Tag: Minnesota

Minnesota Timberwolves Unveil Prince City Edition Jersey

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ESPN – When Prince died in April 2016, Nike pitched the Wolves an alternate “city edition” jersey for the 2017-18 season that would honor him. The Wolves concluded it was too soon. They were already finalizing their 2017-18 jerseys, which would kick off a full-on rebrand — new jerseys, new logo, new court, tweaked color scheme.

But they decided then to prioritize a Prince jersey for this season. They set aside some of Nike’s other proposed Minnesota-centric motifs: jerseys paying homage to Bob Dylan, the Mississippi River (which runs through Minneapolis), and the original Minneapolis Lakers, Johnson says. (You might see some of those ideas down the road.)

In case you haven’t heard, Prince is a big deal in Minnesota. A really big deal. When I lived in Boston, I hardly ever heard Prince on the radio. Living in Minneapolis, though, I can’t go a day without hearing him on the radio. And that’s not a bad thing. As I wrote on Prince Day last year, I was wrong about Prince. Prince is definitely an acquired taste, but he had an incredible list of hits and I wish I had paid more attention to him and his work while he was alive. He was an incredible musician and performer.

It can be nauseating to see some of the half-assed Prince promotions the teams in Minnesota run. Giving out purple hats and playing Purple Rain during the 7th inning stretch is the definition of a half-assed promotion. Thankfully, it looks like the Timberwolves are going above and beyond.

First, they made the right choice of which direction to go in for their city edition jersey. Minneapolis Lakers inspired jerseys? Really? Can you imagine the Baltimore Ravens wearing Baltimore Colts throwbacks? There’d be a revolt in the stands, and understandably so. Second, the jersey itself looks very well done.

If the script font looks familiar, here’s why:

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A very nice touch.

And third, the Timberwolves will do much, much more than most teams to actually make their Prince nights a special experience. From Zach Lowe on ESPN:

The Wolves will wear the jerseys eight times this season, five at home. The in-arena trappings at those home games — giveaway shirts, signage, lighting — will turn purple. Tom Thibodeau, the team’s coach and general manager, even let team officials take the players for a separate day of shooting to prepare a special Prince- and purple-themed pregame video that will run on the scoreboard — not a small concession if you know Thibodeau. The team thought about producing a purple court, but opted against it, officials say.

As yet unannounced halftime performers will pay tribute to Prince, and the broader Minneapolis music scene, team officials say. The team will present donations to some of Prince’s favorite charities.

The Timberwolves Twitter feed offers a good look at the special photo day Lowe mentions:

Also, it’s nice to see some restraint from a Nike production like this. No clutter on the jersey and a wise move to skip the purple court. Overall, this looks to be some A+ promotional work from a team that could use some good press. Maybe now the classic rock stations in Minnesota can stop cutting out the best part of Purple Rain on the radio.

The 300s Reviews: Target Field

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Target Field opened in 2010 and brought outdoor baseball back to Minnesota for the first in nearly three decades. The Minnesota Twins moved to Target Field after playing 28 seasons inside the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. Prior to playing in the Metrodome, the Twins played 21 seasons at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The Twins shared both of those facilities with the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings. Target Field is the first home the Twins can call their own.

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Moving from a multi-purpose stadium to a baseball-specific stadium is a huge upgrade by itself, but there’s so much more to like about Target Field. The downtown ballpark offers stunning views of the city’s skyline. Sitting along the third-base line you could imagine that the 1965 World Series was played there and not in Bloomington. That’s because Target Field is a perfect example of a retro modern ballpark (a la Petco Park) as opposed to a retro classic ballpark (Camden Yards).

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Gate 29

The exterior of Target Field features limestone and glass, as opposed to the brick and green steel featured at retro classic ballparks. Also visible is the stadium’s canopy, which can help shield fans in the upper level from the elements on cold days and the sun on better days. There were talks of building a retractable roof for this ballpark, but that feature proved to be cost prohibitive.

