ARIZONA- On Friday night, the Arizona Cardinals will begin the preseason at home against the Dallas Cowboys. Last season the Cardinals finished with a record of 8-8 but were 8-6 and lost the last two games of the regular season against division rivals 49ers and Rams, which eliminated the Cards from playoff contention.
For the second consecutive offseason, the Cardinals made a splash with a former Houston Texans star. The Cardinals signed future Hall of Famer JJ Watt to a two-year contract worth 31 million dollars with 23 million in guaranteed. Pairing Watt with Chandler Jones, who is coming off biceps surgery, in 2019 was second in Defensive Player of the year voting. The secondary will also look a little different as for the first time since 2010, cornerback Patrick Peterson will not be there, as he signed a one-year deal with the Vikings. The Cardinals did replace him with former Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler.
On the offensive side of the ball, the Cardinals are led by third-year quarterback Kyler Murray, who in that week 17 game against the Rams passed for 87 yards because of injury. The Cardinals offense last season added receiver Deandre Hopkins. This offseason, they signed AJ Green from the Cincinnati Bengals to a one-year contract. In his career, Green has 649 receptions for 9,430 yards and 65 touchdowns. Injuries have hampered Green’s career over the last couple of seasons. After Kenyan Drake’s departure, they also signed former Steelers running back James Conner to pair with Chase Edmonds. But the most significant upgrade on offense could be the addition of center Rodney Hudson, to who they traded a third-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders. Hudson, who is a three-time Pro Bowler, will anchor the unit that protects Murray.
The NFC West is arguably the best division in the NFL. Last year in the division, the Cardinals had a record of two and four. Arizona has not made the playoffs since 2015, but the Arizona Cardinals have an outstanding roster, and the heat is on head coach Kliff Kingsbury who is entering his third year to make the playoffs.
JACKSONVILLE- Jacksonville Jaguars will open up their preseason this weekend with a home game against the Cleveland Browns. Fans will be flocking to this game from the Jags fan base and the entire league as we get the first glimpse of the number one overall pick and expected future QB of the league, Trevor Lawrence.
However, I don’t expect to see Lawrence much in this game though. Lawrence is still not 100% recovered from surgery on his non-throwing shoulder labrum back in February. In this first week, Coach Urban Meyer will more than likely want to limit the young QB’s reps to make sure Lawrence is comfortable in the offense and keep him protected until he’s fully recovered.
Another injury on the Jaguars that must be discussed is that too wide receiver DJ Chark. Chark suffered a broken finger during practice this last week and needed surgery to repair it. However, according to head coach Urban Meyer, this injury is not severe and will only keep Chark out of the preseason games, and he’ll be ready to go by the season opener. This is fantastic news to hear as Chark was one of the bright spots last year for the Jaguars offense, catching 53 balls for 706 yards and five touchdowns while only starting 12 games last year.
One more thing to look out for in this game is how new head coach Urban Meyer will handle the earlier mentioned injuries and risks. While most coaches face this same problem during the preseason, Meyer has a challenging task before him. This team is young and needs the experience to build chemistry and get the playbooks down and understood. However, Meyer needs to balance this need with the risks of more injuries to his star players. If he adds another injury to a star wide receiver or even to their supposed franchise saving QB, he will have many questions swirling around his ability as an NFL head coach already.
All these factors make for one exciting game on Saturday night, August 14th, way more drama than you would usually see on a preseason game.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen just signed a six-year 258 million dollar contract with 150 million guaranteed. One person looking at that contract is the Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield who can sign an extension like Allen. Mayfield, the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL draft last season, threw for 3,563 yards, 26 touchdowns, and eight interceptions and led the Browns to the AFC Divisional game where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs 22-17. Mayfield has been the Browns starter since week three of the 2018 season when quarterback Tyrod Taylor got injured in that same game. Mayfield would lead the Browns to their first win in over a year by beating the New York Jets 21-17, ending the streak of 19 games without a win.
Last season, the Browns went 11-5 and finished 3rd in the AFC North but secured a wild card spot, and on Wild Card Weekend, went into Pittsburgh and defeated the rival Steelers by a 48-37. Mayfield in the game went 21-34 for 263 yards and three touchdowns. In May, the Browns did pick up Mayfield’s fifth-year option, but that doesn’t prevent them from signing him to a long-term contract. Because of last season and some of the Browns’ moves, there are high expectations in Cleveland. One of the biggest reasons Cleveland has such high expectations is that star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is returning to the team off a torn ACL. He is joining a team that had the league’s best rushing attack last season.
