Weekend winners
Pittsburgh. The Steelers are perfect. Period. And a win over Lamar Jackson and the Ravens is an exclamation point be it week 1 or week 11. The Steelers forced four turnovers and remain a game ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs in the most important race for the best record in the history of team sports.
Avery Williamson. Yeah, last week, Carlos Dunlap got one of the world's best "We're trading you talks" because Dunlap went from Cincinnati to NFC contender Seattle. Well, Williamson did him one better, after the former Kentucky star was told the Jets had dealt him for draft picks. His destination? Yep, Pittsburgh.
Trevor Lawrence. There are the rare instances in sports when a star's absence makes his or her excellence and value even more eye-poppingly impressive. I think that applies for Dak Prescott as the Cowboys implode. And Saturday, for a team that everyone viewed as the best in college football, it applied to Lawrence, because without their star QB, the Tigers were forced to rally from an 18-point hot for a 34-28 win. Also of note in the winner's cateogry is one Travis Etienne, the Clemson running back who became the ACC all-time leader in rushing yards. Kudos, and that's an impressive collection of former ACC ball carriers. Etienne has 4,644 yards, passing former NC State star Ted Brown who had 4,602. Want to know who is third on the ACC list
Dalvin Cook. The former FSU star had 4,464 in college and had almost that on Sunday for the Vikings in a surprising win over Green Bay. You know how we offer stats and lists and if you are among a group of golfers with Tiger and Jack or a group of hitters with Babe or Teddy Ballgame, it's a good thing? Well, when you are the only name on that list, well that's pretty sweet too. Dalvin Cook is the first player since the NFL/AFL merger to score TDs on each of his team's first four possessions.
Side pick: Season Two season premiere of "The Mandolorian." It was awesome. And it's a streaming option on Disney+ that I highly recommend.
Weekend losers
Bo Pelini. Wow, go ahead and raise your third hand if you saw Auburn's maligned offensive front dominating Pelini's LSU defense? WE'll wait. Auburn ran for 206 yards and made the defending national champs look awful. When you make Chad Morris look this good, Bo, well ouch-standing.
My picks. College picks went a schizophrenic 4-4 and included some true roller coasters. NFL picks went 1-4 with the Chargers collapse (and a sketchy PI call) and Bears backdoor cover and missing the over/under on the Titans' failed 2-point try in the fourth quarter. As for college picks, well, the runaway train to .500 was fueled with this mixed bag: Hit Northwestern, and I stand by Iowa having issues; missed Minnesota badly (and believe it or not, I planned all week to pick the over, but flipped at the losing hour); hit Iowa State, and that's because Kansas is the worst Power Five team anywhere; missed Georgia because I completely missed the realization that the Bulldogs were more vanilla than the ice cream choices at an insurance seminar with Florida up next; hit BYU because they are gunning to cover and forge a fringe playoff résumé; missed Alabama first half because Mississippi State is cooked; hit Purdue minus-6.5; missed Rutgers because the replay officials determined there was an illegal forward pass on a fourth-quarter TD. On that Rutgers game, if I've said this once, I've said this a gajillion times (Side question: A 'gajillion' is more of a dad term or a kid term? Discuss.): If we're going to call games with reviews then modernize the entire set-up. But right now we're somewhere between replay review and making a few calls after the fact. Far from entertaining.
Tennessee Titans. What was that? Serious question: Are the Titans good? They're seven games in and I have no idea.
Jim Harbaugh. Wowser. Coach Khaki losing to a three-plus-under Michigan State bunch? Egad.
Baseball free agents. A slew of big-named players will hit the market as qualifying offers are going to be few and far between in a time of financial uncertainty in baseball.
End of an era
You have to be careful kicking dirt on the all-timers.
Dale Sr. The Showtime Lakers. LeBron. Billy Chapel. Ric Flair. They were all thought to be cooked at one point or another. They are all rallied for a final moment in the sun.
The Patriots are no longer the Patriots of the last two decades. Sunday's inexplicable and self-inflicted loss to Buffalo moves the Patriots to a spot not seen in two decades - 2-5 through seven games - and a place that seems surreal to even suggest.
This is going to hurt. Like ripping the band-aid off or pulling a jammed finger, but you know it going in and you do it anyway. Yes, this is going to hurt to type this: The Pats are done and it's time for seriously a complete rebuild.
The NFL trading deadline is Tuesday, and they have to look at everyone on that roster as moveable. Everyone.
Yes, there were a lot of layers to the Patriots 2-5 start. Cam Newton is the lowest paid starting QB in the NFL, and he's playing like it. A slew of dudes - like legit dudes - opted out before the season because of COVID. There are a bunch of injuries. Some former guy who was kind of important left for Tampa.
But, while he is an all-time great coach, the absences and Tom Brady's departure magnify Bill Belichick's very mediocre (and that may be kind) track record when it comes to the draft.
Since 2013, no Patriots first-round pick has been picked for a Pro Bowl and three times the Patriots either traded their No. 1 or were forced to relinquish it. How much better does the roster look with these alterations (First-round picks swapped with an unfair amount of hindsight but also within 20 picks after the Pats slot):
2013: Traded No. 29 to Minnesota; midway through round two some cat named Le'Veon Bell went to Pittsburgh;
2014: Dominique Easley at 29; late in round two, the Packers took some dude named Davonte Adams;
2015: Malcolm Brown at 32, with Landon Collins going 33rd and All-Pro-to-be Eric Kendricks went 45 to Minnesota.