The entrances for Target Field are numbered with some of the team’s retired numbers, and while there’s no grand main entrance like old Yankee Stadium I think it’s fair to say that Gate 29 (Rod Carew) is the de facto main entrance. At least that’s where the longest lines are on giveaway days.

Despite the ballpark’s relatively small footprint, it does not feel cramped at all. Quite the opposite, in fact. You can do a complete lap on the lower level of the ballpark and never lose sight of the pitcher’s mound and home plate. As someone who enjoys visiting and touring ballparks, I love to move around and check out everything a park has to offer. You can do that in Target Field and not lose track of the game. The small footprint might explain the steep seating in right field, but that’s a minor quibble. You still get a great view of the game from out there.

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Target Field’s concession stands don’t offer anything crazy like toasted grasshoppers, but they do a good job of delivering hot dogs, sausages, burgers, chicken fingers, french fries and all of the other ballpark standards. There are a lot of pop up stands run by local restaurants, including Red Cow and Kramarczuk’s, that feature more “gourmet” options.

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Poutine helmet from Kramarczuk’s

Lines are generally reasonable, and so are the prices. A 24 oz Bud Light draft will set you back $9.50, which seems like a bargain compared to some other parks. And if you’re in town on a Wednesday you can experience what is probably one of the last regular dollar dog nights in the bigs.

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Just $21 for this whole tray!

The park also offers seven (!) bars inside the stadium. Stadium pricing obviously still applies but it is nice to be able to walk around the stadium to grab a beer, especially if you get there early on a hot day.

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And, of course, no ballpark is complete without a mascot race these days.

The Atlanta Braves recently moved out of Turner Field after just 20 seasons and the Texas Rangers will ditch the Ballpark in Arlington in 2020, but I don’t think we’ll see Target Field fall out of favor that quickly. The Twins have already shown a willingness to tinker with and improve the stadium (and the fan experience) on an almost annual basis. There’s no reason why the Twins can’t play at Target Field for the next 50 years. It’s the best ballpark I’ve been to yet.

Big Z Ballpark Rating – 9.3

The 300s Reviews: Super Bowl Experience

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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.

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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.

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“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…”

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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.

Big Z Super Bowl Experience Rating – 6.6

Smokin Jay Cutler is Back!

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You thought this guy was going to go quietly into the night? I don’t think so. Not if there’s a $10 million offer on the table from the Miami Dolphins. I think Jay Cutler is a better QB than he’s ever gotten credit for, but I also think his biggest problem has always been perception. He looks like a guy that does not give a shit and doesn’t really want to play. Whether thats actually true or not nobody except maybe Kristin Cavallari knows, but hey perception is reality.

Which is why Cutler signing with the Dolphins is very interesting. Its the best team he’s been on, at least offensively, in years plus its in the warm and comfortable city of Miami. Maybe he puts the Menthols down for a few months and has a mini career resurgence a la Kurt Warner in Arizona. Or maybe he collects $10 Million to half-ass a season before going into the FOX booth.

Cutler started his career off as a promising young QB, then became salty as fuck when new Denver coach Josh McDaniels tried to trade him for Matt Cassel, forced a trade, landed with the Bears, played pretty well there for a couple of years with Brandon Marshall, then the team started to get worse before bottoming out last year and becoming a complete dumpster fire. Add all that to the fact that Chicago is a miserably cold city during the football season and I can see how Smokin Jay Cutler was born.

BUT, Cutler’s also only thrown for 4,000+ yards once in a season, and thrown 25+ TDs 3 times in 10 years. For a quick AFC East comparison, Tom Brady has thrown for 4,000+ yards 8 different times and has thrown 25+ TDs 12 times in his career. So Tom Brady he is not.

