend all of the Warriors elite shooters. If Durant misses a couple of games and Lillard and McCollum can keep scoring in the 25-30 points range each night, then I think they’ve got a real shot to dethrone the Warriors.
Milwaukee Bucks (1) vs Toronto Raptors(2)
(Game 1 – Wednesday at 8:30 pm)
The Kings in the North now turn their gaze towards conquering the East, which won’t be easy if you saw Giannis Antetokounmpo dropping 30 and 40 point games on the Celtics in the second round. There’s a reason the Bucks were the No. 1 seed in the East and why Giannis was my pick for MVP.
Kawhi Leonard is what Kyrie Irving wants to be when he grows up. Kawhi has singlehandedly willed this Toronto team from an annual playoff disappointment into one on the brink of the NBA Finals. He also produced the biggest shot in Raptors history with the immediately iconic Game 7 buzzer beater three over Joel Embiid.
After being acquired by the Raptors in a risky one year rental he’s proving exactly why it was worth the risk for Toronto. He’s averaging 31.8 points per game in the playoffs, up from 26.6 in the regular season, while also leading the team in rebounds per game at 8.5. This guy is getting it done all over the court.
He literally made Joel Embiid cry for christs sake. And I love Embiid so thats not a knock, but do you know how badly you have to rip a guy’s heart out to make him cry on the court?
Giannis showed just how borderline unstoppable he can be though after personally breaking the Celtics’ will to live. Now do I think the Celtics played garbage defense and failed to adjust to Giannis (and his goddamn spin move)? Yes. Does that mean I think any less of Giannis’ dominance? Hell no.
The Bucks destroyed the Celtics in games 2-5 in a gentleman’s sweep, but had huge performances from guys that aren’t exactly household names like George Hill, Pat Connaughton (did you know he’s from Massachusetts?!), and Ersan Ilyasova. Thats not exactly a second unit I would bet my mortgage on, but the Bucks moved like a well oiled machine with everyone playing a specific role, so what do I know? They were the No. 1 seed after all.
We’ll also get more of Mallory Edens on national TV too and thats never a bad thing.
Ultimately, the 2019 Finals could very well be the long-predicted battle between the Warriors and Bucks, who are -550 and -300 favorites to oust the Trail Blazers (+375) and Raptors (+250), respectively. Any bettors out there looking for a great mobile betting experience prior to betting should check out this site. In terms of valued odds, you could definitely do a lot worse than Portland at +275 to win Game 1 vs Golden State. The Blazers have been road warriors in the playoffs and won’t be at a size disadvantage with Kevin Durant out. Golden State is susceptible when opponents beat them on the offensive glass, and Portland is the third-best offensive rebounding team in the league (regular season and playoffs).
While I’m bummed the Celtics bowed out like absolute dogs, we’ve got some awesome storylines to keep an eye on in the Conference Finals regardless. Who ya got? Tweet me @The300sBoston and let me hear it.
Obvious Spoiler Alert: If you haven’t caught up on Season 8 of Thrones yet come back later.
Oh man that episode was a doozie and the meme makers of the internet did NOT disappoint. So lets get right into the best of the best. The 300s Game of Thrones Meme of the Week Award goes to the one below because it was my exact reaction when watching the same scene.
And while I think some of the criticism has been more than fair, the internet is reallyyy dumping on Benioff and Weiss so here are a few aimed at the showrunners in particular.
Obvious Spoiler Alert: If you haven’t caught up on Season 8 of Thrones yet come back later.
The Mad Queen has arrived. The penultimate episode of Game of Thrones final season kept the promise that so many seasons before it had; delivering the biggest blow right before the finale. An absolute spectacle for the ages as Khaleesi turns full heel and embraces the role of The Mad Queen as she literally burned Kings Landing to the ground. I was leaning forward in my chair in suspense for about 40 minutes straight. What started out as violent efficiency by Khaleesi turned into legitimate terrorism as the Dragon Queen became the very thing she vowed not to be; a tyrant. How did we get here?
