NFL power poll
What? Power poll? There are only two teams left playing, so of course they are 1-2, right?
Rest easy folks, because unless you want to break down the offensive clunkiness of the dribble-dribble-dribble-dribble-3 approach that Brooklyn will attempt to take to the Finals or the growing wave of mediocrity that is engulfing college hoops, we still need some NFL talking points.
(Side note: If we are going to discuss anything hoops related, I'd like to spend some time on a) how much fun it is to watch Steph Curry start cooking, and b) a motivated LeBron is impossible to handle. Curry as a shooter is Marino-esque. The release is electric and the form is textbook. Truly.)
(Side note on the side note: Form does not automatically equate to greatness by any measure, but when I say sports form, Steph's jumper - JJ Reddick's also Emansky-instructional-video-level great, and Kyle Korver too - is up there among the all-timers. Off the top of my grande cabeza, I think Curry's jumper, Griffey Jr.'s swing, Ryan's motion - especially from the full wind-up - and Adam Scott's golf swing are about as picture perfect form-wise. Thoughts?)
(Follow note on the original side note: LeBron dropped 46 on the Cavs last night. It's tied for the fourth-most for a player 36 or older in NBA history. It's pretty amazing with the miles on his tires - LeBron has played, including playoffs, 1,543 games and 59,950 minutes - and at that age, King James is the best player in the league.)
Where were we? Yes, the NFL
So, with still more than 10 days before the Super Bowl, we've got time on the big game between GOAT and Future GOAT. (Side question: Is it age or change of jersey that has made Tom Brady more likable this season?)
But the chatter on Aaron Rodgers' future - and Deshaun Watson's total disgust with his team - got me thinking. Yes, Spy that's a dangerous thing.
Top five QBs that appear to be available this offseason, and with that, let's make like Santa on Dec. 26 and hustle to the poll.
1 Deshaun Watson, and this one is not close. There are really only maybe five teams that would not pack the bags of their current QB for the services of Watson. And I also believe this: Falcons, make the deal. Ryan and a 1 - even the 4 this year if you must - and let the Atlanta-native Watson come home and cook.
2 Aaron Rodgers. Yes, I think he wants to move along, and San Fran and Indy become top-five Super Bowl betting favorites if they can find a way to to add AR12. Yes, the Packers are under no obligation to deal Rodgers, but as Sean Connery asked in The Untouchables, "What are you prepared to do?" And from Green Bay's point of view, why not deal him? He's 37, and he's never going to be better than he was just this past season and it still was not good enough to get back to the Super Bowl. So if you really believe Jordan Love is THAT guy, and you get multiple Round 1s - young talent on rookie deals is the most valuable asset in the game - pull the trigger.
3 Trevor Lawrence. You know above where we mentioned there are only five or so teams that should not be calling the Texans to deal their QB for Watson - and, yes, I believe that's elementary, my dear - I think the Jags are one of those five or six. That's the confidence I have in Lawrence, who will be one of those dudes sooner rather than later, and will do it at a bargain-basement price for the next four-to-five years.
4 Matt Stafford. Another guy that makes the Colts and/or the 49ers a very attractive title pick. Stafford really must pick his next destination wisely, because getting to the postseason and having success there will be super important when his career narrative is crafted when he retires. (Side note: The Pats are going to need a QB too, and despite the disappointing showing in Foxboro in Year 1, AT - After Tom - it's only fair to remind folks that a half dozen starters opted out before the COVID 19 '20 season started. Stafford in New England would work like a charm.)
5 Dak Prescott. I don't know if the Cowboys are going to let him walk, but if they do, look at the names above - and remember the loaded draft with QB prospects and names like Winston and Newton and Jimmy G and Matty Ice that also could be had - and this will be a crazy-fun NFL offseason.
Speaking of QBs
Colin Kaepernick was trending on social media Monday.
Yeah, he's a trending kind of guy.
The discussion was wondering why Kaepernick could not get a job in the NFL because of his social views but no one holds Tom Brady's friendship with Donald Trump against TB12.
It's the perfect social media distraction for a lot of folks, and one of the fundamental flaws of the "Whatabouttism" in terms of discourse.
First, Kaepernick was blackballed. And if you are not willing to admit that after Kaepernick opted out, well, you can quit reading and skip to the next segment.
But, if we're going to deal in facts, we need to compare the ledger. Kaepernick's play had fallen off drastically from his Super Bowl trip and near-Super Bowl trip in 2012 and 2013. He had been injured - and running QBs age like heavy cream in the NFL - and was 3-16 in his last 19 starts in San Fran.
Plus, he wanted starter money.