So the front office has time to decide if Mayfield is their franchise guy, but the better he plays and the better the team is, the more money they will have to pony up. But we will see if the Josh Allen deal puts any pressure on the Browns to get a deal done with their Baker. As in Buffalo, there are championship expectations in Cleveland. Can the Browns and Mayfield get it done?
On Friday, August 7th, The Buffalo Bills signed their star quarterback Josh Allen to a massive contract extension worth $258m with $150M guaranteed.
To break that down, that’s ($43M a year) ($118K a day) ($5k an hour) ($82 a minute) and ($1.36 a second). In Enlighten terms, by the time you get done reading this, Allen will probably make almost $300, if not more.
Allen’s new deal comes after the Bills went 13-3 in the 2020 Season and would win their first division title since 1995. They would make it to the AFC title game, which was their first appearance since 1994. The Bills would lose the AFC title game to the then reigning Super Bowl Champs Kansas City Chiefs 38-24. Josh Allen would also have an incredible season throwing for over 4,500 yards passing and having 37 TDs, 10 INTs, and eight Rushing TDs and finished second to Aaron Rodgers in MVP voting. If anyone is well-deserving of this massive deal, it’s Allen. The former 7th overall first-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft has brought a resurgence to Buffalo and the Buffalo Bills. Until 2017, before Allen was drafted, the Bills were a laughing stock in the AFC and AFC east. From 2000-2017 the Bills would only have three winning seasons, two of which they missed the playoffs (04) and (14). in 2017 they would lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars 10-3. The other seasons either saw them at .500 or below.
Josh Allen is the future here in Buffalo, and it’s time the league gives him the respect that he has earned over the last three years. Allen came into the league in 2018, where the Bills went 6-10 and finished third in the AFC East. 2019 and 2020 saw the Bills have two 10+ win seasons. The last time they did that was in 1998 and 1999. With the 2021 season here, Allen is in his Senior year in the league and has a demanding schedule. Kicking off Week One at home against Ben Rotheslburger and the Pittsburgh Steelers will be a game to watch since it has ties to last season. With games also against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in Week 5 and Tom Brady and the reigning Super Bowl champions Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 12. These two road games will test to see if Allen can get the job done on the road against both teams that made the Super Bowl last year.
There is no doubt that Allen is deserving of this contract. The Bills organization has faith in Allen to continue his progression. Hopefully, he brings that elusive Vince Lombard trophy to the city of Buffalo and finally makes the city champions and erase the 90’s four straight appearances to the Super Bowl where they didn’t win any of them. If Allen does this, he will become that town’s Micahel Jordan and become a hero to the city. As for Allen, enjoy the new deal and get yourself ready for this season because everyone will be watching you and judging you with every move you make to make sure you are worth every penny.
This passed Thursday, we saw the first real football action of the year: the 2nd and 3rd stringers of the new-look Dallas Cowboys. The game was pretty much everything I expected it to be. The Dallas defense took the field, and at about the 40-yard line of the Dallas rookie, Micha Parsons hit The Steelers, forcing a fumble and recovering it. The fumble was one of 3 fumble recoveries the Dallas Defense recovered.
Second String Quarterback Garrett Gilbert came out firing to 4 different receivers on the first drive. He looked strong and led the Dallas offense down to just about the 4-yard line and then on 3rd and goal threw a pass that on any other day was intercepted, and the Cowboys settled for a field goal on the first drive. However, this would be the last time Dallas would score. Gilbert finished 9-13 for 104 yrds.
One of the big problems last year was turnovers, and this game showed us that it is still a concern. The Steelers forced four fumbles but, luckily, only recovered two of them. All three backup quarterbacks didn’t throw an interception which is an excellent bonus, but the two times the offense was in the red zone early, one for a field goal and the other was a missed field goal. They have some work to do.
The Hall of Fame Game was only played after a week or two of teams showing up to training camp. The HOF game is only an initial dress rehearsal, and for teams to start to get a feel for their teams and their potential 53 man roster, especially the Cowboys coaches, to access more of their back-end players and get a plan for next weekend preseason game.
However, I did predict the Cowboys to win this game, and there is no excuse for making it to the red zone two times in the first quarter to end up with three points. I do expect Zeke, Lamb, and Gallup to play the first two drives next week. Next week is the Cowboys vs. Cardinals preseason game on Friday, August 13th at 10 PM EST 7 PM PDT.
Football is back this week. On Thursday night, the Dallas Cowboys will play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio. This is a big week for the Steelers franchise as the Pro Football Hall of Fame 2020, and 21 get inducted. Five Steelers legends will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, including former coach Bill Cowher, safeties Troy Polamalu and Donnie Shell, offensive lineman Alan Faneca, and scout Bill Nunn.