“Alright then, let it be fear,” Daenerys says to Jon Snow after he rejects her affection on Dragonstone.
This is a central theme that the last Targaryen has struggled with for years, but most explicitly in Season 8. She has continuously walked the line of being the beloved savior, freeing slaves, being the voice for those without a voice, and taking what she wants simply because she can. With great power comes great responsibility and after seven seasons of Khaleesi balancing that responsibility while she became only more powerful, she ultimately decides to throw it all away in the name of rage and revenge.
“I don’t think she decided ahead of time that she was going to do what she did. And then she sees the Red Keep, which is, to her, the home that her family built when they first came over to this country 300 years ago,” showrunner DB Weiss said on the Inside the Episode. “It’s in that moment on the walls of King’s Landing, when she’s looking at that symbol of everything that was taken from her, when she makes the decision to make this personal.”
The sped up arrival of Daenerys unhinged has been a bit too convenient for my liking, but the show has been hinting at this for years.
“I’m not my father,” Dany says to Ser Barristan in S5E2 to which Barristan replies: “The Mad King gave his enemies the justice he thought they deserved and each time it made him feel powerful and right. Until the very end.”
All of Dany’s closest friends and most trusted confidants are all gone. She’s too strong for Jon Snow, as Varys puts it, and Tyrion has lost her trust after repeated lapses in judgment. Barristan, Jorah, and Missandei were the only three people who were ever really able to temper Dany’s worst impulses. And all three are dead.
“I am not here to be Queen of the ashes,” Dany says in S7E2 to her small council when discussing the best way to take Kings Landing.
Oh and lets not forget about these gems from Season 2.
To quote another pop culture behemoth in Avengers: Endgame: Khaleesi “did exactly what she said she was going to do.”
My only complaint with this storyline is the same critique I’ve had about this entire season; the pacing. In a matter of 5 episodes Daenerys has gone from the savior of Westeros, the liberator from tyrants, and the beloved Khaleesi to the Mad Queen? She has suffered some tragic losses in Jorah, Missandei, and her two dragons, but to use that as justification for destroying an entire city and burning thousands of innocent citizens alive is a pretty big leap.
With that being said, George RR Martin’s books have become absolute must reads just to see how the godfather handles the same storylines.
Whats even more shocking is how Khaleesi has turned into the type of person she hated the most (arrogant, entitled, and cruel) just like….her late brother Viserys Targaryen. She has been shattered by her inability to gain the love and support of Westeros, despite quite literally saving the country from death. To her dismay, it is Jon Snow whom the people still love and champion. It is a stunning parallel with Viserys as Khaleesi has become just like her brother (who was killed for those same qualities).
Every time a Targaryen is born the gods flip a coin. Well it seems like the coin landed on the wrong side.
— Robert of House Glasgow (@therobkabob) May 13, 2019
One of the most incredible scenes in the episode and really the series was Khaleesi finally unleashing her dragon’s power to take out her enemies singlehandedly. It was glorious to see, if not a little inconsistent. Khaleesi *easily* takes out a hundred ships and just as many Scorpions after losing a dragon to just one of those pesky jumbo crossbows in the previous episode.
I understand she was taken by surprise somehow (she forgot about the Iron Fleet according to the showrunners…) in Episode 4, but thats just not great writing. Too often the end has dictated the circumstances required to get there, which has become a problem primarily since the show has passed the books. Without Martin’s elaborate game plan to lead the way, Benioff and Weiss have had to piece key events together with various plot devices. Just imagine the damage she could have done with 2 if not 3 dragons?
One of the deeper cuts were the various Wildfire explosions going off throughout the city as Khaleesi lit up Kings Landing. Aerys Targaryen’s old Wildfire stash was still buried underneath the city, going off like fireworks in the trunk of your car that you forgot about.
Again, we’ve been building to this for quite some time. Go back to Khaleesi’s vision she saw in Season 2 in Quarth at the House of the Undying because this is incredible foreshadowing, intentional or not.
