The All-Madden Team was named after former Oakland Raider coach, and sportscaster great, John Madden. It celebrated the attributes that Madden looked for in his players. Toughness, grit, and determination. The All-Maddening Team is completely different. The name – purely coincidence. The All-Maddening Team is a regretful look at the players you drafted in your fantasy league and the maddening decisions that were made. More mistakes than Nathaniel Hackett. More misses than Rodrigo Blankenship. More bad picks than Joe Burrow. Meet the team, and the players that are ruining your season. Quarterbacks... Read More

As Serena Williams took to the court for what was presumed to be the final match of her career, the audience roared – but the music stayed silent. Unlike baseball in which songs by AC/DC, The Red Hot Chili Peppers, or The Notorious B.I.G. could blast through speakers to elevate crowds – Tennis is simply too regal, too proper, and light clapping will suffice. But what if there was a walk-out song? Can you imagine the response if Serena Williams paid homage to her upbringing and took the court to the sounds of Tupac Shakur’s “California Love”? In the city, the city of Compton – we... Read More

By the time the 2021 Fantasy Football season had ended, my team looked like a MASH unit. Cooper Kupp had helped me secure the number one seed for the playoffs, but my players were dropping like flies. Derrick Henry was rehabbing, DeAndre Hopkins was sidelined, and Lamar Jackson had to be replaced by Washington quarterback, Taylor Heincke. I lost big. But last year’s squad was like a Taco Bell Chalupa. It looked good on the surface and tasted pretty good at the time. But after the fact, all I was left with was unhealthy ingredients, pain, and regret. Instead of the Chalupa, this year’s... Read More

Imagine that you are Baker Mayfield’s agent. Your client has a career record of just 29 wins and 30 losses, has thrown 56 interceptions in 60 games as a starter, makes $19 million a year, is coming back from off-season shoulder surgery, and he’s demanded a trade. Did I mention that your client has also been replaced as the starter by Deshaun Watson and his five-year, $230 million contract? You tell your client that you will make a few calls and not to worry. After all, this is Baker Mayfield, the first pick of the 2018 NFL Draft. • Tampa Bay seems like the perfect fit with its talented... Read More

The matchup was determined almost two weeks ago. The Los Angeles Rams would be facing the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. The teams would have ample days to rest, strategize, and attend press conferences. The fans would have more than enough time to buy cheese dip, preview Super Bowl commercials, and upgrade their big screens. Two weeks can seem like an eternity, but if the Super Bowl is the main course, sports filled us with plenty of hors d’oeuvres while waiting. Tom Brady won’t be playing on Sunday, but he still dominated the news. We had the NBA trade deadline, the NHL All-Star... Read More

It was Couch Potato Heaven as the NFL put on a show during last weekend’s Divisional Playoffs. Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow survived being sacked nine times as the Bengals upset Tennessee 19-16. San Francisco blocked a Green Bay punt late in the game on their way to a 13-10 win in Lambeau. The Los Angeles Rams completed a deep pass to Cooper Kupp to avoid another Tom Brady comeback in winning 30-27 over Tampa Bay. And Pat Mahomes outdueled Josh Allen, 42-36 in overtime, with both a flip of the wrist, and a flip of the coin. A look at the crazy games from the past weekend and more. • The sample... Read More

COVID-19 continued to dominate the NFL news cycle last week as three games had to be postponed, more than 150 players were placed in COVID-19 Protocol, and rosters scrambled for eligible replacements just hours before kick-off. The Chicago Bears had 12 players placed in COVID-19 Protocol, the Los Angeles Rams had 19, and the Cleveland Brown topped them all with a total of 20, including their head coach. With the Omicron variant wiping out entire team rosters, the NFL and the Players Association were forced to adjust their process announcing less testing for vaccinated players, thus allowing more... Read More

The idea started percolating on a quiet Thursday night back in week three of the NFL season.  Carolina Panther’s star running back, Christian McCaffrey, had limped off the field early in the game only to be replaced by some guy named Chuba Hubbard.  The Houston Texans relied on a rookie quarterback named Davis Mills to keep the game close.  And I sat there watching despite not caring about either team, and not having any players starting on my Fantasy roster, until finally heading upstairs around halftime. Carolina would end up winning the game 24-9. Thursday Night Football originated as a... Read More

For a moment it was as if COVID-19 had come and gone.  Thousands of college students filled band-filled stadiums, beer flowed during massive-sized tailgate parties, and Sundays returned to crowded gatherings in musty man caves. True, some venues required masks and others proof of vaccination, but spectators were adapting and sports were officially back.  If sports now meant sitting inches from strangers rather than six-feet or pulling my mask down to drink a beer, I was fine with that. Then Aaron Rodgers brought it all back. Green Bay’s star quarterback stirred up plenty of controversy last... Read More

The darkness that is Halloween conjures up many frightful images.  The silence of an empty graveyard, the shadows of creatures that roam, and the fear of things that go bump in the night. The world of sports can be just as scary. Try watching the Colorado Buffaloes compete against Oregon, or the Denver Nuggets without Nikola Jokic.  In Denver, we hide under the blanket when the Broncos are on, and stars like Von Miller and Nolan Arenado can vanish without a trace. A look at the past week in sports – the tricks, and all the treats. Apparently, the only thing scarier than John Gruden’s resemblance... Read More