But the Dolphins don’t really need him to be. They just need him to be similar, if not better, than the level of production they were getting out of Ryan Tannehill. I think its a pretty safe bet to assume most Dolphins fans are pretty lukewarm on Tannehill. He’s been good, not great. He hasn’t made the jump to a top tier QB like most hoped he would. Again for comparisons sake, Tannehill has thrown for 4,000+ yards twice in five years and thrown 25+ TDs just once in his career. His career completion percentage of 62.7 is just a tick higher than Cutler’s 61.9. Tannehill is more mobile, but the difference is not as much as you would think. The last four years Tannehill has rushed for 164, 141, 311, 238 and 211 yards (4.9 Yards per Attempt for his career) with 6 TDs. In that same timespan Cutler has rushed for 24 (limited to 5 games by injury), 201, 191, 118, and 233 (4.5 Yards per Attempt for his career) with 3 TDs. So not a huge difference.

My point is the Dolphins aren’t completely and totally fucked. Cutler is not Tom Brady, but he’s better than most people think.

Okay, okay, you want to see how he stacks up against the most famous free agent QB ever in Colin Kaepernick too? Despite his gazelle like speed, Kaepernick “only” averages 6.1 Yards per Rushing Attempt. People remember those who huge runs in the playoffs a few years back and it skews perception. In the 2012 playoffs he rushed for 264 yards and in the 2013 playoffs he rushed for 243 yards and 4 total TDs, which is 9.9 Yards per Attempt). Overall though? Not that much better. Not so much better you want to deal with bitchy questions from everyone holding a microphone for the next 6 months. His passing stats? Career completion percentage of 59.8 (lower than both Cutler and Tannehill). He’s never thrown for 4,000+ yards. He’s never thrown for 3,500+ yards. Never threw 25+ TDs, he’s only topped 20 once. Kaepernick obviously has a much smaller sample size of games started than Cutler, but those are the numbers guys.

So if anything the Dolphins will be interesting to watch, assuming Jay Cutler wants to do more than just collect a paycheck. But if he truly just wanted to snake another check, Cutler could have signed with the Jets months ago. Maybe he sees a legit opportunity here with Miami. The Patriots have had the AFC East on lock for a while now so its not like they will suddenly contend for the division. But similar to the Vikings getting Sam Bradford last year, except much better because Miami didn’t have to give up a FIRST round draft pick to get Cutler, brining in a solid, veteran QB probably keeps them in contention for a Wild Card spot. Smokin Jay Cutler is back indeed.

Time to Make the Donuts

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10 years ago today the Boston Celtics traded for Kevin Garnett and completely changed the makeup of the entire franchise. Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Ryan Gomes, Theo Ratliff’s expiring contract, and two first-round picks. Thats what it took to land KG, a guy who’s No. 5 will likely be up in the rafters, and put the Celtics back on the map. A basement dwelling lottery team in the matter of a few weeks acquired both Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett and morphed into a 66 win team. All that after only winning 24 games the year before. Thats 42 additional wins for anyone who didn’t bring their calculator. KG was competitive as hell, tough, intense, generally crazy, and the guy came to ball every single night. Probably my favorite Celtics player of all time. CUE THE HIGHLIGHTS

Adrian Peterson Risking His Life to Cultivate Mass

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Yahoo – Adrian Peterson makes his living crashing into defensive linemen and linebackers, so he probably has a good grasp on what is good or bad for his health. Still, the admission that he’s ate so much seafood after signing with the New Orleans Saints that his body fat has gone from 7-8 percent to 9-10 percent in two weeks was a bit crazy. See, it’s not that Peterson is the first to go on a food bender in New Orleans. That’s happened to just about anyone who has visited. It’s that Peterson is allergic to shellfish..The New Orleans Times-Picayune’s Josh Katzenstein chronicled how Peterson is sampling the city’s seafood restaurants, including charbroiled oysters (“I’ve been tearing them up,” he said), and how he carries an EpiPen with him as he does it.

Gotta respect AP embracing that washed life. The guy is a running back over 30 coming off multiple knee surgeries and just got cut by the only team he’s ever played for. So is it any surprise that the guy moves to a warm, entertaining, party city known for its celebrations and its food and is now (reportedly) cultivating mass?

