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Draft time
Remember the contest. Details are here. And it's free.
We did the first half of round 1 here. So if you are wondering why Bijan Robinson will not be mentioned in these next 15 picks, well, it's because he's already in Philly.
So let's finish our crazy projection of possibilities in tonight's first round, shall we? I think we shall.
But rather than go pick by pick, let's look at the players, teams and coaches that will make the back half of round 1 as unpredictable as your drunk uncle's talking politics at Thanksgiving.
— Dallas. Of course the Cowboys are going to be intriguing. That's who Jerry Jones aspires to be. And if Bijan Robinson starts to fall, there could be zero telling what Jerry may do to get into those discussions, whether Dallas really needs him or not.
— Run on WRs. The position value of WRs is very high. The draft value, though, is surprisingly low. Yes, JaMarr Chase was a top-five pick. And back in the loaded draft of 2011, so were AJ Green and Julio Jones. Larry Fitzgerald was a Hall of Famer at 3. But the misses that high have been noteworthy as well — all the Lions WR not named Calvin Johnson; heck there are three Williams (Reggie, Roy and Mike) who were busts, nevermind Troy Williamson. It's a dangerous position, but again, a needed one. And look at the modern stars at the position and know of the nine players who had more than 100 catches, only two — Justin Jefferson (23 overall) and CeeDee Lamb (17 overall) — were first-rounders.
— Where does Hendon Hooker go? I have been higher on Hooker than most everyone for a long time. I think he's no worse than QB3 in this draft — and if you are the Titans and going to have any QB you take sit for a year, well, that would be the dream — but firmly believe him to be a first rounder.
— Will Jahmyr Gobbs join Bijan Robinson in round 1? Gibbs, the former Dalton High and Alabama star, is universally viewed as the No. 2 RB in this draft class. That said, how crazy is it that we are wondering if two RBs will get picked tonight and as many as five TEs could go in round 1? Try explaining that to an NFL fan or a Mel Kiper lover two decades ago.
— Who will trade back into the late part of round 1 and take a player for the fifth-year option that comes with being picked on the opening night? That could be Tennessee, and it could be Hooker, especially if they fill another need at 11.
I'm giddy. And remember the contest.
Prime discussion
OK, why is anyone surprised that there is a colossal roster turnover in Coach Deion Sanders' first spring drills at Colorado?
First, let's be really open about this: Coach Prime announced this would be happening at his introduction in Boulder.
So surprise should be the last emotion that comes up.
I was intrigued by the idea of Sanders being a candidate at Auburn. But even his staunchest supporters would have to be willing to admit this is either going to be a grand slam or a disaster with the Buffaloes, right?
There's no real room for in between, and right now, his recruiting skills are apparent.
And it's especially not fair to peg this on Sanders, and that has nothing to do with his proclamation that the roster was going to need more U-Hauls than a Kenny Chesney road crew.
This is the ugly side of player empowerment in a lot of ways, and the folks who bemoan the transfer portal must see that the portal is needed for moments just like this.
This has happened any time a coaching change happened in years past, it just maybe was not on this scale or size.
How many times have we heard "pick a school for the place and the education, not the coach" over the years? This puts the final nail in any semblance of truth or merit to that thought.
An athlete picks a college for the coach and the program like a normal student would for desired major and campus. And in that order, most of the time.
Those guys did not pick Deion, and he did not pick those players.
This is the two-way extremes of the portal, and you may not like it, and that's OK.
But let's do everyone a favor and put the faux shock and surprise aside.
This should be the expectation — and maybe not on the ends of Deion potentially having as many as 60 scholarship players from 2022 not on the opening day roster — moving forward.
Especially when the coach announces it at his introduction.
Devil in the details
So the Braves are fun. A lot of fun.
And with the new rules, MLB is more fun to watch than ever, especially when it's the Braves hitting dingers and dancing in the dugout because they score more than Maravich in a pick-up game.
But as the new rules grow, the oldest rule around still is 100% as true as ever.
Cash is king, and the king flexed his muscle Tuesday.
If you have watched the Braves, you have seen that this year's home run prop was an oversized hat for the home run hitter to wear as he's being congratulated in the Atlanta dugout.