Winter never came for King’s Landing, but Khaleesi did.
Sansa Was Right
Something I’ve been saying for a while now is what if Sansa wasn’t just being a distrustful or jealous sister? What I wrote last week:
“Sansa just does not trust Khaleesi and maybe she sees something that everyone else is blind to because they either love Khaleesi, they admire her, or they fear her. Sansa has none of those emotions towards the Dragon Queen so maybe its more than just being spiteful; maybe she really doesn’t believe she’ll be a good ruler…So maybe we need to start treating her disdain for Khaleesi as more than just unnecessary drama.”
What if she truly saw something in the Dragon Queen that unsettled her? Sansa is arguably the best politician in all of Westeros. Trained by Littlefinger, she survived Joffrey, Cersei, and Ramsay Bolton all while uniting the north and saving Jon at the Battle of the Bastards with the Knights of the Vale. She was often referred to as the key to the north to boot. Well after “The Bells” it sure seems like Sansa had Dany pegged from day one.
RIP to Varys
Varys, as always, was the only one that saw the big picture. He could see Khaleesi losing her grasp on reality/sanity/decency and tried to get ahead of it, but nobody wanted to listen. They all saw the same signs, but everyone was blinded for their own reasons. Tyrion is the Hand of the Queen, and Jon Snow loved her but more importantly he swore himself and the North to her (that damn Stark nobility). Varys cared only for the Realm aka the common people and Varys knew the people were screwed.
Ring the Bells
The aptly titled episode refers to the bells that ring in Kings Landing when the city has surrendered. It means the war has been won. Well when Tyrion repeatedly says they need to stop the attack if they hear the bells ringing I became suspicious. Would Khaleesi think that maybe the bells are a trap of sorts by Cersei? Not really. Actually she just didn’t care and merely used the bells as the soundtrack to her rampage.
Thrones offered zero character development for these guys and now we know why. They didn’t even make it out of the locker room before Khaleesi came out of the goddamn walls to blow them away.
The Cleganebowl
It would be hard to do justice to anything that fans have been clamoring for after 7+ seasons. While I don’t think this was the amazing sword battle we all expected, it was visually stunning. The shot of the two brothers fighting on a crumbling stair case in the Red Keep as Drogon flies behind them burning the city to the ground was incredible.
This battle royale also showed just how indestructible The Mountain really was, something thats been apparent since his resurrection, but never really deeply explored. Not to quote the Avengers too many times in this Thrones blog, but Sandor my man:
The Hound saving Arya’s life by talking her out of a suicide mission for vengeance was a rare emotional moment for this character. Arya’s the only one he’s ever really had any affection for and vice versa so he’s the only one that can snap her out of it and send her away.
Arya
Arya has repeatedly said “I’m going to kill the queen.” About halfway through that episode I realized she’s rarely said I’m going to kill Cersei; only “the queen” specifically. Well, once Arya got caught in that hell fire and saw more and more innocents getting scorched it became pretty clear to me that Arya was always going to kill the queen, maybe just not the one she thought.
Fine, you want more foreshadowing?
And I looked, and behold a pale horse
and his name that sat on him was Death
— Drake France Jaculina (@DrakeJaculina) May 13, 2019
Khaleesi:
Don’t be surprised when Benioff and Weiss tell composer Ramin Djawadi to take a few plays off in order to let Arya do her work with Coldplay playing in the background.
Something that has been in my opinion shockingly underutilized is Arya’s game of faces. We literally spent multiple seasons learning about this and how deadly the faceless men are. Arya has become one of the most lethal killers in Westeros and did take out the entire Frey House, but since then we’ve seen zero use of this pretty rare talent. Will we finally see Arya break it out in the series finale? Could she kill someone like Grey Worm in order to take his face and get close enough to the Queen? We’ll see, but this is another thread that seems to have been forgotten if not.