In Bill Cowher’s 15 seasons as the head coach of the Steelers, the team won eight division titles, went to the playoffs ten times, and made two Super Bowl appearances winning Super Bowl XL. Cowher, Faneca, and Polamalu were a part of the Steelers team that defeated the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XL, and Shell was a four-time Super Bowl champion, three-time All-Pro First team, and a five-time Pro Bowler. Faneca was a six-time First-team All-Pro, two-time Second-team All-pro, and a nine-time Pro Bowler. Polamalu was a two-time Super Bowl Champion, 2010 NFL defensive player of the year, four-time First team All-Pro, two-time second team All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowler.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the most iconic and stable franchises in football and all of the sports. That’s why they have had three coaches in 30 years, but there is much pressure on the 2021 Pittsburgh Steelers. Last season the Steelers started the season 11-0 and wound up with a 12-4 and got whooped by the rival Cleveland Browns in the wild card game. The organization brought back quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and signed coach Mike Tomlin to a contract extension. With the Browns on the rise and the Baltimore Ravens always dangerous. Where will Pittsburgh stand in the tough AFC North? Their road starts on Thursday night in Canton.
So here we are Thursday, August 5th, 2021, the Hall of Fame Game between My Dallas Cowboys and an old rival, the Pittsburgh Steelers. This is the seventh time these two teams have met in this annual game. Last season we saw a Cowboys team that was primed for a tremendous season. However, due to covid issues, massive injuries across both offense and defensive squads, Zeke Elliot being out of football shape, and insufficient backup players, we witnessed the Cowboys finish with a week 6-10 record. There were some bright sides as Cee Dee Lamb proved that he is the star rookie WR that the Cowboys needed and showed that Dallas, when healthy, has the best offense in football. Dallas defense has gone through a significant overhaul with bringing in Dan Quinn, the former head coach of the Atlanta Falcons, to handle the defense. He is known to be a top-notch defensive strategist and has put together an excellent young crew to man the gridiron on the defensive side.
For Those of you hoping to tune in and see all the number one players play, you will be disappointed. With the covid problems around the league and training camps just opening, we will all be entertained by the second and third-string starters this week. The final score will be 21-17 Dallas.
Let’s celebrate what this game is about: the induction of the Hall of Fame class of 2021. Drew Pearson, who started the legend of the #88 in the Cowboy organization, finally is inducted and will get to put on that coveted gold jacket. Other inductees include Charles Woodson, Calvin Johnson, John Lynch, Peyton Manning, Alan Faneca, Tom Flores, and Bill Nun. It’s great seeing some oldies and first-timers get in, and rightfully so. Dak Prescott is primed for another big season where we will see him set records for Passing Yards and Touchdowns after going down against the New York Giants with a broken ankle injury. Zeke Elliot is in the best shape of his career, shedding a ton of pounds for muscle and looking like the beast we drafted. He has a shot at beating the record for rushing in a season. Dak has the proper support with Wide Receivers Cooper, Gallup, and Lamb to go along with Tight Ends Blake Jarwin and Dalton Shultz. The Offensive line is something they haven’t been for the last few years, and that word is healthy. If they are as good as advertised, it will be a fun season. As for the defensive side, they upgraded the Defensive line, which has been poor, and the secondary is looking good. The LB core of Jaylen Smith, Vander Esch, and Keanu Neal, with support from rookie Micha Parsons, should be the best in football if injuries stay away. If I had to pick the top Dallas rookie this season, it would be Micha Parsons.
For this season, I expect Dallas to go 13-4 on the year. I expect either Dak and Zeke to challenge for MVP and comeback player of the year Leighton Vander Esch. We will see tons of excitement from this young team, and this year’s team is being compared to the 1992-93 Cowboys that won the first of 3 Super Bowls in the 1990s. So, sit back and grab your popcorn as football is back tonight. America’s team is back, and that is how the old man sees it.
During Friday’s Major League Baseball trade deadline, the New York Mets made a splash, acquiring shortstop Javier Baez from the Chicago Cubs. Baez will play shortstop until Francisco Lindor returns from his oblique injury and then shifts to Second base. After this season, Baez is a free agent but has said he wanted to play with his buddy Francisco Lindor. The Mets front office is going to have an interesting debate this offseason. But the Baez addition should put two current Mets on notice.
