#~40 jordan rookie cards

[pint4punt]

All You Need is Love:

How the Packers’ 2020 Gamble Finally Paid Off

Ok the title of this one may be ‘cringe’ as the kids say (right?) but the message rings true regardless. We finally have to come to terms with the fact that the Packers’ run of star Quarterback play looks set to continue with Jordan Love. While it’s high school prom night premature to anoint him as their third straight hall of famer at the position, his growth throughout the year and playoff debut seem to have validated the Packers’ ballsy selection that sent Aaron Rodgers into a dark ayahuasca fueled bender.

NFC North rivals may want to turn back now as today we will be taking a look at how the Packers once again seem to have manufactured a franchise Quarterback and how they look poised to make a run at the NFC for years to come. We apologize to Lions’ fans in advance who so graciously gave us the only compelling playoff game of Wild Card Weekend en route to their first postseason victory since O.J. Simpson was primarily known as an NFL Hall of Famer. As fun of a story as they are and as much as we are pulling for their dream run to continue, the North may not belong to them for long. So how did we get here?

Not Getting Caught Up in LaFleur’s Early Success

It would have been easy to be blinded by the immediate success Green Bay experienced under then first year Head Coach Matt LaFleur. In his debut season, LaFleur led the Packers to their first Conference Championship since the famous ‘Run the Table’ campaign. To give context to how impressive that feat was, the Cowboys’ last 6 Head Coaches haven’t made it to the NFC Championship. Unfortunately, both campaigns ended virtually the same with blowout losses to Shanahan orchestrated offenses. Nonetheless, winning your division along with a Conference Championship Participation Trophy in the first year installing your system speaks volumes about a Coach, even with a Hall of Famer under center. It would have been easy for LaFleur to live in the moment and push his chips to the table in a loaded Receiver draft in the subsequent offseason.

Instead Packers’ brass could not have pivoted further, opting to look over the steering wheel at a post Rodgers’ world and trading up to draft Jordan Love with the the 26th overall pick. For years, Rodgers made them look like absolute fools for making this move as he posted back-to-back MVP campaigns and back-to-back no. 1 Playoff Seeds. Despite this success, Green Bay’s starter was pushing 40 and the LaFleur/Rodgers partnership yielded zero Super Bowl appearances. Cheeseheads may always wonder what could have been if they’d drafted a key contributor on the heels of an NFC Championship appearance, but franchise QBs don’t come around every year and sustained success is an art form few organizations have perfected. This move appeared to be aging horribly until

Love Demonstrated Progress

In the early throngs of the season, long standing proclamations of the Love experiment being an abysmal failure seemed to ring profoundly true. Green Bay started the season 4-6 heading into Thanksgiving and has been about as predictable as what is going to come out of Joe Biden’s mouth at any given moment. Love’s completion percentage has yo-yoed anywhere from 50.0 to 67.5. Even after a Turkey Day thrashing of the 3 Seed Lions and a subsequent ass beating of the defending Super Bowl Champion Chiefs, this team shit the bed against the Giants and Bucs before eeking out a win against Bryce Young and his pee wee football squad.

Despite a Jekyll and Hyde year, Love himself finished strong down the stretch with his Passer Rating never dipping below 109.1 the last four games of the season as he led Green Bay to the playoffs in his rookie* season.

Playoff Debut

With the Packers being so hot and cold most of the year and the annually anointed Dallas Cowboys achieving their highest playoff seeding since Dak Prescott’s rookie season, Love’s squad appeared to be an inevitable one night stand. While lots of fun, not someone you took seriously enough to make it work for the long haul. That’s where we were hilariously wrong. We blame ourselves really as, stupidly, we thought this Cowboys’ team was somehow different than the last 28 Cowboys’ teams that have blown their load early in the playoffs and gone home in short order.

Dallas disappointing after talking a big game really isn't surprising in hindsight, in fact it’s pretty on brand for them. What was surprising, was the stark contrast between the teams that showed up in the Wild Card Round. A Packers’ Defense that generated seven turnovers all year forced two in this game, while Dallas’ DPOY candidate and brick shithouse of a game wrecker, Micah Parsons, was held to one pressure (lowest of his career) and zero sacks.

On the other side of the ball it would be very easy to conflate who was making their playoff debut as Jordan Love surgically eviscerated the Cowboys’ much lauded Defense for a 157.2 passer rating while Dak Prescott gave hope to every armchair QB at the bar out there who swears he could play the position better. Wild Card Weekend was the undoubtably the pique of the Love era to date. Now we turn the page as we look to

The Road Ahead

As fate would have it, today Love will have to attempt a feat even his Jedi Master couldn’t achieve. Beating the 49ers. The Niners have tormented the Packers in the postseason over the years winning the last four straight and often in emphatic fashion with record breaking performances from the likes of Raheem Mostert and the long since cancelled Colin Kaepernick. To make matters worse, the Packers have to go into Levi’s Stadium on short rest against arguably the best Niners’ squad since 1994.

It would be fool’s gold (hehe get it?) to count out a team playing with house money coming off the performance they just had, but we’re not exactly betting our life savings on the upset today either. Regardless of the end result, if Love at least makes this interesting (here’s hoping on a Saturday night otherwise occupied by The Office reruns, strong drinks, and inevitable reflection of life decisions to this point) the Packers will have the ultimate affirmation that they will be ready to make a legitimate run at the NFC for years to come.

While they are going to have to figure out a long-term contract for Love, there is plenty of reason for optimism. The Aaron Rodgers’ dead money comes off the books in 2024. They have the youngest roster in the NFL that is producing well beyond their years with standouts such as Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed, and Luke Musgrave to complement key veterans such as Aaron Jones and Jaire Alexander. They have five draft picks in the first three rounds next year. Matt LaFleur’s stock has never been higher. And god dammit for the rest of us when it comes to the Quarterback position, Love is all you need.

[sudden-stops-kill]

'Lot #31: 1986-87 Fleer Basketball Wax Box Sealed Case (12/36)' . https://collectauctions.net/1986_87_Fleer_Basketball_Wax_Box_Sealed_Case__12_3-LOT30285.aspx

[tkmedia]

90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Benny Snell Jr., Robert Spillane, Donovan Stiner

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2021 offseason practices have long since concluded. Next up for the team is their annual training camp, which should get underway in the latter part of July. Ahead of training camp, we will preview the team’s 90-man roster three players at a time for you as part of a 30-post series. This Steelers 90-man roster preview that includes outlooks for each player goes alphabetically by last name to make it easy to follow along with. The next three players we will preview today are Benny Snell Jr., Robert Spillane, and Donovan Stiner. RB Benny Snell Jr. — Snell’s second season in the NFL with the Steelers included the former fourth-round draft pick out of Kentucky registering 111 carries for 368 yards and four touchdowns. Snell also logged 10 receptions for another 61 yards in the 281 total offensive snaps that played during the 2020 regular season. On top of that offensive playing time that Snell received in 2020, he also logged 198 total special teams snaps. He had five total tackles on special teams in 2020 and also recovered a fumble. Overall, Snell’s play was average in 2020 just like all of the other running backs used by the Steelers in 2020. Outlook: Snell will be battling for one of three or four running back spots this summer and essentially for the right to backup rookie running back Najee Harris, the team’s first-round draft pick this year. Snell’s immediate competition for a 2021 roster spot this summer includes Anthony McFarland Jr., Jaylen Samuels, and newcomer Kalen Ballage. Snell is a willing and able special teams player and with 2021 being the running backs third year in Pittsburgh, he should have a better than average chance of sticking on the roster again this season and dressing weekly for games as either the second or third string running back behind Harris. assuming Snell does stick on the roster again this season, he might be hard pressed to see 100 touches as long as long as Harris stays healthy. ILB Robert Spillane — Spillane made the Steelers roster in 2020 as a backup behind starting inside linebackers Devin Bush and Vince Williams and that meant the plan for him was to mostly contribute on special teams. When Bush was lost for the season in Week 6 to a knee injury, Spillane was jettisoned into the starting lineup, and he even was the defensive quarterback for several games until a knee injury of his own in Week 13 forced him to the team’s Reserve/Injured list for the final three regular season games. While Spillane did return for the Steelers’ Super Wild Card game, he was very ineffective in that contest and played poorly. He ended the regular season with 43 total tackles on defense and two sacks. He was credited with four tackles for loss, three quarterback hits, four passes defensed, a fumble recovery and one interception, which he returned for a touchdown. Spillane also had two total special teams tackles on the season. He played 377 total defensive snaps during the regular season and 153 more on special teams. In the Steelers’ lone playoff game, Spillane played another 59 defensive snaps and 12 others on special teams. He registered nine total tackles in that contest. Outlook: The summer outlook for Spillane begins with him needing to compete for the right to be the Steelers’ other starting inside linebacker beside Bush. Competing against Spillane for that job figures to be veteran Vince Williams and maybe even third-year player Ulysees Gilbert III if he stays healthy. If Spillane ultimately wins that other staring spot this summer, and he has decent shot at doing so, he will obviously then be expected to play quite extensively in 2021. If, however, Spillane fails to win the starting spot beside Bush, he will likely enter the regular season as the top inside linebacker backup. He’ll also likely be asked to play quite extensively on special teams in 2021 as he is an above average player in that phase of the game. S Donovan Stiner — Stiner, one of the Steelers’ higher-priority undrafted free agent signings this offseason, played his college football at Florida. The safety finished his college career with 145 total tackles and six interceptions in playing in 41 games played. At his Pro Day, Stiner measured in at 6014, 205 pounds. He reportedly ran his 40-yard dash in 4.58 seconds and did 15 reps on the bench. Outlook: Stiner will be battling for a backup safety spot during training camp and the preseason. While he is versatile safety, Stiner might be better suited to player closer to the line of scrimmage than deep. His best shot at making the 53-man roster in the coming weeks likely revolves around him being top-notch special teams contributor and one that can play on all four units. The best bet when it comes to Stiner’s future come the start of the regular season is that he lands on the Steelers practice squad. That would give him a chance to develop for a full season. Previous Posts In Series 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: DeMarkus Acy, Marcus Allen, Tyson Alualu 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Abdullah Anderson, Kalen Ballage, Zach Banner 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Jordan Berry, Chris Boswell, Antoine Brooks Jr. 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Shakur Brown, Isaiah Buggs, Calvin Bundage 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Devin Bush, Rico Bussey, Kameron Canaday 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: T.J. Carter, Demarcus Christmas, Chase Claypool 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Aviante Collins, Rashaad Coward, Anthony Coyle 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Carlos Davis, Stephen Denmark, Joshua Dobbs 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Kevin Dotson, Eric Ebron, Terrell Edmunds 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Trey Edmunds, B.J. Finney, Minkah Fitzpatrick 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Pat Freiermuth, Zach Gentry, Mark Gilbert 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Ulysees Gilbert III, Joe Haden, Joe Haeg 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Najee Harris, Pressley Harvin III, Dwayne Haskins 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Kendrick Green, J.C. Hassenauer, Cameron Heyward 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Alex Highsmith, Anthony Johnson, Buddy Johnson 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Diontae Johnson, Jamir Jones, Jarron Jones 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Miles Killebrew, Christian Kuntz, Justin Layne 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: John Leglue, Isaiahh Loudermilk, Cassius Marsh 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Arthur Maulet, Ray-Ray McCloud, Anthony McFarland Jr. 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Isaiah McKoy, Jarvis Miller, Henry Mondeaux 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Dan Moore Jr., Tre Norwood, Chukwuma Okorafor 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: James Pierre, Kevin Rader, Dax Raymond 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Quincy Roche, Ben Roethlisberger, Mason Rudolph 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Jaylen Samuels, Tegray Scales, Mathew Sexton 90 In 30: Steelers 2021 Training Camp Preview Series: Tyler Simmons, Sam Sloman, JuJu Smith-Schuster