Starks Run Deep
Also, I’m not sure if this is intentional or not, but Jon and Arya have literally become the same person. It’s like that Progressive Insurance commercial about becoming your parents. The long hair with the top knot, the long leather outfit; they’ve all become Ned Stark.
Cersei and Jaime
I’ve seen a lot of hate on Twitter about the way they handled Cersei’s death, but it did a pretty good job of humanizing one of the most evil characters in the show in just a couple of scenes. Again, pacing of the character arc was poor, but what did people want? For Cersei to stand on the roof and give one last defiant speech before getting lit up by Drogon?
At the end, Cersei sounded a lot like Janos Slynt at the Battle of Castle Black. Someone who is in way over their head and trying to convince themselves that the inevitable is not actually coming as they mindlessly babble in the face of certain death
Another pacing issues though is how they handled Jaime’s last two episodes and his ultimate death. I think we all knew Jaime would either die trying to save Cersei or trying to stop her, but to introduce the entire Brienne love storyline, the immediate reversal, his capture and release by Tyrion, followed by his frantic effort to get to Cersei was the definition of rushed.
How does the King in the North handle Khaleesi now? Cersei blew up the sept and killed a couple hundred people and we were all shocked; Khaleesi just burned down the entire god damn city. He can’t openly challenge her because of the aforementioned dragon, the Unsullied and the Dothraki, who seem pretty jazzed up about destroying said city. It seems like marriage is probably off the table as well. So its going to take quite the coup to unseat Dany from the Iron Throne at this point. Even if Arya or someone is able to kill the Dragon Queen, this could devolve into a bloody and meaningless civil war real quick.
Bran
We are now down 80 minutes away from Bran becoming the No. 1 in Red’s Power Rankings of Most Useless Characters of All Time. He has said that he’s not really Bran anymore and that he doesn’t want anymore, but did we really build this guy up for 7 seasons just to have him be the know it all grandpa in the corner?
I can’t believe we are now just 6 days away from the last episode in Game of Thrones history. I am shook. I will be an emotional wreck next weekend so don’t take it personally when I ghost any and all forms of communication. How does this all end? Will Khaleesi rule unopposed with fire and blood? Will the North finally overthrow the rulers in Kings Landing? Could Jon Snow aka Aegon Targaryen possibly take Drogon for himself? Will Jon finally change the narrative about Stark men in the capital? So many questions so little time.
As we all know though, when you play the Game of Thrones, you either win or you die.
Heading into the offseason, most people agreed that wide receiver was a desperate area of need for the Pats. Actually, it was probably THE biggest are of need before the retirement of Rob Gronkowski.
Up until the weekend of the draft, however, it looked like the team was barely willing to do anything to improve its laughable depth at the position, and it really looked like Brady would be throwing to Julian Edelman and a bunch of trash cans in 2019. While the team supposedly went hard after Adam Humphries in free agency – before he ultimately signed with the Titans – I’ll admit that I was pretty heated that through March and most of April nobody of value had been brought in.
Well, I mean there was the signing of Bruce Ellington, a 27-year-old journeyman with a measly 79 career catches in 44 games who is missing a third of his left hamstring! (No, but really, he is.) And I place emphasis on the word “was,” because the guy was just cut on Thursday before even getting to sniff the field in a Pats uniform. So there goes that.
Yeah, I know, man. That’s a tough break.
The team also signed former Washington wide out, Maurice Harris, who actually might have some sneaky potential and is only 26. And they took a flyer on a likely completely cooked Demaryius Thomas.
But besides that, the team did nothing until draft weekend, when they used their first-round pick on former Arizona State stud receiver N’Keal Harry. (A move that The 300s faithful already know I wholeheartedly endorse.) And then on May 10, they made a sneaky good signing by inking Dontrelle Inman. More on him in a second.
There’s also the whole Josh Gordon saga that continues to drag on. Will he play this season? Will he fall back into his old ways? Find out on the next episode of As the Flash Turns…
With so many new faces and questions remaining, it’s tough to keep track of exactly who will be serving as Brady’s top targets next season. And while there’s still an entire offseason and plenty of time for things to change and be fleshed out, here’s a quick look at the team’s current stock at the position along with a prediction of what the pecking order will look like heading into September.
