Weekend winners
The NFL draft. We’ll breakdown the picks we liked and the ones we didn’t, but the draft continues to draw large interest. The crowds in Philadelphia were huge and the TV numbers were impressive. ESPN (up 7 percent from last year) and the NFL Network (up 22 percent) combined for more than 9.2 million viewers for Thursday’s first round. ESPN won Thursday night across all networks according to Neilsen.
Butch Jones. Again, we’ll get to the draft and reaction in a moment, but after a few years of being a draft after thought, the Vols had six players from Jones’ first recruiting cycle in Knoxville. Amazingly, when Derek Barnett went off the board Thursday, it was the first UT first-rounder since 2014. Also of note, Joshua Dobbs became the first Tennessee quarterback selected in the first four rounds since some guy named Peyton Manning.
Value of quarterbacks. At random moments we remember this, but time and time again, we let it slip from our thoughts, but the moves the teams made to get in position to draft the three quarterbacks that went in the top 12 were staggering.
Anthony Joshua. Dude almost knocked Wladimir Klitscho’s head off to unite the divisions and become the Heavyweight Champion of the World. (Man that title used to be the coolest one in sports.)
PGA tour. We enjoyed the different format, even it provided some less-heralded players to be in the mix Sunday in New Orleans. Also, Kevin Kinser’s chip to force a Monday finish is the front runner for shot of the year.
FILE – In this March 4, 2017, file photo, UCLA guard Lonzo Ball, right, shakes hands with his father LaVar following an NCAA college basketball game against Washington State in Los Angeles. UCLA won 77-68. LaVar Ball told Southern California News Group for a story published online on April 6, 2017, that UCLA was eliminated in the NCAA tournament because “three white guys” couldn’t pick up the slack after his son suffered a hamstring injury. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File) Weekend losers
Lavar Ball. OK, all the NCAA tournament hijinks and the First Take appearances landed somewhere between funny and embarrassing. He got to yell at Stephen A. Smith, which is like a fantasy camp for sports talk show fans. But now, the sideshow circus that Mr. Ball created is costing his son millions. Consider this: Lonzo Ball will be a top-five pick and he can’t get a shoe deal because Nike, Adidas, Under Armour and the rest do not want to associate with the Balls. Sure, if he becomes the next MJ, they will come calling, but Daddy is now costing Junior serious coin.
L.A. Clippers. Another postseason, another unfulfilling finish. The Clippers have three max players and the second-highest paid coach in the league and they have never made a conference final. Yes, Blake Griffin was injured and missed most of the series, including Sunday’s Game 7 loss at home to the Jazz. Still, this is a team that had the prime of multiple All-Star players and has very little to show for it.
Arkansas football fans. Man, when your star running back gets carted off the field in the spring game, you age. Quickly. Yes, it’s only termed a “stinger” but the fact that Rawleigh Williams III left on a stretcher with a neck injury was a scary scene for everyone involved.
All bowl games other than the elite bowls. You do the math. Jabrill Peppers, Christian McCaffrey and Leonard Fournette sat out bowl games last year and each was drafted in round one. Michigan tight end Jake Butt this year and Notre Dame linebacker Jaylon Smith last year played in bowl games and suffered injuries that cost them millions.
Big 12. Wow, the talent level in the Big 12 has certainly hit a low point. The Big 12 had two players taken in the first two rounds of the draft – Patrick Mahomes and Joe Mixon. That’s the same number as Temple and quite a load less than the SEC, which had 21 of the first 64 picks.
Tennessee Titans GM Jon Robinson enters tonight’s opening round of the NFL draft with two picks in the first round.NFL draft takeaways
Well, that was fun. (We love the draft. You know this.)
Let’s do a couple, three quick takeaways:
Teams with the biggest upside: We love what the 49ers did early and what the Browns did throughout. Consider this: The 49ers revamped their entire defense and could have added four starters and two potential superstars. Cleveland had the most holes and the most draft equity. They picked a number of guys who likely will start, and the roll of the dice with Caleb Brantley could pay big dividends, which is a calculated gamble in round six.
Local review: As for the Falcons and the Titans, well, like everyone else, each side is going to talk about how much they love their collection of picks. We loved the Falcons defensive additions in the first three picks, adding speed and pass-rushing talent as well as as interior offensive lineman. A lot of the Titans’ final draft review will be determined by the first-round selections. Each was a big position of need, and if those two turn into stars, great. If not, well, it will be the first whiff for GM Jon Robinson.
Teams that excelled. We loved what the Steelers did in terms of need and variety. We think Buffalo – who fired its GM after the draft – got a home run pick with Nathan Peterman in round five. We think the Jets got the best player in the draft in Jamal Adams. We think the Cowboys – with the addition of Taco Charlton and Jaylon Smith from last year’s draft – will be much improved on defense.
Questionable decisions. We have covered the Chicago Bears’ move to deal a lot of picks to move up one spot to get Mitchell Trubisky. Here are a couple more: We feel for Jerod Evans, the former Virginia Tech quarterback who declared early for the draft and went unselected and as of right now is unsigned.
Swing factors. There’s little doubt that grading the draft right now seems a little silly. We don’t know. Heck, the teams don’t really know. That said, the two things we think will determine a lot of the final takeaways for this draft are, a) how Deshaun Watson fares considering Cleveland of all teams traded out of that spot; and b) what happens with Dalvin Cook, who fell to the second round.
This and that
* Speaking of undrafted talent, here are a few very familiar names who are still looking for an NFL home: Wisconsin RB Corey Clement, Kentucky RB Boom Williams, Baylor WR KD Cannon, Texas A&M Speedy Noil, Texas A&M TE Ricky Seals-Jones and Louisville LB/DE Devonte’ Fields.
* Speaking of the draft, congrats to Corey Levin, the UTC O-lineman who the Titans picked Saturday.
* Speaking of the Clippers, Paul Pierce announced his retirement after 19 seasons this weekend. Pierce will be a Hall of Famer, Looking back on the 1998 draft, Pierce was not even the first Kansas Jayhawks player off the board. That was teammate Raef LaFrentz. And considering future Hall of Famers Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki and Vince Carter went Nos. 10, 9 and 5, you could make an argument that the Clippers taking Michael Olowokandi No. 1 overall is among the worst picks in NBA history.
Today’s question
Hit us with weekend winners and losers.
Heck, hit us with your draft thoughts and questions. As for today, well, happy month of May, and let’s have some of the rain die down. Man our baseball schedule is taking a beating.
On this day in 1931, the Empire State Building opened. Which four would comprise the Rushmore of most famous buildings?
Go, and enjoy the day.