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[dipulb3]

'There's never been a time like this': Wall Street is piling into trading cards as prices soar

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/theres-never-been-a-time-like-this-wall-street-is-piling-into-trading-cards-as-prices-soar/

'There's never been a time like this': Wall Street is piling into trading cards as prices soar

In early February, a Michael Jordan rookie basketball card in pristine condition sold for a record $738,000 at an auction run by Goldin’s company. The kicker? The exact same item went for nearly $215,000 just weeks before.

“There’s never been a time like this in the history of the business,” Goldin told Appradab Business. “I would bet that for every person who wanted a Michael Jordan rookie card in 2019, there’s 100 [now].”

The shock sale is part of a much bigger trend in sports collectibles that’s grabbed the attention of sophisticated investors as well as small traders, transforming card collecting from a fusty hobby into a major investment market. But the timing and scale of the price surge has also sparked worries that it may be fueled by the same speculative forces that recently sent bitcoin and meme stocks like GameStop through the roof.

“This is now part of our culture,” Goldin said. “I wouldn’t go anywhere near the word bubble.”

The pandemic push

The trading card renaissance has its roots in the pandemic. Stuck at home without live sports games, people began raiding their attics and basements and digging up old cards. They also sat down to watch “The Last Dance,” the documentary series about Jordan, the legendary former NBA star, that aired on ESPN.

Suddenly, trading cards were everywhere, boosted by celebrity endorsers ranging from actor Mark Wahlberg, whose kids launched a collecting business, to DJ Steve Aoki and Resy co-founder Gary Vaynerchuk. Videos of fans opening packs of cards on YouTube and TikTok started racking up tens of thousands of views.

“This is a market that’s growing in demand, but doesn’t have more supply,” Vaynerchuk, a longtime advocate of card investing, wrote on his website last March. “That’s a recipe for opportunity.”

Prices for top-quality cards featuring all-time greats jumped dramatically. Those featuring newer talent rose, too, as enthusiasts tried to scout the next big stars.

“Instead of betting on a game, people look at this, and they can bet on a career,” Goldin said.

The spike in prices has caught the attention of a wider class of investment professionals, flush with cash following unprecedented stimulus measures from governments and central banks. Rock-bottom interest rates have also made it harder to find lucrative investments, bolstering interest in creative alternatives.

“Funds are being created. They’re getting investors involved and pooling five, 10, 15 million dollars,” said Jesse Craig, director of business development at PWCC Marketplace, a top seller of premium cards.

Josh Luber, the co-founder of sneaker resale startup StockX, left the company last year to form Six Forks Kids Club, an alternative asset management company focused on cards. The moment, he said, was simply too big to pass up.

“It’s hard to find someone [in] my generation whose first business wasn’t buying baseball cards when they were 10,” Luber, who is 42, told Appradab Business. “We’re all of the age where we have a little bit more money, but we’re also in positions of decision-making for investment funds.”

The arrival of institutional money has quickly transformed the market. Goldin said for the first time in his career, he’s fielding calls from hedge funds interested in gaining exposure.

Takeover interest has also emerged, given the limited number of prominent companies in the sector. Last month, angel investor Nat Turner and Steve Cohen, the billionaire hedge fund titan and owner of the New York Mets, announced they were buying authentication service Collectors Universe in a $853 million deal, after sweetening a bid first made in November.

Not just Wall Street

It’s not just big money getting into the game as the sector gets a financial makeover.

Fractional trading has also reshaped the trading card business, allowing everyday buyers to purchase a small stake in a LeBron James or Patrick Mahomes card that would have otherwise been too costly, in the same way people can now buy a piece of expensive stocks like Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN).

“We realized the potential fractional ownership could have to break down a massive barrier to entry,” said Ezra Levine, the CEO of Collectable, which buys sports cards and converts them into tradable assets registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Collectable distributes individual shares of cards on its platform through initial public offerings. The shares can then be bought and sold as if they were stock in Microsoft (MSFT) or AMC Entertainment (AMC).

The firm has completed roughly 40 IPOs since last fall, and boasts of impressive returns. A 1986 Jordan card that went public at $10 per share in October is now trading at $60 per share, while stock in an autographed James card from 2003 has jumped 50% since late December.

Not everyone is going this route. Other hobbyists are gathering on social media as they rip open new packs of cards, hoping they’ll contain younger talent that can later be sold for a huge profit on eBay. Some are making even bigger bets.

“I spent $9,000 on this,” one TikTok user said in a post this week, holding up a James rookie card. “Call me crazy, but I think this is going to hit 20K. Let’s go.”

Is it a bubble?

After Craig brokered the sale of a rare Mickey Mantle card to entrepreneur and actor Rob Gough in January for $5.2 million — labeled the biggest sale for any trading card in history — questions about a price bubble seemed valid.

Those in the business say there could be a pullback in prices for some extremely hot items, like the Jordan rookies, but they don’t think valuations are spinning out of control.

“I think trading cards are one of the most undervalued asset classes out there,” Luber said.

He added that while the 1986 Jordan card appreciated faster than he might have expected, he doesn’t think the value is out of line with where demand is headed.

Everyone in the industry thinks it’s “a $1 million card,” Luber said. “But we all thought it was a year away instead of a month away.”

Scott Keeney, who set up a fund to invest in trading cards and companies like Collectable with venture capitalists Courtney and Carter Reum, is similarly bullish. He thinks that one to two years from now, the prices that Jordan and Mantle cards are commanding will be far higher than they are now.

“We look at all these other people coming in as more validation,” Keeney said. He declined to share how much his fund had raised, beyond stating it was at least seven figures.

There are risks, of course. As with investing in rare art or wine, the potential for fraud looms. The Washington Post has reported that the FBI is looking into cards that were allegedly altered to improve their condition before they were authenticated by Collectors Universe and auctioned on platforms like PWCC.

The industry has also seen a crash in prices before, after overzealous producers flooded the market in the 1980s and 1990s. As collectors discovered just how many were in the system, cards from the era plunged in value.

Goldin acknowledges that prices will inevitably fluctuate. But he believes supply will remain in check, particularly on the upper end of the market.

“The difference between cards and stock [is] nobody loves a stock,” he said. “Some people who buy these cards, to get them to sell it is like getting them to take off an arm.”

[newslookout]

Are Baseball Cards A Good Investment?

In 2020, over ten cards sold at public auction for more than $500,000 with one of those cards selling for nearly $4 million, the highest sports card ever sold. The value of sports cards has grown over the last decade and with the onset of the pandemic, values exploded. With prices so high and card companies aware of their past mistakes, Wall Street and Silicon Valley see investment opportunities in this alternative asset.

Sports card collecting is having a moment not seen since the 1970s and 1980s. This year saw sales of sports cards at public auction reach all-time highs. Over ten cards sold for $500,000 or more. Two basketball cards sold for $1.8 million each, a Lebron James rookie card and a Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie card. 2020 also saw a 2009 Mike Trout baseball card sell at auction for a record-breaking $3.84 million.

Interest in collecting and values have seen a steady uptick for the last decade with prices really starting to rise at quicker rate somewhere around 2016 or 2017. With the onset of the pandemic at the beginning of this year, card collecting reached new heights. Largely driven by those in their 30s and 40s, who collected when they were young, these individuals found themselves at home revisiting their card collections.

Then came ESPN’s release of the Michael Jordan documentary series, "The Last Dance." Auction houses and eBay saw a surge for Michael Jordan cards and memorabilia followed by an even greater interest in basketball cards and beyond.

"It brought back nostalgia. It brought back memories of the greatness of Michael Jordan and his cards and memorabilia started going up. And in our industry, it is definitely a case where rising tides lifts all boats," Ken Goldin, founder and CEO of Goldin Auctions, told CNBC.

