Month: February 2016

The future of RG3

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2011 Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Robert Griffin III’s career in Washington is over — team president Bruce Allen admitted that much during a Tuesday interview on The Mighty 1090 in San Diego.

CSN Mid Atlantic reports that Griffin has remained quiet. However, on Monday, he sent out a tweet in which some are wondering whether the tweet was directed at his time with Washington.

Trying to guess what this message is trying to convey is difficult to figure out and some are wondering whether he was stubbing his toe. Redskins defensive lineman Chris Baker believes that Griffin, ‘needs a coaching staff that believes in him.’ “He needs a coaching staff that believes in him 100 percent and is going to work with him to help him become best quarterback he can be. This wasn’t the ideal situation or ideal year for a guy like Robert Griffin,” he told Phil Savage and Alex Marvez on SiriusXM NFL radio on Monday.

Marvez writes on Fox Sports.com that it is not a matter if but when Griffin will be released by the team in order to avoid paying his $16.2 million salary this year. The move must be made by March 9 as that is when the new NFL season begins.

Since he will likely be somewhere else in 2016 there has been talk about where he would land in 2016. NFL Network insider Ian Rappaport mentions that landing spots may include: Kansas City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Denver and an outside shot in Dallas. However, if he lands with any of these teams, he would likely remain as a backup. However after those comments, former NFL wide receiver Nate Burleson said that Griffin will eventually be a starting quarterback in the NFL but conceded that it would not happen immediately.

Griffin is in his prime but that can come crashing down abruptly with injuries that have ended prominent players careers early. He had a solid rookie season but the next two seasons, he showed significant decline. Judging from what I have read, it seems as if Griffin was not given much of a chance in Washington even though there have been issues with his character in the past.

Some were saying that if Griffin were to be released by the Redskins, recent history says that his career is basically over citing former Heisman winners from recent years. I do not believe that Griffin has to have a 2012 like season in 2016 and beyond in order to be considered a successful quarterback. I personally believe that people tend to expect a little too much with Heisman quarterbacks who have made it to the NFL who are either still in the league today and those who are not.

It is truly amazing how success in college does not always translate to success in the professional leagues in whatever sport. I do not agree with Burleson about being a starting quarterback but I think he can be a solid backup. His attitude and image especially off the field needs to change if any of the teams Rappaport mentioned seriously want to sign him. I believe that he will have at the very least a decent NFL career but nothing much that would stand out to people. In order for that to happen or for Griffin to exceed my expectations, he will need to begin that process this year.

NHL Winter Classic; good for the game?

Not too long ago, many hockey fans couldn’t wait for an outdoor professional hockey game, but some people including me believe that the NHL has overused this phenomenon.

While the goal was to take one or more regular season games and turn them into a ratings giant, after the January 1, 2016 game between the Montreal Canadiens revealed that NBC’s ratings for the event came in at an all-time low, nearly a 40 percent drop-off from just two years ago.

Greg Wyshynksi of Yahoo Sports mentions a few reasons why that was the case. First, as we hear during the NHL playoffs NBC receives no discernable ratings benefit from Canada. He mentions that when Vancouver had an outdoor game in 2014, the ratings went through the roof tying the NHL’s highest regular season rating since 1975. One reason behind the low ratings that has not been discussed as much is the competition. The Buckeyes- Fighting Irish Fiesta Bowl on ESPN and Michigan-Florida in the Citrus Bowl on ABC were both highly rated. Many fans stream the game and do not watch NBC, which contributes to lower ratings and Wyshynski adds that it matters what happens on site and the teams are making more than respectable amounts of money on team merchandise.

With those ratings tumbling, that begs the question, is the interest in the outdoor spectacle declining or is it just a matter of context and just one game?

Joe Delessio of Sports on Earth believes that this event is good for the game but adds that the Winter Classic “is also something of a crossroads.” The best forms have relied on iconic stadiums to grab the attention. One of my favorite parts of a telecast at an outdoor game is the overhead shots of the stadium but while the game is going on, some of the camera angles are difficult for me and many others to see on TV.

I feel as if part of the reason why the novelty of playing a game or two or three outside has worn off is partly because some of the games in recent years have not been close. Delessio believes that the league will need to get a little creative going forward including moving some of these games to neutral sites such as Notre Dame Stadium or Happy Valley. Commissioner Gary Bettman said recently that the league has discussed such a thing even if it is just a discussion.

Reports say that next year’s game will feature the Toronto Maple Leafs hosting the New York Rangers at BMO Field, a soccer-specific MLS venue that usually seats between 30,000 and 34,000 fans, but more seats could be added if necessary.