Julian Edelman
Old Faithful will be returning for his 10th season in a Pats uniform this year, and you can lock him in for another 150-plus targets, 90-plus catches, and at least five or so touchdowns as Brady’s No. 1 guy. Everyone knows that Jules is the engine that truly keeps the team’s offense moving, and his MVP performance in last year’s Super Bowl was one for the ages. Were it not for him (and Gronk) the team would have barely been able to move the ball in that game at all, and there is nobody who Brady has ever trusted more in his career, besides maybe Wes Welker.
Say what you want about him being 32 years old and “injury prone.” But were it not for last year’s suspension he likely would have played in 16 games for the second straight season. Also, besides 2015, Edelman had also played in at least 14 games in each of the two previous seasons before that. The point is, the whole durability issue with him is completely overplayed, and he’s shown literally zero signs of slowing down any time soon. Jules is the unquestioned leader of this group and all-time Patriots legend. Thank GAHD we still have him.
N’Keal Harry
It is super impressive to see a rookie already being viewed as Brady’s No. 2 option at wide receiver, but that’s pretty much how it looks right now. Of course, it’s hard to predict how any newcomer will adapt to the pro level, but considering Harry was one of the most consistent and productive college wide receivers in recent memory, it’s not out of the realm of possibility.
On the night he was drafted, I already wrote a quick breakdown of the type of player Harry is and what he could provide for the receiving corps. The way he uses his body to win against opposing defenders and his strong after-the-catch ability can help to provide some of the physicality missing in the absence of Gronk. (Again, “some.” Nobody is EVER replacing Gronk. I want to make sure I say that loudly enough so people in the back can hear it.)
I’ll stop there, because I don’t want project too much about a guy who hasn’t played even one NFL down yet. But I’m definitely excited about this kid.
Dontrelle Inman
Now, some people might assume that Phillip Dorsett is automatically slated to be a top-three receiver on this team due to his familiarity with the system and the flashes he showed at times last year. But, to be honest, I think Inman will rocket up the depth chart in camp and could actually even be the No. 2 receiver by season’s end; I think this dude is being slept on big time, and I’m surprised the Pats were able to get him this late into the offseason. (I know Joey B agrees with me, too. He actually made a very astute comparison to the signing of Brandon LaFell a few years ago, and I could totally see Inman having that same type of impact.)
Inman is another big-bodied guy (6’3″, 205 pounds) who has bounced around a few teams the past couple of seasons (Chargers, Bears, Colts), and I’m not really sure why. In 2016, he put up 810 yards on 58 catches while playing with Philip Rivers. The Chargers even placed a second-round tender on him the following offseason when he was set to become a restricted free agent. And in just four starts with the Colts last year (nine games played overall), he hauled in three touchdowns with 28 catches on only 39 targets.
Again, I have no idea why he’s shuffled around the NFL as much as he has in recent years, but this is actually a really good signing. Inman could honestly surprise a lot of people this year playing with the G.O.A.T.
Phillip Dorsett
After a disappointing first go-round with the team in 2017 after coming over in a trade from Indy, Dorsett actually took a huge leap in 2018. Not only did he almost triple his amount of receptions from the previous season (from 12 to 32), but when Brady went to him last season, it was pretty much successful every time. For such a small, “speed” guy, it’s really impressive to see that he had a 76 percent catch rate; in fact, from Week 5 onward Brady and Dorsett had a 100 percent throw-and-catch rate, meaning that Dorsett caught every single ball Brady threw his way over the final three-quarters of the season.
OK, sure, that may have only been on just 16 total targets, and there were seven games last year where Dorsett was not even targeted once. But there’s no doubt that he’s earned the trust of Brady and McDaniels, and he’s a more than solid No. 3/4 option in the passing game with game-breaking jets. And let’s not forget that this guy was once a first-round draft pick, too. I’m really glad he ended up re-signing with the team this offseason.