And then there is the very real distraction angle, and this has nothing to do with kneeling. If a team signed Kaepernick, he becomes the first, second and third question with multiple follow-ups. And, this just in, football coaches look at distractions the way Tom Brady looks at cheeseburgers - with a disdain and anger that comes from the marrow in his bones.
There is a very simple business decision made in these things when you have jobs that are done in public.
Is the value of your skill set and contributions > distractions, public disapproval/angst.
Period. And that's especially true in sports, where we grant a litany of second chances to all sorts of shady characters in pursuit of Ws.
For Pete Rozelle's sake, Mike Vick got multiple chances because the equation above - Is the value of your skill set and contributions > distractions, public disapproval/angst - checked the right boxes.
So there's that.
Big question on Biden order
Well, this got kind of heavy. And, like me at a Super Bowl tailgate, it's going to continue to add weight.
A year ago today Kobe Bryant, his daughter and seven others died in a helicopter accident. Yes, just a year, and that was just the first of many kicks to the crotch from 2020.
The Bryants were headed to a girls' basketball tournament, and in the days and weeks of tributes to the former NBA great, we learned how big a role he played in female sports, especially with his daughter Gianna, who was quite the rising star.
It was a touching, all-be-it-too-soon final chapter in Bryant's life and it made the hashtag #GirlDad a regular among the social media trending topics.
I wonder what Kobe - and his daughter - would have to say about Joe Biden signing an executive order that read in part: "Every person should be treated with respect and dignity and should be able to live without fear, no matter who they are or whom they love. Children should be able to learn without worrying about whether they will be denied access to the restroom, the locker room, or school sports."
Big picture, of course we want young people to be treated with "respect and dignity" and this was addressed about gender identity and transgender kids.
Bigger picture, there is little debate that school-aged folks wrestling to be comfortable with their gender identity need a lot of support. No doubt.
Conversely, when I was in school, I had a hard time deciding what to get in the cafeteria everyday, much less my gender identity. But that's another discussion.
But for Biden to specifically include 'the locker room' has a lot of us #GirlDads wondering about transgender athletes in girls sports. It happened controversially in Texas wrestling and Connecticut track that led to lawsuits.
Simply put - males are better athletes than females. This is not discriminatory, and it's not debatable. So would it be fair for a boy who believes he's a female to take my daughter's spot on a team or be the reason my daughter's team got bounced in the region playoffs?
Is that fair for all?
I'll end this one here. One of the ways that the left has become more appealing to a lot of folks in the middle is the far right's indifference to some science that does not align with their views and priorities. The left points to those frequently in terms of climate change and the environment, and they have some solid points.
So I'll ask: Isn't anatomy a science, too?
This and that
- Did you see the story that Cole Beasley played three playoff games on a broken leg? Egad.
- Mel Kiper Jr. trotted out his first mock draft. I love the draft. You know this. And he has the Falcons taking BYU QB Zach Wilson. Oy vey.
- Thanks to an interesting question in Monday's 5-at-10 comments, I wrote about some of the regular advertisers who are sitting out this year's Super Bowl for A2. Here it is.
- You know the rules. Here's Paschall on UT football actually getting a small dose of good news as Darnell Wright said no thanks to the transfer portal.
- The Hamilton County school system is announcing its plans today about returning to school or continuing remote learning. Friends, know this, as a parent of two above average Hamilton County students, I hope they get back in class sooner rather than later. I understand the reasoning and the needs for safety, but I firmly believe that getting students in schools ASAP is a paramount need. And while we're here, this story made my heart hurt. Clark County, the fifth largest school system in the country, has experienced a spike in suicides with 18, and some folks are pointing to the quarantine as a major factor in the nightmarish increase.
Today's questions
True or false, it's Tuesday. I'm going to bet Ernie says true to that.
True or false, Aaron Rodgers has played his last game as a Packer.
True or false, the Falcons taking Zach Wilson over Justin Fields is such a Falcons decision that it's 100 percent going to happen.
True or false, Brady's play at 43 is more impressive than LeBron's level of greatness at 36.
True or false, Brady is more likable as a Buccaneer than he was as a Patriots
True or false, Jameis Winston watched Brady on Sunday and, between beers, mumbled "Uh, you guys know Brady threw three picks Sunday just like me."
True or false, Kobe's death seems like it was closer to five years ago than just one year.
Wow, that's quite a few. You know the drill, answer some T or Fs, leave some T or Fs.
As for today, well, we covered the Kobe anniversary. Jan. 26 also would have been Paul Newman's 96 birthday. Good dude, good actor.
Bill Clinton famously said, "I want to say one thing to the American people; I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky."
Wayne Gretzky is 60 today.
Let's go with a reference above. Who's on the Rushmore of all-time perfect form athletically? Can you top any of the four I listed above?
Go and enjoy the day.