BACKGROUND: This started as a long-winded numbered blog. It transformed into an organized long-winded category blog. Now, it is a quicker-hitter to ease your pain. Let’s see who makes the cut. Barely edited as usual unfortunately, so please excuse any mistakes during my stream of consciousness. I feel the need…the need for speed. Let’s turn and burn.
SETTING: This is a blind airplane rant. No internet, no looking up stats, and just the ideas written down. Written on way back from Vegas, and released in the morning pre-work.
NFL:
Predictions. I picked a real bracket and a fake, biased bracket. We obviously know the Steelers bracket is done. They needed all of the planets in the solar system to be aligned even to make it, and there was no way they were taking the Chiefs. My “real” bracket is the Rams over the Bills, and through a future bet to solidify it. To say the least, I was quite pleased on how both teams looked in the Wildcard round.
By the way, why was one of the playoff games on a Monday? Just weird to me, and it sort of shortens the week for the Rams.
Steelers QB. Mike Tomlin said they are examining all options for the Steelers QB. That is very exciting to everyone else outside of Pittsburgh or for out-of-state fans like me. I would have preferred a clear plan a few years ago when Big Ben became a literal statue in the pocket a few years ago. I WOULD pick the Packers, but I want them to lose so that Mr. Rodgers doesn’t have added incentive to stay in Green Bay. Steelers would accept that trade.
I am so glad Antonio Brown got kicked off the defending Super Bowl team. I never want to see Bell or Brown succeed on the field ever again. Antonio Brown was on a show where he said “who is better than me over there?” Well, AB, I can tell you about 50-100 people who are more normal than you over there. Get better, and stay off camera, bro. And watch your ex-teammates play another playoff game without you.
Can you IMAGINE if COVID messes up the Super Bowl TWO years after the “initial” pandemic?
They might be a Steelers’ rival, his stats might be subpar, and my wife is a Sooners fan, but I will Baker in a heartbeat at the QB position for the Steelers. I would love his fire, and Heinz Field would make a fine home for those awesome At Home With Baker Mayfield commercials.
How the rest of the AFC allowed the Titans to get the #1 seed WITHOUT Derrick Henry, and then get him back FOR the playoffs…is beyond me.
Brian Flores got fired from the Dolphins AFTER a long winning streak and just missing the playoffs. Shame on the timing of this, by the way. I am so freaking proud to be a fan of a team who has the ONLY minority coach (Tomlin). Flores might have burned some bridges there in Miami, but we all have a feeling it is more of a problem of people higher than him. If I didn’t have Tomlin, I would take Brian Flores in a heartbeat also. I can’t believe the Broncos didn’t even interview him on that very long list of candidates they released. By the way, Paton has been there for a year, the last two coaches had short tenures, and they just now got OK’d to sell the team. A prospective coach might be tentative in taking that job when ownership style is unknown. Also by the way, if Peyton Manning links into this team with ownership, won’t it get confusing mentioning the owner and GM in the same sentence?
We tend to remember that the Seahawks and Packers have to TRADE Wilson and Rodgers. Those would be hellacious deals with a giver and taker, and probably a pretty big trade value from the taker. I especially find it hard to believe that the Seahawks would part with Wilson…especially if Pete Carroll is staying. I say both of them are going down with the ship. It is nice to know that backup Geno Smith is going out and getting hammered when the job might be offered to him when Russell leaves. Really good control by Geno on his DUI. That is like drinking and driving on the way to your interview.
Man, David Culley got a bad deal. Short tenure as a head coach of the Texans, and his star starting QB has a million massage complaints by females. And then HE is the one who gets fired.
Get out of here, Cowboys. And tell Amari Cooper to stop attending NBA games in courtside seats with no vaccination in the week before his playoff game. And let the refs get through, and hand the ball to the correct person.
Little known fact about the Wildcard that you can tell your friends. The Bengals-Raiders game was the first ever meeting between two teams that were both 18 years removed from the playoffs.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL:
Dynasties are cool in sports from some perspectives. But, getting the monkey off your back from your nemesis is pretty cool too. I believed the Bulldogs had the best team in the land all year. Glad they learned their lessons from the SEC Championship and righted the ship in the title game. And a boring game turned exciting all at the end. Plus, most of the Earth’s population enjoys watching Bama lose.
Who is Kevin Coleman? Don’t know the name? Well, he is the #58 prospect in the land for next year, and Deion Sanders just snagged another top recruit at Jackson State. This kid is a slot WR, so his other top recruit, a DB, can play against each other day in practice.