With sports cards growing in value, many collectors are amassing collections of high value as part of a diversified investment portfolio. What separates this era from the previous is the recognition that these cards are a legitimate alternative asset. A Silicon Valley startup, Alt, founded by Leore Avidar, aims to bring clarity and security to alternative assets, specifically sports cards.

Collectors and investors see a bright future for sports cards. Card companies are well aware of their past mistakes and collectors have more information than ever before. If growth continues, Leore Avidar believes records will continue to be broken.

"I will say, we will see our first ten million dollar card in the next two years," says Avidar.

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Are Baseball Cards A Good Investment?

The post Are Baseball Cards A Good Investment? appeared first on News Lookout.

source https://newslookout.com/world-news/are-baseball-cards-a-good-investment/

[smartsport1]

Packers vs Colts Props Best Team and Player Prop Bets for Sunday Week 11 added to SmartSport on Trello

Smart Sport added the card Packers vs Colts Props Best Team and Player Prop Bets for Sunday Week 11 to the Packers vs Colts Props – Best Team and Player Prop Bets for Sunday Week 11 list in the SmartSport board at November 22, 2020 at 07:24AM Packers vs Colts Props – Best Team and Player Prop Bets for Sunday Week 11 https://www.sportsbettingdime.com/news/nfl/packers-vs-colts-props-best-team-and-player-prop-bets-sunday-week-11/ It’s a showdown between NFL division leaders as the Green Bay Packers face the Indianapolis Colts Current record: 11-10, +4.21 units won The best prop wagers to play out of this tilt are listed below The 7-2 Green Bay Packers (NFC North) and 6-3 Indianapolis Colts (AFC South) both currently rule over their respective NFL divisions. The Packers are the NFL’s #3 scoring offense (30.3 points per game) while the Colts are the league’s #1 defense (290.4 yards per game). The Colts are 1.5-point home favorites for this game with a 4:25pm EST kickoff. Check out our updated injury reports, as well as other betting options. Let’s start with the lines for player props. Packers vs Colts Player Props Quarterback Completions Passing Yards Passing TDs Aaron Rodgers (GB) 24.5 (Ov -134 | Un +108) 278.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 1.5 (Ov -200 | Un +159) Philip Rivers (IND) 24.5 (Ov -106| Un -118) 270.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 1.5 (Ov -200 | Un +159) Runnning Backs Rush Attempts Rush Yards Rush and Receiving Yards Aaron Jones (GB) 14.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 52.5 (Ov -125 | Un +101) 85.5 (Ov +100 | Un -120) Jamaal Williams (GB) N/A 21.5 (Ov -134 | Un +108) 36.5 (Ov -125 | Un +100) Jordan Wilkins (IND) 8.5 (Ov -115 | Un -108) 34.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 43.5 (Ov -115 | Un -105) Nyheim Hines (IND) 7.5 (Ov +115| Un -143) 30.5 (Ov -117 | Un -107) 62.5 (Ov -115 | Un -105) Jonathan Taylor (IND) 8.5 (Ov -137 | Un +110) 34.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 46.5 (Ov -110 | Un -115) Wide Receivers + Tight Ends Receptions Receivng Yards Longest Reception Aaron Jones (GB) 3.5 (Ov -143 | Un +115) 27.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 12.5 (Ov -115 | Un -110) Jamaal Williams (GB) N/A 11.5 (Ov -143 | Un +115) 8.5 (Ov -125 | Un +100) Davante Adams (GB) N/A 85.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) N/A Robert Tonyan (GB) 3.5 (Ov +138 | Un -175) 34.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) N/A TY Hilton (IND) 3.5 (Ov -108 | Un -115) 40.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 18.5 (Ov -105 | Un -118) Nyheim Hines (IND) 3.5 (Ov 118 | Un -106) 27.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 13.5 (Ov +100| Un -125) Zach Pascal (IND) 3.5 (Ov +126 | Un -157) 35.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 17.5 (Ov -118 | Un -105) Michael Pittman Jr (IND) 4.5 (Ov +126 | Un -157) 49.5 (Ov -112 | Un -112) 20.5 (Ov -105 | Un -118) Jonathan Taylor (IND) N/A 8.5 (Ov -134 | Un +108) N/A All props taken Nov. 14th from DraftKings/FanDuel/BetMGM Prop #1: Rodgers Will Double Down On TD Passes It’s true that the Colts are the best pass defense that Aaron Rodgers and the Packers will face this season. Indy is #2 in the league at stopping the pass (198.7 yards per game) and are tied for second in TD passes allowed per game (1.2). Aaron Rodgers with the 78-yard DIME for the TD 😯 (via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/pEUGQb6X6u — SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 15, 2020 It’s also true that the Colts haven’t seen a QB with the capabilities of Rodgers this season. He’s first in the NFL in TD pass percentage (8.3) and second in the league in TD passes (26). It’s tempting to go with the value and the Colts but Rodgers is too talented to bet against. Pick: Aaron Rodgers over 1.5 touchdown passes (-200),  1 unit Taylor Out Of Favor When Marlon Mack was lost for the season, circumstances seemed to be aligning perfectly for rookie Jonathan Taylor. But as the season wears on, the Colts appear to be growing wary of giving him the ball. Jonathan Taylor trucks this DB 😤 (via @nflnetwork)pic.twitter.com/nGz9Oq9ReE — Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 13, 2020 Taylor carried the ball 26 times in a Week 2 win over Minnesota. He’s been handed the rock just 24 times in total over the past three games and gained 61 yards. His single-game high for rushing yardage over these three contests is 27 yards. Pick: Jonathan Taylor under 34.5 yards rushing (-112), 1 unit. Packers vs Colts Touchdown Props Player Odds To Score First TD Odds To Score Any TD Aaron Jones (GB) +600 -139 Davante Adams (GB) +650 -134 Robert Tonyan (GB) +1200 +160 Allen Lazard (GB) +1400 +190 Marquez Valdes-Scantling (GB) +1600 +240 Jamaal Williams (GB) +2000 +300 Aaron Rodgers (GB) +4000 +700 Jace Sternberger (GB) +5000 +800 Nyheim Hines (IND) +950 +125 Jonathan Taylor (IND) +1000 +135 Jordan Wilkins (IND) +1100 +150 Michael Pittman Jr (IND) +1600 +250 TY Hilton (IND) +1600 +250 Zach Pascal (IND) +2000 +300 Trey Burton (IND) +2000 +300 Philip Rivers (IND) +4500 +800 Who Are the Best Bets To Score a Touchdown? Nyheim Hines has scored four of his six touchdowns this season over the past three games. He’s becoming a go-to option for the Colts in the red zone. Three of his four TDs were pass receptions. All three of them were of a distance of 13 yards or more, showing that Hines can make tacklers miss. All Nyheim Hines does is catch TDs and land front flips. 🤸‍♂️ 📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/hrCMyhLpST — Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) November 1, 2020 Packers wideout Davante Adams is on a four-game TD-scoring streak. He’s scored seven times over the course of those four games. Rodgers has targeted Adams 51 times during his hot streak, so you know he’ll be looking for Adams a lot. Marquez Valdes-Scantling’s 78-yard receiving TD was the longest by a Packers player since Jordy Nelson’s 80-yard TD in Week 2, 2014 vs the Jets Valdes-Scantling has 3 receiving TD of 40+ yards in 2020, currently the most in the NFL#Packers — NFL Research (@NFLResearch) November 15, 2020 Marquez Valdes-Scantling leads the NFL in yards per reception (21.0). He’s caught 22 balls and four of them went for TDs. Over the past three games, Valdes-Scantling snared seven passes and three were TDs. Nyheim Hines anytime TD (+125), 1 unit Davante Adams anytime TD (-134), 1 unit Marquez Valdez-Scantling anytime TD (+240), 1 unit The post Packers vs Colts Props – Best Team and Player Prop Bets for Sunday Week 11 appeared first on Sports Betting Dime. via Sports Betting Dime https://www.sportsbettingdime.com November 22, 2020 at 07:20AM https://tructiepbongda8.com/ https://tructiepbongda8.com/link-sopcast-bong-da/ View on Trello https://tructiepbongda8.com/ https://tructiepbongda8.com/link-sopcast-bong-da/

[junker-town]

Is Tom Brady really worth $30 million to the Patriots now?

Tom Brady is set to be a free agent for the first time in his career.

Or would the Patriots be overpaying for continuity and past production?

Tom Brady is set to hit the open market for the first time in a 20-year career. After years of signing bargain contracts for hometown discounts, the six-time Super Bowl champion could reclaim his status as one of the league’s highest-paid players.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported New England is willing to give the passer responsible for all six of the franchise’s NFL championships a $30 million+ salary to keep him with the only team he’s ever known. This would be a big turnaround for a player who’s signed below-market deals recently in order to pad out his roster around him.

It would also leave major questions for the Patriots to face this offseason, even with their veteran quarterback in tow. Namely: How much is a 43-year-old Brady worth?

Brady (finally) backslid in 2019

Paying Brady a top-six salary in 2020 based on his 2019 performance would be a leap of faith from the Patriots, who typically have been steely when it comes to retaining aging talent. A contract with an average value of $30+ million would stand as one of the 10 richest in the NFL — more than Jimmy Garoppolo, Matthew Stafford, or Derek Carr averaged in previous record-setting deals. It would still trail, even with inflation, the mega-extensions signed by fellow veterans Aaron Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger, though both are only in their late-30s instead of their early-40s.

There’s no doubt Brady was worthy of a top salary all the way up until 2018, but this past leaves room for concern. Here’s where he ranked statistically as a passer in his age-42 season.