Some believe that there is no tweaking and that the game should be eliminated altogether adding that the game is simply overhyped. One of the other reasons why some are not fans of this phenomenon is partly because of some of the teams that have played in the past.

When the first outdoor game was played on New Year’s Day in 2008, the NHL should have thought over this beforehand. I understand the desire to ring in the new year with an exciting spectacle of outdoor hockey but for many years, New Year’s Day has been largely dominated by college football bowl games. I do not believe the league should nix this event but having a game on January 1 will not do the NHL any favors going forward and the ratings will never match that of college football bowl games.

The league should have these games on just 2 different days at most with one of them being on Hockey Day in America and sometime in middle to late January. I agree that any future outdoor game should be played at a neutral site and while there have been games between arch rivals, I contend as if having games at iconic sites on a regular basis often can be a set up and anything short of extraordinarily high expectations is often viewed as what could have been but wasn’t. In short the NHL, needs to figure out how to sell itself without the need to have the game at a place with fame attached to it. This is the test the NHL faces going forward if they truly want to make the outdoor classic game a success story.

Managing expectations

After I read that USA Today came out with the prediction that the Cubs would win 101 games and win the NL Central division, I thought to myself I sure hope that happens. The Cubs are going into 2016 with extremely high expectations and some are predicting that they will win the world series this year. Before we even bring up those two words, lets stop for a moment to not get way too carried away as I have seen this pan out in the past where they have high expectations and the sky high expectations have been too much for them to handle.

Cubs manager Joe Maddon wants his young team to get used to the idea of what it is like to be one of the best teams in baseball. “I’m really a big believer in running towards the fire instead of away from it,” Maddon told ESPN.com. “I want our guys to get comfortable with the concept of everyone speaking so glowingly of us.”

The Cubs are heading into spring training with a new theme, ‘Embrace the target.’

“It’s all about processing the day properly,” Maddon said. “You never take anything for granted. You never get complacent. Coming off a really good season, there’s a lot to be proud of, but there’s so much more to accomplish.”

ESPN Chicago Cubs beat reporter Jesse Rogers asks the question as we go through spring training, what can go wrong?

He says that major injuries and/or slumps in the lineup including not scoring enough runs during a marathon season. One of the main improvements that the offense must make in 2016 is to be able to put the ball in play during crucial times. Furthermore, not being too reliant on the long ball is what needs to improve, especially if they were to make the playoffs. Even with a young team loaded with the talent they have, fans saw many unproductive at-bats at the most inopportune time with strikeouts happening all too often in 2015.

One of the potential weak spots on the team Rogers mentions is the pitching staff including the bullpen and starting rotation. It will be interesting to see what Jake Arrieta does for an encore in 2016 because he may not have the success at the rate he did in 2015. While the Cubs did not get a pitcher like David Price, they signed John Lackey to a multi-year deal. What will also be interesting to watch is what happens if Lackey shows his age if the team will have enough depth to back him up on the mound.

Whether their century plus long curse is real or not, since making it to the playoffs 3 straight years from 1906-1908, they have only made it to the playoffs twice in a row one other time. Just about every good season is followed by a season with high expectations that often lead to anguish in September or October. One would ask, why is that? The answer could be the pressure of the championship drought or happenstance. Which ever one is the answer, the team believes that they have what it takes to finally win a world series.

Rogers concludes by saying that he finds it very difficult to seeing the 2016 team fail like teams in the past but adds a caveat, we’ve seen this movie before and we know how it ends. I understand how Maddon and the team feel going into spring training but I would not look too far into the future and focus on what is happening today, not what could happen in October. Often times, sports fans have seen their teams in whatever sport start a new season with high expectations and not live up to them and I think high expectations can play to a team’s detriment.

To be a championship caliber team, it is vital for everyone on a team to not feel too good when everything is going right and not to get down when nothing is going right. Maddon has emphasized to his players that they need to have fun out there and I think when you apply that mindset, you don’t feel like you have to be perfect. When you don’t think about how to do something as often, it often comes as second nature and I feel that is what needs to happen for this historic franchise to end this historic drought.

Bulls in re-build mode?

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The Bulls are in a precarious time as the All-Star break has arrived. The Bulls have struggled in the last few weeks and are barely above water when it comes to the eastern conference playoff picture. With injuries and recent struggles on the court, I feel as if the best way forward for a better future is to develop a 2-3 year plan because the same results will continue to happen with the status quo in place.

Speaking to K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune, Jimmy Butler addressed the state of the team, and talked about the fact that the team has allowed 100 or more points in 7 straight games.

