We took some time to give thanks this week, and ignored the blog while doing so. But we’re back, and ready to review what we missed in the past seven days in this week’s Sunday State of Mind.
The Match3 went down, teeing off on Friday Phil, Chuck, Peyton, and Steph were excited to play In a big upset, Charles Barkley played well Chuck and Phil won 4 & 3, Peyton and Steph fell
Some more random sports, Mike Tyson is back! He fought Roy Jones Jr., but the excitement lacked It wasn’t a full match, only an exhibition spar The “fight” was a draw, and was as slow as tar
Moving on to real sports, college basketball A little behind schedule, still started in late fall It’s great to see action back on the hardwood A small step towards things feeling more like they should
Hate to beat a dead horse, but COVID’s still here Ravished the Ravens, a realized fear The MVP Lamar Jackson had a positive test Ravens/Steelers delayed six days, not the best
The Titans beat the Vikings 31-30 on Sunday. The win took Tennessee to 3-0 on the year, and dropped the Vikings to 0-3. The result wasn’t exactly the story:
The #Titans had three new player positives and five new personnel positives for COVID-19, sources tell me and @MikeGarafolo. Both Titans and Vikings, who hosted them Sunday, will suspend in person club activities starting today.
This is the first outbreak we’ve seen since the NFL came back three weeks ago. According to the AP, three Titans players and five personnel tested positive for the coronavirus (as of now). Both teams will completely shut down for the foreseeable future. Of course the Titans with the positive tests, and correctly the Vikings due to being in close proximity to the Titans.
The most important thing here is that thus far everyone is safe. As long as that’s the case, the next thing you worry about is the schedule & season getting totally wrecked. The Steelers are scheduled to come to Nashville to play the Titans this coming Sunday. The Vikings are supposed to go on the road to play the Texans.
With the prototypical quarantine period being 14 days, this could absolutely muck up the NFL season moving forward. Unlike baseball, you can’t really squeeze any double headers in a day, let alone a week. Stretching this out a bit, you start to think how this would effect playoff seedings if teams end up not playing the same number of games, the spider web of contact tracing if the Titans and Vikings continue to play, etc.
This was a gamble that the NFL, and honestly all sports, took when deciding to come back when they did. I would hope Roger Godell and the big brains running the show out of the NFL’s headquarters in Manhattan have a safe and logical back up plan to make sure the season can safely move forward.
The big 100! You’re a centenarian, NFL. You’ve lived through it all; world wars, the moon landing, even the 2012 Mayan calendar panic. You’ve also done an admiral job handling your league with social unrest and the pandemic that has ravaged 2020.
For such a big birthday, a present or two should be in order, right? For a league that makes around $16 billion dollars a year, you can’t really throw a $50 bill in a card and call it a day. A new pair of socks is out of the question, since the league is oddly obsessed with particulars when it comes to that specific piece of gear.
So what do you get someone who has everything? We’ve got some ideas.
Two Game Preseason
Listen, I know the preseason is important. Guys get their chance to shine (I see you Victor Cruz), you get some live action to further install your playbook, and for the real degenerates out there (I would never) it’s your first taste of NFL betting for the year.
But do we need four games? You’ve got injury concerns, boring games, and by the fourth week, everyone’s simply ready for regular season Week One.
I would even accept three games, preferably two, to get my preseason fix. Trim the preseason fat NFL, we’ll all be better off.
A New Way to Challenge Plays
As we all know, each team gets two challenges per game, with a third awarded if the first two are successful.
There has to be a better way for coaches to initiate this process.
We all love Andy Reid, but do we want to be enjoying our game knowing he has a sweaty handkerchief stuffed only God knows where on his body at all times?
I propose a buzzer, or even a simple yell over to the referee about challenging a play. Get it done, NFL.
Monday Night Football Double Headers
Last week, as with the past few year’s Week One NFL slates, we got two Monday Night Football games. We saw a Steelers win over the Giants in the opener, and the Titans beat the Broncos in game two of the night.
So…why aren’t we always doing this? We got football starting at 6PM here in Central Standard Time, that didn’t end until well past midnight.
The theme song of my argument here is the late 90’s country hit “Too Much Fun” by Daryle Singletary. Too much fun, what’s that mean? It’s like too much money, there’s no such thing.
Happy birthday again, NFL. We hope you enjoy your day. We have given you the precious gift of our brain power to improve what is already quite an entertaining product. Now, let’s enjoy the product NFL has so graciously given us on their birthday, which somehow is the Browns vs. Bengals tonight.
Football. Is. Back. Enjoy this week’s SSM dedicated solely to the NFL’s return.
Texans and Chiefs, Thursday night Football is back, no need to fright Patrick Mahomes picked up right where he left off So happy to see the NFL kickoff
Bears and Lions, Matt and Mitch Football’s back, our scratch is itched Three fourth quarter Trubisky touchdowns Bears fans quickly changed to smiles from frowns
Seahawks and Falcons, offensive show Both teams came out and let us know Both teams are fine wines, and popped their corks Russell Wilson won it, and is still a dork
Jets and Bills, breaking news Jets fans better start chugging their booze Brand new season, but same results Unfortunate roster, full of football dolts
Packers and Vikings, guess who’s back Aaron Rodgers came on in a full blown attack Dalvin Cook, first game after signing a new deal Low scrimmage yards but two scores, guy’s the real deal
Dolphins and Patriots, no more TB12 But Cam Newton’s talents, did New England delve Fins didn’t look great, have to knock off some grime Sooner rather than later, it will be Tua time
Eagles and Washington, the football team Philly started out hot, it seemed like a dream But Washington came back and got the win Eagles not made of metal, seem more like tin
Raiders and Panthers, down in Charlotte High scoring game, offenses moving a bit Raiders got a tough win on the road Three tuddys for Josh Jacobs, guy was ready to explode
Colts and Jags, AFC South Jacksonville came out and hit the Colts in the mouth Only one incompletion for Gardner Minshew Tough L for Phil Rivers, his first game in Colts blue
Browns and Ravens, the MVP Lamar Looks like he’ll take Baltimore, again pretty far Baltimore said let’s go out and wreck ‘em The end of a shitty week for Odell Beckham
Chargers and Bengals, Joe Burrow time First over all pick, he looked just fine Chargers won though, lead by Tyrod Taylor Plenty of future Burrow wins, guy’s not a failure
Cardinals and 49ers, battle in the Bay DeAndre Hopkins came to play Fourteen catches, 150+ yards Great week one road win for the Arizona Cards
Buccaneers and Saints, Brady and Brees Two future Hall of Famers, yes please The Saints won at home this time around Tom and Drew, round two, week eight, how’s that sound?
Cowboys and Rams on Sunday night The end of a great Sunday, it just felt right New stadium for LA and they started with a win No more Sundays without football, it felt like a sin
Steelers and Giants, Titans and Broncos Two games on Monday night, anything goes These games haven’t happened yet, so here’s a preview There’s nothing better, than a NFL season anew