Passing yards: 7th (4,057)

Completion rate: 27th (60.8)

Touchdown rate: 26th (3.9)

Yards/pass: 29th (6.6)

Adjusted yards/pass: 21st (6.8)

Passer rating: 19th (88.0)

QBR: 19th (52.5)

That doesn’t tell the whole story of his 2019. He was the driving offensive force behind a 12-4 team that won the AFC East for the 11th straight season. But much of that strength came from a defense that ranked best in the NFL in both yards and points allowed. When that unit needed an extra counterpunch to beat good teams, Brady struggled to provide it.

His Patriots went just 3-4 against playoff teams, and the two teams they did beat — the Bills and Eagles — failed to advance out of the Wild Card Round. Brady threw for 637 yards in those games and recorded just 5.4 yards per attempt.

Here were his numbers in the seven starts he had against teams that advanced to the postseason, including the Patriots’ loss to the Titans:

Not good! Jay Cutler, for comparison’s sake, had a 75.1 passer rating and a 9:7 touchdown:interception ratio in his lone comeback season with the Dolphins in 2017.

This wasn’t all on Brady

One major caveat in Brady’s sudden downturn can be traced to his lack of playmaking support. Rob Gronkowski retired and was replaced by Matt LaCosse, Ryan Izzo, and a 38-year-old Ben Watson. Together, they combined for 36 catches, 418 yards, and two touchdowns.

An overtaxed receiving corps couldn’t pick up that slack. Julian Edelman remained a reliable target (11 drops aside), but his supporting cast couldn’t keep pace. First-round rookie N’Keal Harry missed the first half of the season due to injury and didn’t make much of a difference upon his return. Josh Gordon was mostly a non-factor before getting hurt and then released; he’s currently on the league’s exempt list after failing another league drug test.

Antonio Brown signed a $10 million contract with the Pats and lasted one game before his off-field baggage led to his release. Mohamed Sanu, acquired before the trade deadline at the steep cost of a second-round pick, had little influence upon his arrival, injured his ankle soon after, and had 15 catches in his final seven games. Despite all these opportunities, Phillip Dorsett was mostly an ignored presence on the depth chart.

This put all the more pressure on New England’s offensive line and running game, which didn’t step up. Center David Andrews missed the entire season due to blood clots in his lungs. Left tackle Isaiah Wynn was out half the season with a lower leg injury, forcing the team to turn to September free agent Marshall Newhouse to protect Brady’s blindside for its first eight games. That went ... poorly.

Marshall Newhouse... pic.twitter.com/BlDmY97HWO

— Tucker Boynton (@Tucker_TnL) November 17, 2019

Fullback James Develin went on injured reserve after just two games. His replacement, Jakob Johnson, made it four games before landing on IR. Linebacker Elandon Roberts had to move to the backfield in their steads.

This all contributed to a massive sophomore slump from Sony Michel. The former first-round pick was electric in New England’s run to Super Bowl 53, rushing for six touchdowns in three postseason games. But in 2019, his yards per carry dropped from 4.5 to 3.7 — even as his yards after contact (2.4 to 2.4) and broken tackle rate (11.0 to 10.9 percent) remained the same.

That’s a lot of moving parts that went awry, and it would be foolish to believe Brady was insulated by the swirling tide of awfulness that surrounded him. At no one point was this more evident than in the team’s home loss to the Titans in the playoffs.

And despite all this, New England still ranked 11th in the league in offensive efficiency, per Football Outsiders. There’s room to build from there.

That leaves this team with plenty of holes to plug in order to make one or two (or three?) seasons of mid-40s Brady worthwhile at a high price. So how would they get there?

Brady could rebound with a better supporting cast ... but where will that money come from?

As it currently stands, the Patriots are slated to have a little more than $50 million in cap space headed into the 2020 offseason, not counting Brady’s voided $6.7 million hit. Brady’s deal would eat up somewhere between $20 and $30 million in space for next season, which would immediately handcuff the club when it comes to signing veteran help. The bulk of whatever’s left over would likely go toward pending free agents like Devin McCourty, Kyle Van Noy, Danny Shelton, or Jamie Collins, all of whom were vital to the Pats’ league-best defense last season.

Not all of those guys will be back, but the ones who re-sign will leave precious little salary cap space around them. While players like A.J. Green, Emmanuel Sanders, and Eric Ebron will be available in free agency, New England may not be able to harvest the cream of that underwhelming crop. The Pats could be stuck trying to turn other teams’ unpolished goods into gems, either through that market or via low-key trade.

That works out great when those guys turn out to be Wes Welker, LeGarrette Blount, or Randy Moss. It’s been much less of a boon when those buy-low deals have brought in players like Eric Decker, Jordan Matthews, or Scott Chandler.

The draft is another viable avenue to add talent, but not an especially reliable one. Bill Belichick’s track record with receiver prospects isn’t especially successful, and the jury’s still out on last year’s top pick Harry. The Patriots are also without their second-round pick thanks to the aforementioned Sanu trade.

This puts the them in a bit of a catch-22. Brady needs better targets, but if he’s going to re-sign in New England for $30 million, the team won’t be able to afford many upgrades. That leaves a thin line for Belichick to walk when it comes to balancing his roster over the final however-many years of his star quarterback’s career.

The Patriots’ willingness to spend suggests Brady will stay, but that’s no guarantee

There’s a chance Brady finishes his career outside New England. The Raiders are reportedly interested in making him the crown jewel of their debut season in Las Vegas. Or the two-time regular season MVP could make a return to his home state now that no one’s really quite sure what the future holds for the Chargers and free agent quarterback Philip Rivers. Several other teams could use him as a towering bridge between their present and future at quarterback.

It’s easy to see why he’d be a wanted man outside Foxborough. Brady has spent the back half of his career shattering expectations for aging quarterbacks. He’s the oldest player to ever win MVP honors and the oldest starting QB to win a Super Bowl. Projecting his decline is a futile exercise.

His 2019, however, was not a season worthy of a $30 million deal, no matter what his legacy says. Paying out the nose for Brady would ensure a New England legend stays in town, but it would also handicap his team’s ability to fill the holes that led to its worst playoff performance in a decade. There’s no way both Brady and Belichick don’t know that.

So the question now is whether they hurtle forward toward mutually assured destruction, or whether they’ll return to the careful roster building that’s helped make the Patriots the most accomplished team of the millennium.

[thatsdadstuff]

My Card Collecting Starts with Dad.

Thatsdadstuff.com @thatsdadstuff  

When I was little, my Dad traveled a lot for his job. In 1987, my Dad went on a work trip and came home with a box of 1987 Topps... And that folks, was the beginning. I collected baseball cards from that moment on. I was pretty young and only knew the Cubs thanks to WGN. I wasn't in Little League, never played T-Ball, I just liked watching Cubs baseball and playing catch with my Dad.

I loved the Cubs. So did my Mom. Then we received news that we were moving��� to… CHICAGO! It was around this time, my card collecting really picked up. I would ride my bike to the White Hen Pantry (basically a 7-11) just down the road from my house; this place was my go-to spot for buying cards. At .40 cents per pack, any opportunity for chores or spare pocket change from Mom or Dad went straight to the White Hen Pantry.   

As I got older and started cutting grass for my neighbors, I found myself buying boxes of baseball cards and starting to trade with friends and even having Baseball Card Sales in my front yard. I still really didn't know much about business, let alone profits or losses. All I wanted were Cubs cards, especially Andre Dawson, Ryne Sandberg, and Mark Grace cards. Looking back, I know I made some really bad deals just so I could get a Dawson or Sandberg card that I didn't have. 

One gentleman came by and tried to set me straight on some deals. I remember it just like it was yesterday.  I had several 1989 Donruss Ken Griffey Jr Rookies. I wanted $1 for each one. He told me, “you could ask for more ya know.” He told me about this great magazine that had prices and values. He didn't buy the Griffey, he actually came back to my sale and brought a Beckett with me, and showed me how to look up cards. 

For the next 10 years, my collection grew. I started collecting more than just Cubs. The Big Hurt, Griffey, Ripken Jr were some of my favorite players outside of the Cubs. Then I really got into basketball and this guy named Michael Jordan. Did my focus go from baseball to basketball cards? No, was just buying that much more. My Mom would drive me to our local card shop and he took me under his wing and taught me about card conditions, centering, corners, etc. We would do some trades, and it got to a point he would give me a discount here or there. 

Fast forward to my senior year of high school, I went to my local card shop and the owner was really excited about a new set of cards that came out and each pack was $4. I thought to myself “man, thats expensive!” I begrudgingly bought it. There were only 5 cards in the pack and all I got was common cards. Now, I’m ticked. The shop owner kept asking me to buy another pack, “You can’t buy two duds in a row!” So I did, and yes… I got another dud. At that point, I said I was done with collecting. I literally didn't buy any more cards …. For 20 years. 

Coming soon, Part 2… Getting Back into it after 20 years.

[truesportsfan]

How Our New NFL Model Did This Season

Quarterbacks ruled the 2019 NFL season, with Patrick Mahomes bringing the Lombardi Trophy to Kansas City and Lamar Jackson emerging as the league MVP. Quarterbacks were in control of the FiveThirtyEight prediction model, too, as a key factor of the new version of our Elo rating system, which adjusted for the performance of every starting QB. Now that the season is over, in the spirit of checking our work, we wanted to look back at the 2019 season and see how well the new system did — and whether it improved on our old, simple Elo system from years past.

One simple way to judge prediction accuracy is to look at how close the predicted point spread came to the actual score differential of each game (squaring the errors to give a larger penalty to bad misses). And in that department, new Elo beat old Elo this season, albeit by a smaller margin than we might have expected based on the preceding five seasons.