The first would be Right Fielder Michael Conforto, a free agent at season’s end. After Friday’s loss to the Reds, Conforto’s batting average is now .199 with six home runs and 24 RBI; he did miss significant time earlier this season due to a hamstring injury. The Mets will certainly offer Conforto a qualifying offer this winter, which if he signs elsewhere, the Mets get a compensation pick, but if he continues to struggle, he might take which could help the Mets. Conforto was the Mets’ first-round pick back in 2014 out of Oregon State University. At the time of the selection, the general manager of the Mets was Sandy Alderson, who currently serves as the team’s president. Conforto is represented by Scott Boras, who is a tough negotiator for most teams.
The other player who should be on notice is third baseman J.D. Davis missed a lot of time earlier this offseason due to a fractured hand. Davis is hitting .305 with four home runs and 11 RBI. Over Davis’ last five games, he is 1 for 15 with seven strikeouts. Davis is not the best defender over his five major league seasons. He has a minus 21 defensive runs saved. While J.D. is not a free agent, he is arbitration-eligible through 2024, enticing a team to trade for him. Now the reason I picked Davis over Jeff McNeil is McNeil is a better defender and versatile. He can play second base, third base, and the outfield. McNeil also can hit anywhere in the lineup and is left-handed on a right-handed dominating lineup.
So If Baez signs an extension with the Mets, you can trade J.D Davis for another need (starting pitcher). Then you can have Conforto walk as a free agent, and then you can either move Brandon Nimmo over to Right Field and bring in a different Center Fielder or sign a Right Fielder. Either way, the Baez move gives the Mets a lot of flexibility in handling this offseason.
This morning most of anyone who watches baseball will be checking in to see if their teams have done anything to upgrade their team as the 4 pm deadline approaches. As of Yesterday, the big trades revolved around the Dodgers and Yankees. The Mainers, Tampa Rays, and the Boston Red Sox all made trades to bolster their club. The Nationals and Cubs were the biggest sellers as the Nationals traded Max Scherzer, Trea Turner, and Kyle Schwarber. The Cubs have parted with Anthony Rizzo, Craig Kimbrell and possibly moving Kris Bryant, Javy Baez, and Zach Davies. The Teams that have been the quietest to much surprise are the Padres and Mets, as both were to be heavy buyers come the trade deadline. (written @ 9am)This morning saw a bold Trade by the Toronto Blue Jays acquiring star pitcher Jose Berrios but giving up Austin Martin and Simeon Woods Richardson, the club’s number 2 and 4 prospects. This was out of left-field as Toronto was an underdog in getting him, but apparently, their offer was much better. The Cubs Stayed in Limelight by trading Pitcher Craig Kimball to the cross-town rival White Sox for 2b Nick Madrigal and pitcher Codi Heuer. Getting a second baseman means what I hope it means, and Baez is on the move to the Mets “written at 1:45 pm.”
Ten min ago at 3 pm est, two sources confirmed that Javy Baez is coming to the Mets pending a physical. This is huge for the Mets cause Baez has stated he wants to play in New York with Lindor. This now gives the Mets an infield of Davis, Baez, McNeil, and Alonso. When Lindor returns, Baez will shift to second base and McNeil to third, giving the infield look like McNeil, Lindor, Baez, and Alonso. Also, in this Trade, the Mets will get Starting Pitcher Trevor Williams and send Pete Crow Armstrong to the Cubs. Armstrong was ranked as one of the Mets top prospects but had to have season-ending surgery on his arm. This doesn’t mean the Mets are done as there is little under an hour left and still big names still out there to be picked. Trevor Williams will help the depleted Mets Starting Rotation.
The Atlanta Braves are finalizing two deals that bring Adam Duvall from The Marlins and Eddie Rosario from the Cleveland Indians to help with their outfield since Ronald Acuna was lost for the season.Some late rumors that Josh Donaldson and Byron Buxton are being shopped. Donaldson has had a resurgence year hitting .250 with 16HR. I don’t see Buxton moving, but Donaldson could help a few ball clubs out.The NL East is at it again but, this time, it’s the Phillies who are abuzz. A few sources have said the two are working on a deal that would send pitchers Ian Kennedy and Kyle Gibson from the texas rangers. We will see if that comes to fruition. Also, the Nationals are back at it with finalizing a deal sending catcher Yan Gomes and second Baseman Josh Harrison to Oakland. With Strasburg needing that season-ending surgery, I think the Nats have thrown their hands up this season and will start rebuilding.