And now here’s where it gets a little tougher to sort out. For starters, rarely do the Pats rely much upon more than three or four wide outs every season; especially with the involvement of the tight ends and James White (the team’s leading pass-catcher in 2018), the team doesn’t really need much behind the four receivers I’ve already hit on above. But there are still two former Pro Bowlers and some other young talent on the current roster who could rise to the opportunity and secure a role at some point this year. Here’s a quick look at a few of those guys.
Josh Gordon: Where to begin? By now, I think everybody is pretty well-versed on the 28-year-old’s trials and tribulations throughout his career, but there’s no doubt he showed the ability to still be one of the game’s elite wide-outs in the 11 games he played for the Pats last year. Many might be surprised to see he put up 40 catches and over 700 yards for the team last year before once again succumbing to previous transgressions which forced him to miss the final two months of the year. But like I said in March, he might not be done just yet and did officially re-sign with the team this offseason. And if he does finally get himself back on track? Holy hell. Watch out, NFL.
Demaryius Thomas: Another one of the game’s former elites, the Pats took a flyer on Thomas this offseason in hopes he can regain some of his previous form which saw him average 96 catches, 1,303 yards, and 8.5 touchdowns per season from 2012-2017 out in Denver. (Yeah, this dude used to be STUPID good.) Age and injuries have derailed him in recent years, but much like Gordon he could end up being just another entirely unfair piece for the Pats offense if all goes well. Or he could be cut by the end of training camp… To be honest, at this point I’m not expecting too much from him at all. Fingers crossed, though, because Thomas was once an absolute monster.
Come on, D.T.! I know you still got it in ya.
Maurice Harris: The fourth-year player out of Cal spent his first three seasons down in Washington. After having just 12 career grabs over his first two seasons, he stepped it up with 28 last year. So far, he certainly hasn’t done anything to write home about overall, but he did hang 10 catches and 124 yards on the Falcons in Week 6 last season before being forced to play with the likes of Mark Sanchez and Josh Johnson. Maybe TFB can get the best out of this kid. We’ll see.
Braxton Berrios: Here’s a guy who the casual Pats fan probably hasn’t heard of yet, but his tires have been quietly being pumped by coaches and other industry talking heads for the past year. Drafted in the sixth round in 2018, Berrios didn’t set the world on fire during his time in college with Miami, but he did earn Third-Team All-ACC honors in his senior year. A former team captain, valedictorian, and allegedly competitive as hell, he seems like a perfect guy for this locker room. Apparently, he profiles as a Julian Edelman type who excels on underneath routes and quick screens. We haven’t been able to see much from him yet, especially since he was placed on I.R. last September and missed the entire season, but he is definitely a name to keep an eye on this summer.
Jules Part 2???
The Pats also have Damoun Patterson, Jakobi Meyers, Ryan Davis, and Xavier Ubosi as the other camp bodies at receiver, but I think I probably have just as good of a chance of cracking the roster this year as any of these four.
So, again, while there’s still a lot to be figured out before the games that really matter, at least Belichick & Co. have brought in some semblance of talent at wide receiver that was missing entirely just two months ago. This is going to be one of the best position battles to watch throughout the entire league this summer, and a part of me thinks it could actually be even better than what Brady had to work with last year.
The Pats are scheduled to kick off OTAs on May 20. So be sure to keep checking in with The 300s for all your Pats coverage!
Logic + Eminem. Two of my favorite artists of all time jump on the same track to put together an absolutely hectic flurry of rhymes. And the beat bangs too. Sometimes with tracks like this you get one or the other. Incredible flow and wordplay, but a lackluster beat. Well Bobby Tarantino came hard here and Marshall Mathers came in to close it out. What I’d give to see these two tour together. Hey, Logic did open for Em at a recent show in Hawaii so it could happen.