But our preferred way to judge the accuracy of a forecast is using Brier scores, which are essentially the average squared error between a probabilistic forecast and what actually happened. (Lower Brier scores are better because they mean your prediction was closer to being correct.) And by that standard, our new Elo ratings basically performed as expected. It was a bit of an unpredictable NFL season according to either system, particularly during the playoffs, but the improvement in Brier score from the old version of Elo (0.224) to the new Elo (0.219) by the end of the 2019 season ended up being almost exactly what it had been when it was backtested over the previous five seasons, on average:

Using Brier scores, let’s look at how the model’s accuracy evolved over time. Very early in the season, new Elo had an edge, perhaps because it was accounting for the many quarterback injuries that beset teams during the first few weeks. Then things in the league got weird. And the old system — which didn’t adjust for QBs, travel distance or rest days — was actually handling the weirdness better for most of the first half of the year. The new model didn’t pull ahead for good in terms of seasonlong Brier score until Week 11, at which point it maintained a lead and even expanded it, with injuries and teams resting starters in the closing weeks of the schedule.

The playoffs were a bit rough for the new model, primarily because of two games: Seattle at Philadelphia in the wild-card round (where new Elo’s Brier was 0.480, compared with 0.380 for the old model) and Tennessee at Baltimore in the divisional round (new Elo’s Brier was 0.755 — really bad! — compared with 0.582 for the old system). Our backtesting suggested that there are real predictive effects to late-season QB hot and cold streaks, and that favorites tend to play better in the postseason, but both of those factors ended up haunting the new model in that pair of upsets. Overall in the playoffs, new Elo had a worse Brier score (0.272) than the old model did (0.261) — although, as we mentioned earlier, that didn’t really cause it to do worse than expected for the entire season overall. And, of course, it also helped that the new system did much better in the conference championships and the Super Bowl.

Finally, just for fun, let’s look at the games in which the new model had its best and worst picks of the season, relative to the old system:

QB-adjusted Elo’s greatest hits (and misses) of 2019

Highest and lowest Brier score differentials between FiveThirtyEight’s old and new QB-adjusted NFL Elo models by game, 2019 season

Hits: Winner Loser Winner’s W% by Elo Date Team QB Team QB Old New Brier Diff. 10/27/19 GB Rodgers KC Moore 32% 58% -0.296 12/29/19 TEN Tannehill HOU McCarron 35 59 -0.249 10/6/19 OAK Carr CHI Daniel 27 47 -0.242 12/29/19 CHI Trubisky MIN Mannion 28 45 -0.207 9/22/19 SF Garoppolo PIT Rudolph 53 79 -0.177 9/5/19 GB Rodgers CHI Trubisky 24 36 -0.165 10/6/19 BAL Jackson PIT Rudolph 42 58 -0.165 10/13/19 NYJ Darnold DAL Prescott 30 42 -0.159 12/22/19 NYJ Darnold PIT Hodges 34 46 -0.142 11/17/19 DAL Prescott DET Driskel 55 75 -0.140 Misses: Winner Loser Winner’s W% by Elo Date Team QB Team QB Old New Brier Diff. 10/13/19 PIT Hodges LAC Rivers 39% 20% 0.266 12/1/19 CIN Dalton NYJ Darnold 42 24 0.238 9/22/19 CAR K. Allen ARI Murray 54 35 0.219 9/29/19 CAR K. Allen HOU Watson 35 22 0.189 11/3/19 KC Moore MIN Cousins 56 39 0.178 1/11/20 TEN Tannehill BAL Jackson 24 13 0.174 11/3/19 DEN K. Allen CLE Mayfield 58 41 0.170 11/10/19 PIT Rudolph LAR Goff 56 40 0.158 9/22/19 NO Bridgewater SEA Wilson 42 30 0.153 9/29/19 NO Bridgewater DAL Prescott 63 47 0.147

Unsurprisingly, most of these examples revolved around backup quarterbacks, for good or bad — either because the regular starter was knocked out (which old Elo didn’t know about) or because he was returning after a long absence. Sometimes adjusting for this resulted in an overcorrection, such as when Pittsburgh was down to third-string QB Devlin Hodges in Week 6 yet somehow managed to still win. But more often it helped, such as when Mahomes went down and Kansas City lost with Matt Moore at the helm in Week 8.

So overall, we think new Elo had a solid rookie season, and the new changes helped the model’s predictions. Although there are a few areas of improvement to potentially investigate over the offseason, it was encouraging that the new system outperfomed the old system by almost precisely what we expected based on our backtesting. It was also a good sign that the model was able to consistently outpredict the average reader in our forecast game, “winning” all but two weeks of the season and continuing the old system’s pattern of dominance over the field from previous seasons:

Our new Elo had a pretty good season vs. the field

Weekly average differences between points won by our new QB-adjusted Elo and by readers in FiveThirtyEight’s NFL prediction game, 2019 regular season and playoffs

Week Games Avg. Net Pts Week Games Avg. Net Pts 1 16 +7.9 11 14 +27.8 2 16 +13.6 12 14 +54.0 3 16 -1.0 13 16 +35.6 4 15 -2.7 14 16 +57.7 5 15 +19.8 15 16 +3.4 6 14 +24.6 16 16 +14.1 7 14 +8.1 17 16 +72.2 8 15 +26.8 Playoffs 11 +69.4 9 14 +45.9 Season total 267 +548.6 10 13 +71.4

The scoring system is nonlinear, based on the accuracy of the FiveThirtyEight model relative to readers’ probabilistic forecasts, with particularly strong punishments for overconfident incorrect picks by either side.

Speaking of which, congrats to Jordan Sweeney, who led all readers in the postseason with 275 points, and to Griffin Colaizzi, who used the Super Bowl to pull ahead and win the full-season contest with 1,126.2 points. And a big thanks to everyone who played all season! We can’t wait to fire up the model again in about six months and try to get that Brier score even lower next year.

source https://truesportsfan.com/football/how-our-new-nfl-model-did-this-season/

[junker-town]

Here’s why the 4 NFL playoff losers can feel good about the future

Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Three of the four Wild Card Round losers from last year made it to the postseason. Here’s why the Bills, Patriots, Saints, and Eagles should feel good about 2020.

The Texans, Titans, Vikings, and Seahawks are all through to the Divisional Round of the playoffs. The Bills, Patriots, Saints, and Eagles are not. The playoffs will continue unabated, while the four losers from the opening weekend will begin their offseason.

What’s interesting now is where these four teams go from here.

We often talk about teams having “windows” of competition — moments in time where they are fueled up for a run at the Super Bowl. Did that window close for any of the four teams that were bounced out in the Wild Card Round?

If recent history is any indication, the answer is no. Last year, the four Wild Card Round losers were the Texans, Seahawks, Ravens, and Bears. The first three of teams didn’t just make it back to the playoffs — they’ll be playing in the Divisional Round, too.

Even if they fell short of their ultimate goal, here’s why this year’s early-exit playoff teams should all feel good going into next season.

The Bills have the cap space to add weapons and keep their biggest free agents

Josh Allen is improving and that’s huge. The Bills’ second-year quarterback finished the 2019 season with 3,089 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and nine interceptions while rushing for another 510 yards and nine touchdowns. All of his passing numbers were better than in his rookie season, with his completion percentage jumping a full six points and his passer rating going from 67.9 to 85.3.

He had his share of iffy moments, especially when he tried to do too much — like in the playoff loss to the Texans when he lost a critical fumble and almost had another. But the positives outweigh the negatives, and Allen looks like he either is or can become the franchise quarterback.

Last offseason, Buffalo made good decisions by adding John Brown, Cole Beasley, and Devin Singletary to help Allen. Now the Bills could use a home-run hitter for Allen and the ever-expanding offense. When the Texans staged their comeback from down 16-0, the Bills needed a playmaker, and nobody was able to step up. Another young, dynamic player could change that.

There’s an issue on the other side of the ball, too. The Bills boasted an aggressive defense that yielded 44 sacks and was second in the league in points allowed, behind only the Patriots. However, two of their best players, Shaq Lawson and Jordan Phillips, are set to hit free agency. Having linemen like Ed Oliver, Jerry Hughes, Star Lotulelei, and Trent Murphy helps, but Lawson and Phillips were standouts who combined for 16 sacks in 2019.

Fortunately, the Bills have a lot of cap space — nearly $90 million — to account for some of their potential departures. If they can retain or replace at least one of those guys, there will still be plenty left over to bring in an offensive weapon while extending some of their younger players.

It’s not necessarily the end for Brady and the Patriots

Sure, it’s possible that Tom Brady retires or goes elsewhere in this, the 75th year of his career. But it seems more likely that the Patriots organization would stick with the future Hall of Famer who has brought them so much success. It’s not like New England is devoid of talent outside of the greatest quarterback to ever do it, either.

Julian Edelman is still going strong into his 12th NFL season, and a full offseason alongside 2019 first-round pick N’Keal Harry and veteran Mohamed Sanu should help the receiving corps greatly. Even so, the Patriots will need to bring in another receiver, not to mention a tight end to take over for Benjamin Watson, who ineffectively replaced Rob Gronkowski.

The offensive line could use some reinforcement, though it mostly just needs everyone to stay healthy. All-Pro center David Andrews missed the season with an injury, and left tackle Isaiah Wynn was out for eight games early in the season.

Most of the offensive problems can be fixed in a single offseason. Getting the receivers to be more consistent and cohesive as a unit, plus offensive line help, will make a huge difference. The New England offense will still be in good shape if Brady returns.

That brings things to the defense, where the Patriots are still very good. They led the league in turnover differential at plus-21, and really their only weakness is at the edge rusher position. There aren’t many big names on expiring deals— Devin McCourty (32) and Jamie Collins (30) are the main ones, and they stand a solid chance of being retained or are replaceable if they depart. There’s every reason to expect Defensive Player of the Year candidate Stephon Gilmore to lead the secondary to greatness again.

The things that defined the Patriots’ loss to the Titans in the playoffs were mostly just mistakes. Brady had a pick-six with the game on the line. A 38-yard gain in the third quarter was wiped out by an ineligible man downfield penalty. Both Harry and Edelman had key drops. It was an ugly game, but not one that screams “this team is finished for good.”