The Milwaukee Brewers will send Daniel Norris to the Detroit Tigers Reese Olsen, and in other small news, the Rays acquired Shawn Armstrong for cash Considerations from Baltimore. Also, the Padres have made a trade with none other than the Nationals for RHP Daniel Hudson, and the Nationals will receive RHP Mason Thompson and ShortStop Jordan Barley.With about 23 minutes left in this year’s trade deadline, The St Louis Cardinals have made a trade for Pitcher J.A Happ and cash considerations for pitchers John Grant and Evan Sisk. I can see many small deals happen, but there is still time for another significant splash or two.
With less than 1 min left in the trade deadline and the Yankees have made a deal with the Angels for pitcher Andrew Heany for Jason Junk and Elvis Peguero, “Elvis has left the building.” Houston Astros acquired RHP Phil Maton for outfielder Myles Straw.I got a considerable Trade notification from Danny Boy Reginald that Kris Bryant was traded not to New York Like I was hoping but to the San Francisco Giants. This is a big shock to me. San Francisco had not mentioned being interested in him, nor were there any rumors.
The Padres have traded for outfielder Jake Marisnick from none other than the Cubs, and the Phillies acquire shortstop Freddy Galvis from the Baltimore Orioles. The Nationals are staying in selling mode as they have traded Starting pitcher Jon Lester to the Cardinals. I wonder who is left to pitch for the Nats with Strassburg lost for the season, Scherzer on his way to Los Angeles, and Lester on his way to St Louis. There are many opportunities for young pitchers to make their name in this organization for next year’s club invites. The Giants received pitcher Tony Watson from Angels, the Braves made a last-minute trade to acquire Royals outfielder Jorge Soler, and The Red Sox made a quick last-minute move in trading for Hansel Robles.
It is now 4 pm on the east coast, and the Trade Deadline has come to an end. I don’t think there has been a more exciting trade deadline in recent years. A lot of big deals were made across baseball. The Dodgers, in my opinion, were the big winners throughout the week, with the Yankees coming in second. The Mets, Giants, Braves, Blue Jays, and Phillies deserve honorable mentions as they all added pieces to their respective teams to make runs at the playoffs.
As for the Mets, I feel they gave up the one piece that was farthest away in the farm system: Armstrong, a top 100 prospect. They got an incredible talent in Baez and will help fill in the missing hole left by Lindor’s injury. Once Lindor is back, the Mets will have to make some decisions on a few things. Baez will move to second base and thus have McNeil over at third. This will Leave J.D Davis, Jonathan Villar, and Luis Guilliorme wondering about their futures with the club. McNeil also has experience playing in the outfield, which would help fill in some other area problems. After it is all said and done, the Mets did what they needed to do and got the suitable replacements for the injury-depleted team, and that is how the old man sees it.
I hope you all enjoyed this 4-part piece on the trade deadline.
For those of you who don’t know, I am a die-hard NY Mets, Dallas Cowboys, NY Knicks, and yeah, a NY Rangers fan. Throughout the years, I have collected jerseys and hats from all of my favorite teams. I have had many jerseys over the years but, the style I loved the most was my black Mets Jerseys. In 1998 the Mets organization introduced a black alternate home jersey. It became the favorite of New York Mets fans around the country. I remember I bought Rey Ordonez and Edgardo Alfonzo right away. I added Mike Piazza to the collection as soon as I could find one. However, all good things never last, and they were retired (to the dismay of Mets fans) in 2011.
Since the black jerseys went away, we have seen many different jerseys, from old-style 1962 pinstripes to the current dark blue jerseys worn today. Image is everything when it comes to sports. What you wear conveys to not only the fans but the sponsors as well, and if you display an image that is not accepted, then the fan base and those sponsor dollars go away.Mets fans for years have lobbied to get the black jerseys back for quite a while now. Former owners of the Wilpons went more traditional and didn’t listen to the fan base. The Wilpons were hated by Mets fans on how they ran the organization from not going all out and getting the right players and not making the right moves via trades etc. Well, that changed this year when Billionaire Steve Cohen came in and bought the Mets. Everything changed from that first day as he has been listening to what the fans want. Today July 30th, 2021, when the Mets play the Cincinnati Reds, they will dawn the Black Jerseys.
To me, this is a game-changer not only for the fans but the players themselves. To wear Jersey that your fans want to see you in and hear the fans roar when you run out of the dugout, Citi Field is going to shake. I expect the fans to be dawning the new jerseys except our loyal seven-line army group in right-center, who will be in their traditional orange jerseys. The Mets are on some tear in the standings right now, winning series after series. I can’t wait to see the confidence boost they will get when they hear that stadium go crazy, and that is how the old man sees it.
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