Kirk Ferentz got an extension as head coach, and the dude has it made in the shade. They are just really, really happy with just being sort of, kind of good every single year with the most boring offense in college football.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL:
Well, UVA hoops had me excited going into last weekend’s matchup versus UNC. I got the same thing I got out of the Steelers-Chiefs game. One team is a contender, and one team is lost and going nowhere. My teams were definitely not.
Chris Beard built up something very nice at Texas Tech before rudely going to football school Texas. His kids he left behind are still good. They proved it by taking down Baylor last week.
Then, bipolar Oregon (like every single year) takes down UCLA on the road. Oregon, I think, loves losing confusing games during the season, pulling a seed between 7 and 12, and then being the scary team in that part of the bracket.
Here is another tidbit you can tell your friends. Baylor is the first team ever to be #1 and lose twice at home in the same week.
Florida State beat Duke while I was in the air. Remember two things on this. One, every year, when FSU is hitting shots, they can beat anyone. They always have big guys to compete with anyone inside. Two, Coach K. can coach up these young kids all he wants. I do NOT seeing them winning 6 games in a row. They can beat anyone in the nation when their upside is rolling, but they can lose to anyone also.
NBA:
I can’t forget whether I forget that Ben Simmons isn’t playing or if I care.
The Nets better hope that Durant can hurry back. They got Harden who looks like he is a blow-up doll, a guy who plays half the games in the season and believes the Earth is flat, and now an injury to the best player in the league. We learned last year that home court advantage is NEEDED in so many ways, and they can’t hope to simply turn it on suddenly. Chemistry is needed, with practice during the season. OR, maybe they don’t WANT home court advantage so Kyrie can play some more games.
So, let me get this straight. Bol Bol never plays, only practices, got traded, and STILL somehow still failed a physical (Bol Bol got traded before releasing this, so apparently someone will tolerate his odd injury).
You are damn right Dirk deserves a statue. And should Jamal gets healthy and comes back, I would like to see Jokic stay for his entire career and get his own statue once he brings a title to Denver. But, man, that Michael Porter contract is hurting right now. The Nuggets paid their Big Three, and they are getting about 37 minutes from that three right now for their investment.
But, I do like the Bryn Forbes pickup as a shooter for Jokic’s wings and trading basically dead weight and a chancy draft pick.
NHL:
The Avs are rounding into form. And they are a scoring machine. I don’t have stats, but I think I should have just been taking the freaking over in every one of their last 10-15 games. Been doing OK on the minus 1.5 also. They just need to stop getting behind against inferior teams early on before turning it on.
MLB:
We are approaching February and spring training, MLB. Get your shit together.
Jon Lester has a sneaky good resume. He achieves 200 wins in a new world where no one will ever get 300 wins again, and topped that off with 3 rings. HOF’er for sure.
MISCELLANEOUS:
Djokovic issue is the dumbest thing I have heard associated with a tennis Grand Slam not related to Nick Kyrgios (who just sipped from a fan’s beer after a win). You knew you were against vaccination. You knew you would have visa problems. You knew you stretched the truth when talking about it. Why you even made the trip is beyond me. If you take Osaka, her dominance, and her mental health problems, and then take Djokovic, his dominance, and his visa problems, we might have the oddest two absences of #1 players in Grand Slam history within a calendar year.
I am so sad that Chris Evert got cancer.
How does the sporting world release A) the transfer portal new rules post-COVID, and then B) the NIL rule, not put regulations on either, and expect athletes not to try and make their moves and get paid…as quickly as possible? No one put strict rules on either, and both items will get uglier and messier way before we get control of them. You can call it Pandora’s box, slippery slope, etc. Everyone will get our of Dodge or try and get paid as quickly as possible until someone tries to stop them.
LOCAL:
Colorado weather is the best. You take your snowstorms or your perennial 70 degree sunny days. Last week, it was 2 degrees late Thursday, and then 54 degrees the next day. Love it. No bugs. NO humidity. Plenty of excitement, and you never have to fully pack away clothes for a season.
The rodeo at the Stock Show is very cool, and we had a great time. That being said, I still want to see that tiny dog directing the sheep one of these years again.
There were lots of cool cowboy names to pick if I were somehow a cowboy, but I decided that Coburn Bradshaw was the winner that day.
Postino’s has happy hour…like all the time, people. Check it out. Great atmosphere, great food, great service.
The salsa appetizer at El Jefe is great with three kinds. Add the queso as an option also.
But, overall, the queso from Senor Bear is slightly better.
The best value for a pizza for happy hour in my book USED to be Bar Dough, but they changed their pricing, and now the Daisy pizza from Cart-Driver takes the title.
The Universal breakfast place is nearby our house. Cool place, but unfortunately I might never ever get another dish again besides the Wild Boar Scramble. Order a side of Hollandaise to put on the potatoes, grab some hot sauce, and you are in heaven. It is most likely NOT a low fat option as dish.