Drew Brees + Michael Thomas = playoffs, always

Like Brady, Drew Brees is set to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason. Unlike Brady, Brees didn’t look slowed down by any metric in 2019 (though he did miss five games with an injury). He is getting more efficient in the latter stages of career, leading the NFL in completion percentage in each of his last three seasons. In 2019, Brees completed 74.3 percent of his passes with 27 touchdowns against just four interceptions while playing in 11 games.

Despite turning 41 soon, Brees didn’t sound like someone who was planning to leave when he spoke to reporters in his postgame press conference following the loss to the Vikings.

So if Brees is back, what’s the biggest concern? For one, the Saints need to ensure they get him a capable backup, whether it’s still Teddy Bridgewater or someone else. Bridgewater will be a free agent and after going 5-0 while filling in for Brees, he could be signed by another team to compete for a starting job.

With All-Pro Michael Thomas leading the league in receiving yards (1,725) and receptions (setting a new NFL record with 149), New Orleans has the QB-WR combination it needs to continue being a top-10 offense like it’s been for 14 straight seasons now.

On defense, the top order for the Saints is looking at who they can keep with limited cap space. Guys like Eli Apple, A.J. Klein, David Onyemata, Vonn Bell, and P.J. Williams are all set to be free agents. However, defensive linemen Marcus Davenport and Sheldon Rankins will be back and healthy after injuries kept them out of the postseason.

As long as Brees and Michael Thomas are there, the Saints should make it to the playoffs. Overall, though, this is a very complete team. They went 13-3 and they didn’t have any glaring deficiencies — at least until they ran into the Vikings in the playoffs to lose another heartbreaker.

The Eagles just need to give Carson Wentz a little help — and have better injury luck

Well, that was a really crappy way for the season to end for Carson Wentz. The Eagles quarterback had to leave during the second possession of his first playoff appearance after a controversial hit from Jadeveon Clowney knocked Wentz out of the game.

Even though Wentz had been hurt at the end of the previous two seasons, it’s unfair to label him as injury-prone after that hit. It’s also rather pointless: Philadelphia is committed to its franchise quarterback, who guided the team to four straight wins despite the offense being absolutely decimated by injuries.

By the end of the season, all three of the Eagles’ top receivers were injured, the running backs depth chart was depleted, and even trusty tight end Zach Ertz was still not 100 percent recovered from a lacerated kidney.

In the playoffs, the Eagles were missing two starters along the offensive line, and their receiving corps was made up of players who had recently been promoted from the practice squad. Yet, they still had a chance to beat the Seahawks even with 40-year-old backup Josh McCown at quarterback.

This offseason, the focus will be on getting some help at key positions. They need a game-changing receiver first and foremost. Alshon Jeffery is good, but he just underwent foot surgery and is coming off a disappointing season. Nelson Agholor is hitting free agency. DeSean Jackson proved he still has something left in the tank, though he’s 33 years old and only played in three games.

After that, the Eagles could use a high-end cornerback, and some other defensive depth. In all, this team has a lot of the right pieces, however. What the Eagles need to do more than anything is figure out why so much talent struggled to win games even before the injuries started piling up.

Still, the fact that they showed resilience to make it to the playoffs is something they can hang their hat on.

Philadelphia won the NFC East over Dallas, who will be its top competition next season as well. The Cowboys may have some growing pains with new coach Mike McCarthy, or he might turn them back into a contender. Either way, the Eagles should be able to make it back to the playoffs next season ... if they can stay healthy.

[drinktouch05-blog]

The Bear’s Den, November 7, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS

Medina: Kevin White’s Healthy Scratch Isn’t Permanent, But It Did Send a Message - Bleacher Nation - Kevin White being a healthy scratch was unexpected, but it might not be a long-term thing. It all depends on the matchups ahead.

Dannehy: Bears Have Put Themselves in the Fight. Now They Have to Win it. - Da Bears Blog - By opening the season at 5-3, the Bears have put themselves in the fight. While they couldn’t win the NFC North in the first half of the season, they managed to put themselves in position to win the division or, at the very least, make the playoffs. They are in the fight. Now they have to win it.

Gabriel: Bears Offense’s Midseason Report Card - 670 The Score - Mitchell Trubisky and his cohorts have been solid but have room to grow.

5@5: Fair To Judge Trubisky By Bears’ Record? - 670 The Score - The Mully & Haugh crew debates a five-pack of questions every weekday.

Lunch With Larry: 11.06.18 - ChicagoBears.com - Bears Senior Writer Larry Mayer took fan questions during his usual Tuesday Q&A session to discuss topics such as Eddie Jackson’s play, the status of Khalil Mack and Allen Robinson and upcoming games against division opponents.

Fangio talks dominant defense in Bills blowout - ChicagoBears.com - Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio discussed the Bears’ dominant defensive performance against the Bills during a Monday night appearance on the Bears Coaches Show.

Biggs: Mitch Trubisky's big 3rd-down throws are the kind of plays he needs to make more often - Chicago Tribune - Mitch Trubisky had an underwhelming performance against the Bills, but the Bears quarterback made some impressive throws on third down.

Rosenbloom: Carpe Detroit - The Lions are just the defense to get Bears running back Jordan Howard going - Chicago Tribune - The Lions have allowed more than 100 rushing yards in six of eight games this season. They have allowed an average of 142.5 yards a game, third-worst in the NFL. They have allowed five runs of at least 40 yards, worst in the league. Looks like a great time for Matt Nagy to get Jordan Howard going.

Eddie Jackson, Kyle Fuller among PFF’s top defenders in Week 9 - Bears Wire - Chicago Bears defenders Kyle Fuller and Eddie Jackson were named to Pro Football Focus' Week 9 Team of the Week.

Bears QB Mitch Trubisky excelled under pressure against Bills - Bears Wire - Chicago Bears QB Mitch Trubisky excelled under pressure against the Buffalo Bills in Week 9's lopsided victory

Stankevitz' Bears film breakdown: Why two outstanding throws by Mitch Trubisky are 'vitally important' to his development - NBC Sports Chicago - Mitch Trubisky converted a number of third-and-long downs in the first half of Sunday's game, which are critical to his development as a quarterback.

Mullin: Ditka and Lovie were right, Bears, Nagy need to control their division first – or else | NBC Sports Chicago - The Bears' upcoming three games against Detroit and Minnesota take on added significance.

NFL writer goes in hard on Mitchell Trubisky, Bears: 'He can’t throw the ball inbounds half the time' - NBC Sports Chicago - Michael Lombardi, an NFL writer for The Athletic, went in hard on Mitchell Trubisky and the Bears during a guest appearance on the Follow the Money podcast.

Mullin: Bears at the ’18 halfway point - May have something historic in the making with Matt Nagy | NBC Sports Chicago - Assessing what the Bears have in Matt Nagy.

Chalk Talk: How have Bears coaches done in first season? - ChicagoBears.com - Senior writer Larry Mayer discusses how Bears head coaches have fared in their first seasons, safety Eddie Jackson entering last Sunday’s game in Buffalo on offense and how injuries to two tight ends will affect Adam Shaheen’s status.

Bears kick off 30th annual Coat Drive - ChicagoBears.com - As part of their 30th annual Chicago Bears Coat Drive, fans are encouraged to donate new and gently used coats at Chicago-area Jewel-Osco stores through Feb. 1.

2018 second-half predictions: Nine headlines from the future! - NFL.com - Will the Packers sputter out? What should we expect from Le'Veon Bell and the Steelers in the next eight weeks? Jeremy Bergman offers his predictions for the season's second half, revealing nine headlines from the future.

Jahns: Bears' first-half analysis, second-half predictions - Chicago Sun-Times - Halfway through the Bears' 16-game slate, here is a breakdown of the first half of the season and predictions for the second.

Finley: Bears' first-half analysis, second-half predictions - Chicago Sun-Times - Sun-Times Bears expert Patrick Finley breaks down the first half of the season and makes predictions for the rest of the way.

Finley: Bears want rookie Roquan Smith to chase a challenge that 'never gets solved' - Chicago Sun-Times - Glenn Pires set a high bar for the No. 8 overall pick, whom the Bears plan on quarterbacking the defense for years.

Potash: Bears look like contenders, but ’playoffs’ a dirty word at Halas Hall - Chicago Sun-Times - The Bears have lost 10 consecutive division games. They are 12-31 in the division since 2010, including 6-25 the last five seasons.

Finley: Could TE Adam Shaheen practice with Bears this week? - Chicago Sun-Times - The Bears have two tight ends in concussion protocol: Dion Sims, who was hurt Sunday, and Ben Braunecker, who suffered the injury the week before.

Campbell & Kane: 5 things we heard from Bears offensive coaches - Mitch Trubisky's pre-snap command, Anthony Miller's knowledge and more - Chicago Tribune - 5 things we heard from Bears offensive position coaches include Mitch Trubisky's command, rookie receiver Anthony Miller's knowledge base, quarterback coach Dave Ragone's two favorite throws of the season.

Campbell: 5 observations from rewatching Bears-Bills - Mitch Trubisky's hits and misses, the 2015 draft class, penalties galore and more - Chicago Tribune - The Bears trounced the Bills, 41-9, with an opportunistic defensive performance that outweighed difficulties the offense had in one of its toughest matchups this season.

Kane & Campbell: 5 things we heard from Bears defensive coaches, including how Khalil Mack is 'built different’ - Chicago Tribune - Bears outside linebackers coach Brandon Staley said he believes Khalil Mack is “at peace” with his recovery process from a right ankle injury.

Haugh: No Chicago sports executive is having a better year than Bears GM Ryan Pace, who is making the most of his 2nd chance - Chicago Tribune - Sticking with Ryan Pace offers a solid argument for patience so hard to find in professional sports. To Pace’s credit, he has taken advantage of his second chance to make a first impression by essentially hitting reset on his tenure as Bears GM.