It happens to the best of us. You have a rough day, you get canned from your job, whatever it is. You just roll right up to that Burger King drive through window, crush a couple Whoppers and eat right past those tears. So a little cap tip to AP for hitting the buffet instead of his kids this time around.

Not to mention Peterson is apparently crushing seafood, all while being allergic to shellfish. Foods so good the guy’s risking his fucking LIFE to eat more of it. Can’t blame the guy for enjoying some good old southern food. Unless of course you’re a Saints fan, then you can blame the fuck out of him.

Adrian Peterson, a 32 Year Old RB Coming Off Knee Surgery, is Shockingly Still a Free Agent

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Yahoo Sports – Adrian Peterson is still waiting. As incomprehensible as it seemed only a few weeks ago, one of the greatest running backs in NFL history is still waiting for significant pursuit one full week into free agency. Largely thanks to a depressed running backs market and Peterson’s age (he turns 32 on Tuesday), the final destination of the seven-time Pro Bowler remains unknown, even as running backs like Eddie Lacy, Latavius Murray, Danny Woodhead and Rex Burkhead each found landing spots before Peterson.

Why does this surprise anyone? Guy is a 32 year old running back coming off KNEE surgery and in the middle of a trial for beating the shit out of his toddler son? Doesn’t exactly seem like a product that would be flying off the shelves like a Malibu Stacy doll.

Look is the guy totally done? I don’t know, but he’s certainly not someone I’m giving much more than the veteran’s minimum to and I’m sure as shit not relying on him to be my go-to RB. So he’s gonna be a guy who will hang around looking for one, last big deal that he’s not going to get. So he’ll end up signing as a backup somewhere else.

This isn’t a “frosty” situation, this is an entirely predictable situation if you just take AP’s name out of the equation. In 2016 Player X rushed for 72 yards in 3 games with an Avg Yards per Attempt of 1.9 and 0 Touchdowns. Then got knee surgery. WHY would that player have a booming free agency market? Yes, I know he rushed for almost 1,500 yards and 11 TD’s the year before, but that will have been 2+ years ago by the time next season starts. When he was 30. Where do RB’s fall off? Yup, after 30. Especially power backs with knee surgeries. So please national media don’t pretend to be surprised with stuff like this, you’re better than that.

Adrian Peterson to the Patriots? This Move Would Be More Albert Haynesworth Than Corey Dillon

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A move like this just screams Joey Galloway, Albert Haynesworth and Chad Ocho Cinco more than it does Corey Dillon or Randy Moss. A guy who at one point was one of if not the premier player at his position who now is a bit older and admittedly has some baggage. We’re not even gonna get into the details of whether or not AP is a good guy, because beating the shit out of your kids does not a good person make you. As a pure football fit, I just don’t see it. The guy looked toast last year and *then* he blew out his knee. So running backs on the wrong side of 30 with multiple knee injuries don’t really do it for me.

Plus its not like AP is gonna take the veteran’s minimum to play alongside Tom Brady. He just does not seem like that kind of guy. I’d rather the Pats stick with what they have, maybe sign some other decently talented (and younger) running back like oh idk KARLOS WILLIAMS. Rather than bring in this guy and try and force a square peg into a round hole. Would it be nice to have the Adrian Peterson from 2012? Of course, but this guy is not that guy. He’ll be 32 when next season starts and he has taken a *beating* over the past 10 years with over 2,400 carries. The next guys on that list who are either still active or just recently retired? Matt Forte, Marshawn Lynch and Chris Johnson. Not great company.

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Plus the Pats did just fine if I recall correctly, winning a Super Bowl with LeGarrette Blount carrying the ball primarily. A guy that Felger and Mazz ripped on and complained about how terrible he was from Day 1, despite rushing for 18 TD’s and almost 1,200 yards. I think TB12 and the Pats can make due without Adrian Peterson.

PS – Never forget the most frightening NFL commercial of all-time with AP just angrily running towards the camera in slow motion.