Alert. FNG on 32nd in the Highlands has a new menu. We used to just go for the 80’s music and OK food. They shut down and we thought they were closing. But, they were just in the lab and their pen and a pad trying to get their new label off (Dr. Dre lyrics). The new menu looks amazing, and what we had that evening rocked. Killer happy hour prices too.
THIS AND THAT:
We finished the new Dexter. Great, great show, and nice redo. The ending might make you a little angry though. I was. Understanding, but pissed.
In the Dark might be the most underrated, not talked about show out there. It is also the most binge-y show and will be dangerous in ruining your day or night.
I plan on getting to the new season of Cobra Kai this week. If you are behind, you are missing out on the best cheesy 80’s like show in a long time. Catch up, pronto.
We just started the new season of The Witcher also. Decent thus far. Didn’t feel the need to binge it yet like In The Dark.
The Great is one of the most sarcastic shows on TV. We are just diving into the new season. A must watch, but be aware it is very…transparent and in-your-face.
Is the new Scream movie the same movie as the first one? Any new story line? Did they just give up on new ideas and different pivots and remake the same freaking movie with new people?
When your wifi goes down, it is always fun trying to fix it with no internet. The thing you need is the problem itself.
Don’t Look Up is sort of the satire version of Armageddon. We enjoyed it.
And actually, an asteroid apparently flew by the Earth yesterday according to CNN.
Beechers mac and cheese is the best boxed up meal on Earth. Trust me.
Watching Kevin Hart on Shark Tank reminds you there is genius and smarts behind almost all famous people, no matter where their character falls on the seriousness scale.
How long have people been putting chili oil on pizza? It is brilliant, the best thing in my pizza world right now, and I hope I wasn’t missing out for too long. I just started doing it about 3 years ago.
The new Matrix was just meh. It wasn’t horrible, it wasn’t great. It was exactly what you thought it would be going into it.
THE FILLERBUSTER
I think Roomba’s irritate me. We are on our second one, and I enjoy watching it get stuck.
Even though my Spanish trip/ cruise is done, I have upped my Duolingo lessons. I want to be fluent by end of year.
I understand dogs needing to behave during a walk, but it is still THEIR walk, right? The people who just walk briskly with their dog irritate me. Let the dog sniff around a bit.
I am more willing to keep an article of clothing that is a size off than take the time to return it.
The 3-in-1 Camel Crown jacket on Amazon that keeps going on special is well-worth it, badass, and you probably can get this waterproof gem for about $35.
I admit that it came out recently at home that I thought Joshua Tree was just one single tree.
My Vegas work trip notes. Park MGM is starting to grow on me. Clean room, walk-in shower, good water pressure, central location. It is also right by T-Mobile Arena, which offers a fun atmosphere before Knights games. It has a sportsbook with a cool bar, and Side Betty will be my new burger go-to when in town. Delicious and basic. Won a little on cards, watched a little of the MNF game, and early to bed.
THE BEST WORKOUT SONG EVER FOR THIS WEEK (because the best song this week IS the best song ever…for now):
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
LINKS TO SAVE YOU TIME IN LIFE
TRAVEL
THIS WEEK’S LIST
MY NUMBERS
GONE FISHING (the riddle for money):
PICS BY MY PIXEL (pictures from my phone):
LIFEGUARD ENTRY:
EVERGREEN 1:
EVERGREEN 2:
The theme? Airplane.
And our weekly (well, when I feel like writing these or have time to) reminder of the greatest sequel ever made coming out this summer (I am going to los my shit if it doesn’t get released soon)… Top Gun 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8z1rqA8jRw&vl=en
That’s it for today. Hope you enjoyed or are at least more informed. Remember two things. First, feed yourself, feed your family, but always, always remember to…feed the wolf. Second, if you can’t spot the sucker in your first half hour at the table, then you are the sucker. Will I blog again? That is a CLOWN question, bro. As one shepherd said to the other shepherd, let’s get the flock out of here.
THROW IT BACK IN THE POND
NFL
ravens steelers
Rodgers calls reporter a bum
Portis gets 6 months prison fraud
Chiefs broncos
Panthers keeping rhule
no kneel gift for steelers
bears fire nagy
vikings fire spielman, zimmer
49ers beat rams, make playoffs
Chargers raiders odd ending
browns expect mayfield to come back
tomlin dozed off sunday night
Joe judge fired
Judge rules broncos can be sold
Eric waddle unretires joins rams
Broncos head coach
colts gm won’t fully commit to carson wentz
big ben saying they don’t stand a chance against chiefs