After getting blown out in an elimination game and just rolling over I was too pissed off to go to sleep so I watched about an hour of postgame interviews. Granted it was just minutes after their season ended, but there was a lot of stuff bubbling to the surface. And as Felger said on 98.5 yesterday, I cannot wait for the inevitable Jackie MacMullan tell all story that will give us all the juicy details of what went on behind the scenes this year.
Brad Stevens
Brad took a lot of the blame for the way this season went, and rightfully so because at the end of the day the coach’s job is to manage the players. Whether Brad is up for that task remains to be seen, but he seemed to empathize with his young lottery picks having to adapt to a lot.
“I always reference Jayson and Jaylen, I can’t imagine handling what they have to handle at 20 and 22. I cant fathom it. I would have cracked a long, long time ago.”
Jaylen is routinely the most outspoken, or at least up front, Celtics player and he was no different after last night’s game all but calling out Kyrie. While thats not great for building a relationship I don’t blame him at all; Kyrie openly dumped on the young guys all year long so Jaylen would often snipe back through the media.
Some really interesting postgame quotes from Jaylen Brown in particular tonight. #Celtics#CelticsTwitter
“I know I got a lot to learn, but we got older guys on this team and I think they’ll say the same thing. They got a lot to learn too.” #Celtics#CelticsTwitter
“I tried to do the best I could with the cards I was dealt. I tried to be mature about the process and handle it the best I could.” #Celtics#CelticsTwitter
Scary Terry had quite the fall from where he was a year ago going from playoff hero to bench mob. While I don’t know if Rozier is truly the franchise point guard he probably believes he is, it’s hard to blame him for being bitter. Doesn’t sound too optimistic about his future in green though.
“Definitely didn’t go the way we all wanted. I just thank god for my family and my boys back at the crib that kept me level headed all year because I’ve been dealing with some bullshit”
He also seems like he wants to play the role of peacekeeper, which is what a LEADER does. Might be too little too late though in terms of Kyrie.
Marcus Smart on whether he wants to play a big role with team going forward with offseason workouts etc.: “Definitely. The personality that I have to bring people together is something that’s special…These are my brothers…Just want to try to make sure we get on track early.”
The Celtics are at a crossroads after that disastrous end to a confounding season. Going into the year, just about everyone had the C’s pegged to win 60+ games and take Golden State to 6 games if not outright win the title. It all made sense too. Boston went to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals last year without Gordon Hayward and without Kyrie Irving. Plus they match up with Golden State better than any other team in the NBA. It seemed like a virtual lock for the C’s to make the Finals, or at the very least the ECF. Welp, the team came out of the gates slow, publicly bitched and moaned about each other, and never got on track en route to finishing as the No. 4 seed. That was all before sweeping a Victor Oladipo-less Pacers and ultimately getting their skulls caved in by Giannis and the No. 1 seed Milwaukee Bucks.
NOW, this brings me to my main point. Kyrie Irving has been a pain in the ass all year long, from the bizarre flat earth trolling, to saying the Celtics *needed* another veteran player, to openly questioning the coach, to publicly bitching about the young guys, to calling LeBron for advice, and now infamously punting on the regular season while looking ahead to the playoffs. As we all know, Kyrie had an excellent Game 1 (12/21 – 26 pts) before having all-time shit bombs of games the rest of the series. He statistically got worse as the series went on going 4/18 – 9 pts in Game 2, 8/22 – 29 pts in Game 3, 7/22 – 23 pts in Game 4, and 6/21 – 15 PTS in Game 5.
Jesus christ.
That all brings up the question of will Kyrie re-sign with the Celtics this summer? It also brings up the question I never imagined I would ask; do the Celtics even want to re-sign Kyrie Irving?
