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A decision
Thank you, Aaron Rodgers.
Thanks for not dragging this out on the national airwaves for the entire summer.
Rodgers announced Wednesday he will play for the Steelers this season. And he will retire after this season.
Rodgers said he is intrigued by the full-circle chance to play for Mike McCarthy, who was his coach way back in the day in Green Bay.
Look, Rodgers is so many things at the same time entering his 22nd NFL season at age 42. (He will be 43 in December.)
Look at the angles of Aaron in the neighborhoods of Rodgers:
> He is a for-sure Hall of Famer and likely is no better than the third-best QB1 in his four-team division;
> His career numbers are legendary. He’s first in under-appreciated stats like TD-to-INT ratio (4.3, 527-123) and the traditional QB rating (102) among qualified passers, and second all-time in MVP awards (four, behind only Peyton’s five).
> However, Rodgers is 11-11 all-time in playoff games as a starter and has not even made a Super Bowl since winning his lone Lombardi in 2011.
Because it’s official and final — amazing with Rodgers, right, Spy? — perspective comes soon after the relief of “What’s the deal with Aaron Rodgers?” being in the second block of every ESPN show from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. until mid-to-late July.
Where is Rodgers all-time among the best?
Top five, in traditional means? Don’t see how even anyone can say yes, even members of the Rodgers family. (Side note: According to all reports, strike that family approval thing. OK? OK.)
Top five, in talent? I think definitely. Few ever have combined the pocket presence with the arm strength Rodgers possessed, especially at the height of his powers in Green Bay.
So where do the dichotomies meet?
Hard to see Rodgers in the top-five all-time, but it’s hard not to think of him as a top-10 QB, too?
Thoughts?
Smart power move
So as the Big Ten wraps its talking time, the commissioner of the most powerful conference in college football took a shrewd stance on the much-discussed college football expansion.
Tony Petitti, a renowned supporter of expansion in general, stumped for the move — sooner rather than later — to 24 teams in the college football playoffs.
He then denounced all compromises of the subtle move to 16, saying full-go to 24 or hard-stay at 12.
Your move, SEC.
One of my main concerns about expansion has always been about devaluing the college football regular season. Here’s a great conversation about that very thing in perspective to the Big 12 wondering if Michigan-THE Ohio State loses meaning with a 24-team field.
We have discussed this a bit over the last few weeks, and the support from every bigger-than-mid-major conference outside of the Southeastern, it’s likely happening. If not now, soon.
The pitfalls are there. The profitability is too. But the pluses and the potential problems persist. Perpetually. (Spy, is that a record for words that start with P in one … wait for it … paragraph? Praise, people.)
MLB moments
Braves played. Braves won.
We’ve said it a time or 300, but Chris Sale. Dude.
Sale’s line — seven innings, eight Ks, four hits, one earned run — was dazzling as the Braves thumped Miami 9-1.
Also, when did Dom Smith become a sneaky version of David Ortiz as a DH weapon? Smith is hitting .337 and had a three-run homer and a triple in Wednesday’s win.
While Sale was his traditional awesome self, Shohei was doing Shohei things.
Yes, that’s five scoreless innings on the mound — he has a 0.73 ERA this season — in a 4-0 win over San Diego. He has the lowest ERA through eight starts of any Dodgers pitcher since some dude named Fernando in 1981.
Oh yeah, Shohei also led off the game with a homer.
Sho-MY.
This and that
> Here’s the latest podcast on SEC football from Southeastern16 on the YouTube. Enjoy, and feel free to share some comments.
> So the Cleveland Browns have an interception issue. During 7-on-7s. Against guys who will be bagging groceries in three months. https://www.yahoo.com/sports/articles/embarrassing-todd-monken-calls-shedeur-110510432.html
> So what could go wrong, right? Ed Orgeron has officially joined Lane Kiffin’s staff at LSU.
> So do they teach fast driving in Athens? Former UGA defensive star and current Eagles starter Nolan Smith was clocked at 135 mph in Twiggs County in Georgia.
> So in our acronym update, SGA led OKC to a W in the WCF Game 2. Got it? Good.
> Also of note, Wednesday was the 24th anniversary of joining the staff here at the TFP. Man, where does the time go? Who knows what the future holds for each of us, right? Both good and bad, sadly.
Today’s questions
Anything Goes Thursday started above with Rodgers. So, where, and show your work, would you rank Rodgers among all-time QB1s?
We’ll continue with this: Do we owe AA an apology for offseason criticism?
As for today, May 21, let’s review.
Mr. T is 74 today. Pity the fool who does not wish him a good day.
Josh Allen is 30 today. True or false, Josh Allen will finish as a better QB than Rodgers.
In honor of Mr. T (aka Clubber Lang), Rushmore of non-“Rocky” sports movie villains.
Go, and remember the mailbag, people.