“We just lost our toughness. That’s all defense is,” he said. “If you want to do it, you can do it. If you want to try to outscore people, you can do that also. Obviously, we’re not very good at that because we lose a lot of games.

“Don’t get me wrong. We have guys who can score. But you have to guard. You have to have that grit. I don’t think we have it right now. We’re very capable of getting it back. Until we do, I don’t think we’ll be very good.”

Even with the team’s struggles, Butler believes in the team in the long run.

“It can all become reality if you work hard enough,” he said. “This was always a dream for me. I’m not the most talented guy, not the tallest, fastest or best shooter. I just work hard.” He went on to say that with hard work, it can pay off even when people say you can’t do it.

Is head coach Fred Hoiberg the bigger reason behind the teams struggles or is it just that the team is not good enough?

Another debate within the team has been whether the team will win with Derrick Rose. His contract with the team is up in 2017 and after he won the NBA MVP in 2011, he has not been the same player. I contend as if that accomplishment played to his detriment.

While expressing optimism that the Bulls can rescue their season, Butler admitted that the team is too dependent on offense and needs to up the intensity on the other side of the ball.

ESPN Chicago’s Nick Friedell writes that the front office has to recognize that in the team’s current form, they do not have enough to win a title and adds that the team needs to make moves prior to the looming trade deadline. One of the moves Friedell mentions is that Pau Gasol needs to be traded prior to the deadline, adding he is way too talented of an offensive player to remain on a roster that does not have what it takes to win a title. More importantly he believes regarding those who believe Gasol staying on the roster for a playoff run does not carry enough weight considering he is getting up there in age and they are not winning games with him in the lineup anyway.

I would generally agree with Vincent Goodwill of Comcast Sportsnet Chicago in which he says that it is not the best idea to scrap the current roster in the middle of the season while they still have a shot at the playoffs. However, this is one of the exceptions to the rule of rebuilding the team halfway through the season. Butler will be out until at least sometime until March and when he comes back, it will take some time for him to get back on his game.

It has been established that Gar Forman and John Paxson have not seen eye to eye and I think Forman should be gone at the end of the season. I agree with David Kaplan when he says that the team is simply not good enough to win a title. Furthermore, while the team has talent, I see too many mistakes that this team makes in which to be a championship team you can not be making. Simple elements of the game that include boxing out for rebounds have not been seen when it matters most that have cost them games.

While it is very difficult to make the announcement that a mid-season rebuild is in order especially where they are in the standings, I honestly believe as if it would be a benefit that the Bulls re-build after the All-Star break. The idea that Bulls can make a long playoff run with the current roster is flawed thinking with what Bulls fans have seen in the past. However, I do not believe they will make many substantive moves with the belief they can eventually make it to the conference finals against LeBron and the Cavaliers and finally get over the top.

Is Cam Newton a sore loser?

Last week he seemed like a darling to many for having too much fun but that discussion has shifted to is Cam Newton not what we thought he was less than a week ago?

Per David Newton of ESPN.com, he admitted such on Tuesday as the Panthers were cleaning out their lockers in how he conducted himself after the Panthers loss in Super Bowl 50. “I’ve been on record to say I’m a sore loser,” Newton said. “Who likes to lose? You show me a good loser and I’m going to show you a loser. It’s not a popularity contest. I’m here to win football games.”

Defenders of Newton will point to what the national networks will not show.

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Furthermore, Newton defenders will mention that Peyton Manning had some complimentary words for the former Heisman Trophy winner.

At the same time people with this position will acknowledge that Newton did not handle the loss in an ideal way but with many predicting that Carolina would win the Super Bowl, those will say it is understandable to feel this way.

Former NFL player Deion Sanders immediately reacted after Newton walked out of the press conference abruptly. “You are the face of our brand right now, you can’t do that,” Deion Sanders said after the game. “I understand the emotions of losing, but you can’t do that. A Manning, a Brady … all these guys who are a prototypical type of quarterback in our game, they’re not going to do that ever… You’re opening yourself for more criticism,” he said. “Because everybody is going to say you’re dabbing and smiling and smiling and styling. So this is how you go out when you lose?”

Those will respond to Sanders comments by saying there is more to the story than that. While Newton was fielding questions from the media, he was forced to hear Broncos Cornerback Chris Harris Jr.’s strategy for shutting down the 2015 NFL MVP.

In short, the reason why Newton walked out had nothing to do with what questions reporters were asking him.

His head coach believes that the criticism that was directed at him has been unfair. “If you took the time to know who Cam Newton is, if you saw all the things that he did, there would be much more of an appreciation for who he is as a person,” Rivera said.