Well, that hat was thrown to Ozzie Albies in a spring training game, and the players have run with the celebration coronation.
Yeah, but, that hat is not a New Era product, and New Era has the on-field rights to MLB hats. So, New Era made a few calls and now the Braves' Big Hat dance is deader than whomever is buried in Grant's tomb.
So it goes.
Despite the popularity of the prop, the sponsorship deal is clear, which also could be said, "Big hat and no battle" you know?
This and that
— Yep, been a minute. Let's refresh some of the wisdom of Crash Davis throughout the This and That, shall we? I think we shall.
— We'll start in Pittsburgh, where the real-life Crash Davis got his first AB in The Show last night. At the tender age of 33, Drew Maggi got his first trip to the dish and the Pittsburgh fans were raucously in Drew's corner. In fact, amid all the pitch-clock rules and pace of play comments, it was an old-school visor tip for the home plate umpire to walk away for a moment and let Maggi soak but the moment 13 minor-league seasons in the making. He struck out.
— Dang it, I hate when people get the words wrong. Granted Crash was speaking of Nuke's dreadful singing, but Marly Rivera was canned by ESPN for calling another female reporter an expletive — and it was a doozy of an expletive too. Rivera claims there were bigger things at play here. Yeah, but you were caught on camera calling another female reporter something that you simply can't say. Still, ESPN is looking to cut a huge amount of its workforce, and b) the freelance reporter on the receiving end of Rivera's cursing is married to the MLB vice president of communications. So who knows?
— Player on a streak has to got to respect the streak. With that we did not respect the Braves bats going over, even against reigning Cy Young winner Sandy Alcanatra. But, if you believe you are picking well because you're getting (blank) or because your not getting (blank) or because you're wearing women's underwear then you are. And you should know that.
— And rule 1 of picking winners is we don't speak of picking winners. Right Vader.
— He walked 18. New league record. He struck out 18. Another new league record. In addition he the sportswriter, the public address announcer, the Bulls mascot twice. All new league records. So Nuke LaLoosh's debut was great and not so great. Can we have the same perspective on Giannis and the Bucks for a second. The top-seed in the East got bounced by play-in survivor Miami, but Giannis was both profoundly insightful in his postgame comments and profanely excellent during the game. And yes, a 1 seed getting bounced in round 1 is news and blame falls on everyone — including the team's star — but Giannis is a force. And he's only 28. He went a very Wilt-like 38 and 20 last night on 14-of-27 shooting. Monster.
— Bad trades are a part of baseball. Who can forget Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas? Found this list of cars that lost the most value as used options during the last year. Tesla is 1 at losing 27% of its value after the last year. The Wagoneer is 2 at a smidge more than 18%.
— Oh, I've heard about your million-dollar arm, but I, I got a good idea about that 5 cent head of yours. The NFL draft wisdom of Buddy Nix — former Mocs coach and former NFL front office type with multiple teams — is always appreciated. Paschall caught with him earlier this week.
— Speaking of the draft — and candlesticks always make a nice gift — the contest is still open until 5 p.m. tonight. Here are rules and questions, and yes, I am planning on being on Twitter tonight (@jgreesontfp) during the proceedings.
Today's questions
Anything goes Thursday is here. So is the draft.
It's the best non-live-action-sports sports event anywhere right?
Is there anything even close? The NBA draft was the bee's knees in the 1980s, but man this is fun.
Where would the selection show for the NCAA tournament rank in these discussions? Any others?
As for today, April 27, let's review.
On this day 12 years ago, Cam Newton went No. 1 to the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers would be tickled to have the same decade-of-QB1 from Bryce Young as they got from Newton.
It also marked me winning a lunch bet with Dr. B on "SportTalk" way back in the day because I was adamant that Cam was going 1 and he thought he would fall like a stone.
Good times.
On this day in 1667, John Milton sold his poem "Paradise Lost" for 10 pounds. Dude had fallen on hard times by all accounts. That's a savvy purchase no doubt.
Samuel Morse was born on this day in 1971.
Rushmore of 'code' and have a little fun.