Medina: Kevin White’s Healthy Scratch Isn’t Permanent, But It Did Send a Message - Bleacher Nation - Kevin White being a healthy scratch was unexpected, but it might not be a long-term thing. It all depends on the matchups ahead.

Dannehy: Bears Have Put Themselves in the Fight. Now They Have to Win it. - Da Bears Blog - By opening the season at 5-3, the Bears have put themselves in the fight. While they couldn’t win the NFC North in the first half of the season, they managed to put themselves in position to win the division or, at the very least, make the playoffs. They are in the fight. Now they have to win it.

Gabriel: Bears Offense’s Midseason Report Card - 670 The Score - Mitchell Trubisky and his cohorts have been solid but have room to grow.

5@5: Fair To Judge Trubisky By Bears’ Record? - 670 The Score - The Mully & Haugh crew debates a five-pack of questions every weekday.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Medina: Pass-Rusher Bruce Irvin Is Officially a Free Agent … Should the Bears Be Interested? - Bleacher Nation - You can’t have too many pass-rushers in this era of football.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Lions film breakdown: How much is Matthew Stafford to blame for 10 sacks vs. Vikings? - Pride Of Detroit - Was Stafford holding onto the ball too long?

Rich Gannon said something stupid about Lions’ Matthew Stafford - Pride Of Detroit - - Now’s the part where we get upset.

Lions waive Ameer Abdullah, sign WR Bruce Ellington, Zach Zenner - Pride Of Detroit - The Lions have a new receiver and it appears the Ameer Abdullah era is over.

NFC North Week 9 Recap: Top two contenders emerge in the division - Pride Of Detroit - It’s beginning to look like a two-horse race in the Black and Blue division.

Packers Transactions: Jermaine Whitehead waived, Geronimo Allison to IR - Acme Packing Company - One move was expected. The other was anything but.

Minnesota Vikings Trending in the Right Direction - Daily Norseman - The Bye Week Couldn’t Have Come at a Better Time

The Packers could fire Mike McCarthy no matter how 2018 ends - Acme Packing Company - At this point, the Packers head coach is the "This is fine" dog in the burning kitchen meme.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Householder: Stock up, Stock down - Chicago Bears-Buffalo Bills - Windy City Gridiron - Who is playing good and who needs to improve as the Bears move into a division stretch

Wiltfong's NFL Power Rankings: The Chicago Bears are on a roll, but will they move up? - Windy City Gridiron - Let’s take a trip around the NFL Power Rankings to see where the experts have the 5-3 Chicago Bears ranked.

Leming: Chicago Bears second quarter report card - Windy City Gridiron - The Bears are halfway through the season but just how good have they been? Our second quarter report card is here.

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

2 Minute Drill - Website - iTunes - Andrew Link; Steven’s Streaming – Twitch – Steven Schweickert; T-Formation Conversation - Website - iTunes - Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; WCG Radio - Website - iTunes - Robert Zeglinski

THE RULES

Windy City Gridiron Community Guidelines - SBNation.com - We strive to make our communities open and inclusive to sports fans of all backgrounds. The following is not permitted in comments, FanPosts, usernames or anywhere else in an SB Nation community: Comments, FanPosts or usernames that are intolerant or prejudiced; racial or other offensive epithets; Personal attacks or threats on community members; Gendered insults of any kind; Trolling; Click link for full information.

The Bear’s Den Specific Guidelines – The Bear’s Den is a place for Chicago Bears fans to discuss Chicago Bears football, related NFL stories, and general football talk. It is NOT a place to discuss religion or politics or post political pictures or memes, and any posts that do this will be deleted and the poster will be admonished. We do not allow comments posted where the apparent attempt is to cause confrontation in the community. We do not allow gender-directed humor or sexual assault jokes. The staff of WCG are the sole arbiters of what constitutes “apparent attempt to cause confrontation”. We do not allow the “calling out” of other members in any way, shape or form. Posts that do this will be deleted on sight. Bottom line, it’s fine to debate about football, but personal jabs and insults are strictly prohibited. Additionally, if you keep beating the same dead horse over and over and fail to heed a moderator’s warning to stop, you will be banned.

Click on our names to follow us on Twitter:

WCG Contributors: Jeff Berckes; Patti Curl; Eric Christopher Duerrwaechter; Kev H; Sam Householder; Jacob Infante; Aaron Lemming; Andrew Link; Ken Mitchell; Steven Schweickert; Jack Silverstein; EJ Snyder; Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; Whiskey Ranger; Robert Zeglinski; Like us on Facebook.

Source: https://www.windycitygridiron.com/2018/11/7/18070214/chicago-bears-2018-season-news-updates-analysis-game-eight-buffalo-bills-adam-shaheen-khalil-mack

[paradoxicalca]