Some critics of Newton will say that the video of him walking out abruptly only gives ammunition who say the 26-year-old QB is present when his team wins but hides from the media when his team loses.

Put all of the off the field stuff aside for a moment, with the Super Bowl on the line, he did not dive for a loose ball that Denver eventually recovered. People will allude to this play that will haunt Newton until he wins a Super Bowl ring.

People who have issues with Newton’s loser quote point to plenty of players and coaches is that hardly anyone would describe as a loser would have been able to handle the aftermath of a defeat without Newton’s reaction. Furthermore, it is a stretch to claim that the group has less of a desire for victory although giving those answers after the game illustrated how hard it was for him to accept losing would have likely brought about much less of a reaction.

I wasn’t wild about the discussion of whether Newton is the face of the NFL but I think the way how he conducted himself in the postgame press conference was not handled in an ideal way. However, I do not believe that takes away from the fact that he is going to be a top notch quarterback in the NFL assuming he stays healthy.

Per NFL writers, the interview set up in which players are separated by curtains are not unusual. However, Harris said that it was the NFL’s fault to put him and Newton too close to each other.

What I think is missing in this debate is the progress that Newton made in 2015. He had nearly twice as many touchdown passes in 2015 vs. 2014 and had a career low in interceptions thrown in 2015. I understand that with all that Carolina did and only to lose Super Bowl 50 is disappointing but all is not lost just because the Panthers were one win away and lost the Super Bowl.

Looking back at the game, the biggest reason why Cam Newton did not win a ring this year is because the Denver defense. Plus the Broncos defense would have been too much for any offense to handle let alone the best in the NFL.

I believe that Newton did not handle himself professionally but what happened in the postgame press conference should not change the fact that many quarterbacks would have felt the agony of defeat. Furthermore, it is understandable to react in the way Newton did with the exception of walking out abruptly. I agree with ESPN’s Trent Dilfer in which he said it was in Newton’s best interest to not say as much because doing so would have likely created an even bigger controversy that would have been more difficult to undo.

Thursday Night Football; a bad idea

Ever since the beginning of the current decade, the NFL has expanded the concept of Thursday Night Football to the viewing public. In 2011, the number of games on Thursday was 8 and that number nearly doubled four years later.

The goal of the idea that was introduced in 2006 was to give fans the opportunity to consume more football during the week but some are questioning whether this has had a negative or positive impact on the quality of the game as a whole.

To me one of the biggest elements of the new deal that was announced recently is the potential of NBC and CBS losing money from the deal in the long run.

Nick Venable from cinemablend.com writes referencing Benjamin Swinburne, who is an analyst for the financial firm Morgan Stanley, “the combined revenue the networks will make will be around $215.5 million, but with production costs coming in around $24.7 million and the exorbitant rights fees going for $363 million, that means around $172.3 million will be lost revenue for CBS and NBC, and each will be out around $86 million.”

One of the biggest issues that I have with Thursday Night Football is that after a few weeks into the season, players on teams who are scheduled to play that night likely will be playing on short rest. Another issue I have with TNF is that when there are bad games meaning in which the score is lopsided, games that are not close do not stand out as much on a Sunday afternoon when there are 10-13 of them. However, when the one-sided game happens during the latter half of the week, that tends to stand out more for fans to discuss and critique.

As of late, some prominent NFL players have indicated that they do not like the idea of having a regular season game on Thursday evening.

I understand why fans would want more games in primetime, the league wants to make more money and many people involved in fantasy football will argue that more of these games benefit them too. Put aside everything I have said for a moment, the main reason I am not fond of more NFL games in primetime is because some of these games are harder for me to watch as opposed to having all but 2 on Sunday afternoon. What makes the NFL great to watch is the tradition of having most of the games on Sunday afternoon which permits those of us who love the game to consume our Sundays as time sucked away by football.

In addition to Sherman, NFL head coaches have mentioned how difficult it tends to be to prepare one’s team for a short week of practice.

I can understand the idea of having a game in primetime to start the season with the defending Super Bowl champions from the previous season but over the long hall, having one of these games every week will contribute to more injuries for NFL players. While the new CBA is not up for renewal until 2020, if what has been happening up till now continues to happen, you will see more players come out and publically voice their displeasure with this format. I believe that the NFL was looking to fix a problem that didn’t need any fixing and for 10 years what has this experiment accomplished? Nothing except that when the best players have to sit out on a Thursday Night when otherwise they would likely be healthy come Sunday afternoon. This is another example of the NFL speaking out of both sides of their mouth. At first they say, they are concerned about player safety, then lets have a game on Thursday evening 4 days after a team previously played, which one is it Roger Goodell?