The Celtics are now the third favorite according to Las Vegas in terms of where Kyrie ends up this summer, behind the Nets and the Knicks. So it would seem like the Celtics have two options if they do indeed want Kyrie back. They can offer him the max and hope he wants to build a legacy in Boston (as his motherfucking Nike commercial would make it seem)
and then trade anyone on the roster not named Hayward (Horford’s probably gone due to matching salaries) for Anthony Davis. Thats not *as* risky as it sounds because at least it would be a plan that only goes into action after Kyrie re-signs. But you’re still trading half your team including Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for a one year run at it with Kyrie and Davis and hoping Davis then re-ups. After this year I’m not so sure I want to bank on a guy enjoying his time in Boston enough to sign a max deal.
The other option is to do what the Warriors did in 2014 with Klay Thompson. Play it out. The Warriors were reportedly on the brink of trading Thompson for Kevin love to “put them over the top” before they evolved into the dynasty they are today. The Warriors had gone from a disaster of a team to a pretty good squad with a new coach in Steve Kerr, yet one that still felt a player or two away. Luckily Kerr, and most importantly, Jerry West advised the Golden State GM of nixing the deal and the Warriors promptly turned into an all-time team led by Steph Curry and an even better Klay Thompson.
I bring this scenario up because I see a ton of similarities between 2014 Klay Thompson and 2019 Jayson Tatum. Thompson had just finished up his third season in 2013-14; Tatum just finished his second. Klay was a key piece in a potential trade for an “established all-star big man” as Tatum is now. Not to mention the numbers. Take a look at Klay’s first 2 years compared to Tatum’s.
Uncanny.
People sleep on Klay Thompson because he’s not the star of the show in Golden State, but theres a reason the best basketball team of my generation is going to offer him a max (if not super max) contract at 12:01 am on July 1st.
“Irving may stay, Irving may go, but the referendum on Tatum’s career is coming no matter what. A year ago, the then-rookie looked like an MVP candidate-to-be, but a season of floating around on offense, settling for midrange jumpers, and getting IRL subtweeted has sent many a Tatum stan retreating into the bushes. It’s worth noting that Tatum actually improved in his sophomore season—virtually all of his raw totals are up, and while his scoring efficiency is down, expecting Steph Curry–level shooting from 3 again, even on low volume, was a bit ambitious. Punctuating any Tatum commentary, good or bad, with his age has become the internet’s favorite gag for two years running, but here’s the thing: He’s only 21—and was only 20 for most of this season. Only five players 20 or younger averaged 15 points or more this season, and Tatum had the highest effective field goal rating of anyone of them who didn’t always shoot right at the basket. Tatum hasn’t been great, but it’s worth remembering that it took Brandon Ingram only a couple of games this spring to regain traction before a fluke blood clot issue derailed the rest of his season.”
Now Tatum may have not been the 20 ppg guy everyone expected him to be in Year 2, but that may not be fair just because he dominated in the playoffs the year before. Not to mention he had to adjust to playing with guys like Hayward and Kyrie. Would the Celtics be better off letting Kyrie walk and giving Tatum more time and space to grow into the player we all think he could be?
Source: Free agent tight end Ben Watson does intend to come out of retirement and is visiting with the #Patriots today. This could come together. Potentially back to the team that originally drafted him in the first round.
The Patriots currently have gaps at tight end. They’re best efforts to fill them this off-season have come in the form of drafting Austin Sefarian-Jenkins and signing UDFA Andrew Beck. We also jettisoned the remaining Hollister brother to the Seahawks for a few kicking tees. The bottom line is I don’t think a dynamic Tight End game is where the Pats O is going to make its money this season. And that’s fine, no team changes strategy based on personnel better than we do. 3-4, 4-3, run to set up pass, pass to set up run, who cares. 12-4 and a trip to the AFC Title Game.
So why not add an excellent locker room presence and trusted vet in our 2004 1st rounder Benjamin Watson? I mean for what it’s worth his last two seasons he’s caught 400/2 and 522/4. Those are not terrible numbers for a 2nd or 3rd option tight end. He also can block and mentor Beck so the Pats can see what if anything we can get out of him.
In the end, Big Ben could be a camp body we cut. But I still love bringing him back to possibly give him his swan song. Hopefully he signs on.
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