‘Twas the night before Christmas with stars in the heaven. The Broncos were hosting at seven and seven. There was Belichick, the Pats, but no longer Tom Brady. It was now Bailey Zappe, New England’s hopes were Slim Shady. But the Broncos this season were a bit of a mess. Scaring opponents but still scared of success. Who starts 1-5 and then goes 6-2? Who hopes for the playoffs when the playoffs are through? Miami scores 70 like we’re a cheap set of gnomes. We then beat Josh Allen and the great Pat Mahomes? We choked to the Raiders and that Jets game was foul. Then up by 18 we lose... Read More

The Thanksgiving table can get contentious at times. Generations of family loudly discussing politics, sports, and the proper use of nonbinary pronouns. Grandpa may never understand the difference between he/him/his and they/them/theirs, but he will go to his deathbed with the belief that Bill Russell with his 11 rings, is the greatest basketball player of all-time. Cousin Logan is a millennial. He listens to 32 podcasts a week, pays $6.50 for his coffee each morning, and swears in his vintage Kobe Bryant signature shoes, that the G.O.A.T. is Kobe Bryant. Aunt Suzy thinks that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar... Read More

Besides the sugar-buzz from devouring fun-sized Snicker bars all weekend, the best part was watching famous athletes walking arena halls in their Halloween best. The Celtics’ Grant Williams went full Gotham in a Batman costume. Atlanta’s Trae Young dressed as the Black Panther. The Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic was appropriately made up as The Joker. And most everyone else in the sports world showed up as some type of character from Stranger Things. I didn’t happen to catch what quarterback Russell Wilson dressed up as pre-game, but I had a few guesses. • Russell could have dressed up as a beverage... Read More

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

A new season of football generally begins with nacho dip on my jersey, endless hours of television, and of course, September Bronco bashing. Afterall, the Denver Broncos haven’t had a winning season since 2016, haven’t had a decent quarterback since Peyton Manning, and Vic Fangio is 0-7 in September games since joining the organization two years ago. Well, make that 1-7. Prepared for the worst, the Broncos looked to have provided plenty of bash-worthy material.  Gambling Vic Fangio and his Fourth Down decision-making.  The naming of Teddy Bridgewater at quarterback, who was so lightly sought... Read More

To say that the Kansas City Chiefs are the odds-on favorite to repeat as Super Bowl Champions would be an understatement.  With a record of 14-1, home field throughout the playoffs, and quarterback Pat Mahomes behind center, Las Vegas sees them as a +170 to win it all again. The +170 represents a return of $170 if you were to bet $100, or the equivalent of 1.7 to 1 odds. But if you were paying attention over the past few weeks you may have seen Mahomes look rather pedestrian in throwing three picks against the Dolphins in week 14, KC barely surviving a close one versus the Saints in week 15,... Read More

In a sports world full of quarantines and opt outs, empty venues and cardboard cutouts, rule changes and daily testing—week one of the NFL season was bound to be a relative unknown. With exhibition games canceled and the media limited, the first week of the NFL would have to serve as a limited sample size in answering many of the questions about the teams around the league, the quarterback carousels, and the sport in general. Here are ten things we learned: The Jacksonville Jaguars are not tanking for Trevor – After shipping players like Jalen Ramsey, Leonard Fournette, and Nick Foles to... Read More