2016: Don't look Spy, because this one is going to really hurt - Pats give up their No. 1 for DeflateGate. That would have been pick 29. After that Dallas took Pro Bowler Jaylon Smith at 34, Kansas City took All-Pro Chris Jones at 37, Miami picked Xavien Howard, who is one of the best cover corners in the at at 38, Derrick Henry went 45 to the Titans and Michael Thomas went 47. Ouch-standing.
2017: Traded pick 32 to New Orleans, and the aforementioned Dalvin Cook went 41 and All-Pro safety Budda Baker went 36th. Heck for a Pats team starved for playmakers on the perimeter, Alvin Kamara went 67th, three picks after the Pats traded its second-round pick to Carolina.
2018: Again, Spy, you may want to look away. The Pats took Sony Michel 31st, one spot ahead of Lamar Jackson, and maybe they thought TB12 had another six seasons, so that's OK, but Nick Chubb went 35th and All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard went 36th.
2019: Pats took wide receiver N'Keal Harry at 32. Here are the WRs that were on the board and went in round 2: Deebo Samuel (36), AJ Brown (51), Mecole Hardman (56), Parris Campbell (59), and DK Metcalf (64).
2020: Pats dealt the 23rd pick to the Chargers, and again, in a draft flooded with young play-makers, here are some of the rookies who are signing that were on the board: Brandon Aiyuk (25), Patrick Queen (28), Clyde Edwards Helaire (32), Tee Higgins (33).
I could go on, but I think you get the idea. And again, hind sighting every team's first round over the last eight years would reveal busts for sure. But every single year?
And now compare it to the best roster 1-thru-53 in the league with the Steelers. Pittsburgh has five first-round Pro Bowls since 2010, and dealt their 2020 first-round pick for Minkah Fitzpatrick who is a bona fide Pro Bowler.
This and that
- I am intrigued and down right puzzled by the blowback people get for supporting Trump. Sure, we have disagreements and a whole lot of the country dislikes the president. I get that. But in a conversation that becomes a constitutional election, is a difference of opinion truly worth the hatred it is generating. Has anyone ever threatened to boycott a Jennifer Lawrence movie because she's backing Biden? But the calls to boycott Home Depot - and the inexplicable hatred pointed at Jack Nicklaus, who as a human has given more to charity and done more for America in particular, and sick children in general that any extended people you know is sad and rotten - and others because of Trump support is surreal to me. Truly. And I know this will be the first thing that Chas and maybe Tom and/or Ken or some of the others reading this will comment on, and that's fine. Because simply put, as we discussed it last week, are you - for your situation and your family's - picking between the better man or the better plan? And if that decision does not overlap with your view of those choices is worth continuing the hatred that has permeated everything in this society. Hey, there are a lot of folks reading this who are not going to cast the same ballot I am. Come Wednesday - or Thursday, or the Monday after Thanksgiving, whenever this thing becomes official - what happens to that hate? I know this is the most divisive election of our lifetime. And I know that unless there are some serious changes made, in four years, that claim will almost assuredly be just as viable.
- One more thing, and the folks wondering why the far right is not telling Jack to "Shut up and swing" or Jay Cutler to "Shut up and throw a pick" or Lil' Wayne to "Shut up and rap" have a point of hypocrisy in a hypocritical discussion with more than enough "Yeah what about" to go around for everyone. There were a slew of folks who offered the "Shut up and dribble" stuff to LeBron and, to answer my own question, the NBA TV numbers were so bad, that maybe folks did boycott the NBA for their stance. But at some point we're going to have to see that Americans with differing opinions are still unified by being Americans.
- You know the rules, and here's Paschall wrapping up the SEC weekend that was. A must-read friends. Trust me on this one.
- Question for the group, Dan Mullen, weekend winner or loser? Items for the former, Mullen's Gators KER-rushed a surging Missouri team and then showed up at the news conference dressed as Vader. That's pretty awesome. Still, when the head coach looks to be among the central figures in a brawl between players right before the half, well, that's far from awesome.
- Brian Gay won the Bermuda PGA event this weekend. Former Baylor School stars Keith Mitchell (T-49, $10,180) and Luke List (T-53, $9,560) made more money playing golf than you did doing whatever you do over the weekend.
Today's questions
Weekend winners and losers. Go.
As for Multiple Choice Monday, let's do this one:
Which NFL team needs to make the biggest splash before tomorrow's deadline?
- Packers, get Aaron Rodgers some help for Pete's sake;
- Patriots, time to rebuild;
- Seattle, one more defensive player makes the Seahawks the clear NFC favorite
- Atlanta, find a way to get at least one more No. 1
As for today, Nov. 2, let's review.
The single "Thriller" was released on this day in 1983. The Cubs ended their curse on this day on 2016.
Burt Lancaster would have been 107 today. In honor of kicking dirt on the Pats, which means they will win out because, hey it's 2020, Rushmore of all-time sports dynasties.
Go.