/r/hockey NHL Power Rankings Week 26 Knightfall Edition

/r/Hockey NHL Power Rankings Week Mar 25, 2019 - Mar 31, 2019Thank YouThank you to all of the volunteers doing the power rankings. Each ranker has their own system and have their own reasonings and analyis. It truly is a lot of work.RankersSpoilerOrganizersSpoilerVisualizationThe visualization contains historical data, so you can see how your team has done over time. Hopefully, we can run this for many years in hopes that we can see the rise and fall of teams by /r/hockey opinion.It automatically updates so feel free to bookmark. You can find it hereProcessHow does this work? Throughout the course of the week rankers are able to access an app that will allow them to rank teams. At the end of the period we calculate the average ranking for every team and collate all of the analysis provided by rankers.The app then generates a post that is first proofread and then posted to /r/hockey!Rankings (26/31 Rankers Reporting)Ranking (avg)TeamDeltaOverall RecordRecord This WeekComments1 (1.08)Tampa Bay Lightning-59-15-41-1-0Tampa doesn’t play well after a long break. That has been established quite well this season. There isn’t much more I can say about the Bolts that hasn’t been said I’m going to focus on some baby Bolts. Carter Verhaeghe leads the AHL in points with 75 (30 G 45A), Alex Barre-Boulet is second in rookie scoring with 60 ponts (32 G 28 A), Cal Foote also a rookie has 29 points ( 9 G 20A +16) as a defenseman, Alexander Volkov continues to show strong two way play in his second season (20 G 20A). Taylor Raddsyh is 8th in rookie scoring (17G 26A), Boris Katchouck is still trying to find his footing, Mitchell Stephens who almost made the team out of camp but had an unfortunate injury has played well since his return. Suffice it say there are a lot of good young players developing in Syracuse.2 (3.56)Boston Bruins147-23-91-3-0Oof. It seems neither Toronto nor Boston want home ice advantage in the first round. Both teams are losing to lottery contenders. At least 🍝 got a hattrick against the Rangers and Backes got his 7th goal of the season; passing James Neal.3 (3.88)Calgary Flames-149-23-72-2-0And that is how the West was clinched.4 (4.28)Washington Capitals247-24-83-0-0Starting this week I'm ranking teams based on who I think will win the cup, biases included - Caps are second. We absolutely took it to the Bolts last night, with each member of our old top line scoring twice, dominating them as much as you can dominate that team. I'm fully torqued entering the 'loffs, literally counting down the days like it's christmas. Both Carolina and cum bus scare me, but the post-TDL Caps can beat anybody. Russian machine never breaks babes.5 (7.32)New York Islanders246-26-72-1-0Clinched? Fucking Right! Isles had the chance to clinch on Tuesday night versus CBJ but played awful and lost badly. Thursday they constantly played down 2, chasing the Jets. They were down for about 58 minutes throughout the game, but scored 2 goals with less than 90 seconds to go to tie, and steal the win in Manitoba. They kept momentum from there to dominate Buffalo and clinch a playoff spot before April for the first time in almost 30 years. Lehner looks like a wall in net and is maybe the most loved Islander right now. Eberle has a hot hand scoring lots of goals after a long dry spell, Barzal is finally seeing results for his hard work, and other guys like Bailey are chipping in after a long cold streak. This team looks to be heating up again at the perfect time, looking like they will finish as the #2 in the Metro with home ice advantage for the first time in a long long time. If things play out well they could be playing Washington for the division title on the last day of their season.6 (8.12)San Jose Sharks-144-26-91-3-07 (8.44)Nashville Predators444-29-62-1-0Ignoring the result of the CBJ game (Saros is apparently no Michael Jordan when it comes to flu games), it's been a pretty okay week to be a Preds fan. Fabbro signed on so fears of another Vesey situation were finally put to ease. He even made his debut, not an earth shattering one mind you but it was solid nonetheless. That does burn the first year of his ELC which will expose him in the Seattle expansion, but current speculation is that was a term to him actually signing. In other player news, Arvidsson has tied the Preds single season goal record with only 55 GP. Watson completed his AHL conditioning stint, and it will be interesting to see how he gets slotted into the roster. Turris is... yeah. The Central is up for grabs, with any combination of NSH, STL, or WPG in the top 3 a distinct possibility. The Preds final three games are @ BUF, v VAN, v CHI, games that they should be able to win and go into the playoffs at least lukewarm and potentially with home ice advantage. Key word there being 'should'.8 (8.72)Winnipeg Jets-445-29-40-3-09 (9.52)Toronto Maple Leafs-145-26-71-1-1A tale of two teams in the month of March...Team A was missing two of their Top 4D for basically the entire month of March. Collected 16 of 30 points. Posted a CF% of 44.9%, a xGF% of 44.3%, and a PDO of 103.51...Team B was also missing two of their Top 4D for the entire month of March. Collected 15 of 28 points. Posted a CF% of 54.4%, a xGF% of 55%, and a PDO of 98.7...Guess which of these teams is expected to become a Conference Finalist and which is expected to be bounced quickly in Round 1? TOR is Team B but there's been a lot of "they don't look good" punditry over the Leafs' recent play despite the reality that they've been downright dominant (5th in CF%, 5th in xGF%). Unfortunately, their goaltending fell apart to the tune of a .892 Team SV% in March. It's the kind of thing that can sink ANY team in the NHL, no matter how well the rest of the group is playing. The good news is Freddy and the Buds have one final week to tighten up. Otherwise it will truly be Bruins in 5.10 (10.08)Carolina Hurricanes-43-29-71-3-0The Canes are still finding a way to stay in the thick of it with every game being a must win game. Losses have come from one bad period of hockey against some of the top teams in the league, namely Tampa and Washington. The month of December is haunting the team, 2 points from one of those terrible games would have gone far this month. Previous week went 3 - 2, beating the Wild cleanly, Montreal in OT, and Flyers was alot closer of a game than the scoresheet would show. Washington beat the team for the two losses of the week, both in the third period. The hope here in Canes Country is that those 4 points don't haunt us too. Mrazek is emerging more and more as our #1, but expect the shuffle to keep happening till playoffs come (if and when) Svechnikov has grown into the scoring talent that was promised with the second overall pick (and top forward in the draft) Hamilton continues to show why he is the best defenceman from his draft year with two goals, and continues his streak of games wi11 (10.4)Columbus Blue Jackets345-30-44-0-0What a time to get hot. This Jackets team that we are watching right now is what we expected to see after the TDL. Every line has been playing great as we seem to have finally stumbled on the right combinations. Bob is literally a brick wall and our offence has been just as good. Over the last 5 games the Jackets have outscored their opponents 24-4. This final week is going to be exciting, and we could land anywhere from 3rd in the metro to 9th in the East.12 (10.52)Pittsburgh Penguins-43-25-112-1-0I don't have much to say this week except who'd have thought in December we might finish with more points than the Leafs? We're one game from extending the longest active playoff streak in the NHL. It's been a good season all things considered.13 (11.44)St. Louis Blues-42-28-82-1-0The Blues finally clinched the playoffs this week, and if you told me 3 months ago that we'd be fighting for the division I'd have said "yeah and 25 year old goalies can debut after 6 years in professional hockey and contend for the Calder." Memes do come true i guess14 (12)Vegas Golden Knights-542-30-70-3-1Even the Stone age is not invulnerable to having average goaltending.15 (13.72)Dallas Stars141-31-73-0-1I put the Stars at 8 this week because we earned 7/8 points and we look like the Western team to beat heading into the playoffs. My major concern is that we win too much and end up in a worse matchup against Nashville.16 (14)Montreal Canadiens-142-29-82-1-017 (17.52)Arizona Coyotes-38-33-82-0-1That game against the Avalanche could be the final dagger in this season but as we have been doing we keep clawing our way back. Just need some help.18 (18.08)Colorado Avalanche136-29-132-0-02 Big wins this week! We beat back the two desert teams, to establish our selves in the second wild card. Its not over yet, but we have control of our own destiny. The Captain is back just in time for or final push. On the bad side Rantanen's injury might be a bit more severe than first reported, but he should be back for the playoffs. One final push this week we need at least two wins, three guarantees it. Also Cale Makar is Hype and Avs prospects are showing well in the NCAA tourney.19 (19.68)Minnesota Wild136-34-91-2-0And so closes the window on the Minnesota Wild.20 (20.44)Philadelphia Flyers-237-34-81-2-0Fade us fam. Hail Gritty. Praise be unto Wawa. And screw William Hill commercials.21 (21.52)Florida Panthers-35-32-122-2-0Roberto has turned back the clock again. We still don’t know if this is his final season but if it is lets give him a sendoff that he deserves.22 (21.92)Chicago Blackhawks-34-33-111-1-1The Blackhawks' PP went 3 for 32 in March (29th in NHL), the PK allowed 10 goals in 32 opportunities (also, 29th). Excluding empty net goals, 5 of the Blackhawks' 7 losses this month were by 1 goal. They'd likely be in a much different position playoff-wise if they'd gotten some help from their special teams. DeBrincat (5G, 5A in March) has caught up to Kane (1G, 10A) for the team's lead in goals at 41. DeBrincat is the second-youngest Hawk to hit the 40-goal mark (after JR). That also makes him and Kane the second pair of American-born 40-goal scorers on a team (after Mullen & Stevens, 91-92 Penguins), and the first pair of Hawks since the 90-91 season (Roenick & Larmer). Gustafsson (5G, 4A) scored his 17th goal of the season, the most by a Hawks dman since Byfuglien in 09-10 (also 17). Caggiula returned from a concussion on Sat, while Kampf left with a facial/dental injury. When healthy, Kampf has been one of the best defensive forwards in the league. Sikura still awaits his first NHL goal.23 (23.36)Vancouver Canucks134-35-102-1-0The future is here, sort of. It's here like the era of the electric car is here - there's plenty of flashy things to get excited about, but there's still many, many hurdles to overcome. The arrival of Quinn Hughes allows this season to end on a warm note and leaves many hopeful that the Canucks might secure one of those "young team overperforming" playoff berths next year. It was also pretty awesome to see Edler crack the all-time goalscoring record for a defenceman. Otherwise, the lack of regulation wins prevents this team from moving much either way in the power rankings.24 (23.92)Edmonton Oilers-134-35-91-1-125 (25)Anaheim Ducks-133-37-102-1-0Rakell must not think we are out of the playoff race. He had a natural hat trick against the oilers. Ducks keep on slipping slipping slipping up the standings and out of the jack Hughes race. Best part of the week: Jake Dotchin has to exit the game yesterday because he was technically scratched while playing for an injured player26 (26.52)New York Rangers131-34-132-2-0Georgiev is starting to show why he is the heir apparent to the throne.27 (26.6)Detroit Red Wings231-38-104-0-028 (27.48)Buffalo Sabres-231-38-100-4-1I'm willing to give goaltending a pass for now, given how god-awful our defense has been. This week we lost to not one, not two, but THREE of the four teams below us in the standings. In March we have 2 wins, and neither came in regulation. If you look back further, we have 3 total wins in our last 21 games played, and as I write we are down 0-3 to Columbus. In that stretch we have been out-scored 45-84. If that isn't depressing enough for you, just remember that we were first place in the league at one point this season. Where are we now? Oh yeah, bottom five. Again.29 (28.32)New Jersey Devils-129-40-101-1-1Most of us are either trying to find the "sim to the draft button" or enjoying getting a glimpse to our possible future with our young guns. Some games are decent and competitive like taking the blue hot blues to OT. Others are like like 4-0 to the wings. As long as this kind of play doesn't continue into next season, we should be alright. But Lord do I miss TayTay.30 (28.8)Los Angeles Kings-29-40-92-1-1The Kings self-sabotaged their draft lottery a bit this week- the young guys are doing well and Austin Wagner showed off his wheels with a sweet McDavid esque sprint.31 (29.76)Ottawa Senators-28-44-62-1-0Beating Toronto twice in the span of a couple weeks is probably the best thing to happen all season. /r/hockey NHL Power Rankings Week 26 Knightfall Edition Source

[thrashermaxey]

Ramblings: Panthers Producing, Tampa Chasing History, Binnington, Murray, & Couturier (Feb 20)

  Don’t look now, but the Ducks have won three of their last four games. Two via the shutout including a 4-0 victory over the Wild on Tuesday evening. None of these contests have seen John Gibson, either. Ryan Miller is healthy and providing exactly what’s expected of him: providing legitimate netminding if/when Gibson isn’t in the crease.

  Anaheim is just three points back of the final Wild Card spot – held by the struggling Wild. This despite boasting a league-worst -50 goal differential.

  That Pacific Division is yuck.

  **

Those cats from Minny are trying their darndest to fall out of the playoff picture. They’re 1-6-3 over their past 10 games. They sure appear to miss Mikko Koivu a great deal.

  **

On the other side of the ledger, the Blues simply refuse to lose. They put their 10-game win streak on the line against the Leafs on Tuesday and despite blowing a 2-0 lead in the third period, came away victorious in overtime off the stick of Ryan O’Reilly.

  Robert Thomas has been toiling away on the fourth line during even-strength play, but the rookie pivot is beginning to look awfully comfortable on the top power-play unit. He didn’t have any points in this one but he has six in his last seven games.

  Thomas should be considered a real threat to break out in 2019-20. Keep that one in your back pocket for draft season next fall.

  Another start for Jordan Binnington and another victory. He hasn’t lost in a full month with 13 of his 15 starts in 2019 have been quality – meaning at or above league average save percentage – around 0.910. 

  He’s been a key figure in the revolution happening in Missouri these days. The real question is where we peg him as an asset moving forward? Obviously, this type of run will not be sustained. No one can run hot forever. But a 25-year-old who appears capable of leading a playoff-calibre team should be worth some serious action in drafts next season.

  **

Andreas Johnsson returned to action. He skated 15:27 alongside Nazem Kadri and William Nylander at evens. The Leafs didn’t receive a power plays in this one, but Johnsson was practicing on the left point on the second unit.

  Johnsson is a very interesting player moving forward. Will he price himself out of Toronto as an RFA this summer or is he destined to be a swiss army knife for the squad? He’s a sleeper right now; let’s see if that lasts through the summer.

  **

For those leagues who employ two-week playoff matches, this week was the kickoff to the 2019 Fantasy Post-Season. The team with the healthiest schedule is the Panthers, and they got things moving and shaking in the right direction on Tuesday with a 4-2 victory over the Sabres.

  Florida plays eight contests over the next two weeks including six at home. They may not be a playoff team, but they score like one – kicking around the top half of the league for goals for. Their big cats really flashed their teeth late in this one.

  Jonathan Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov both chipped in three points – all accrued in the third frame to seal the victory. They were some pretty tallies too.

  https://dobberhockey.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2019/02/Hubey-deke.mp4

    Barkov has seven points in his last two games and remains above a point-per-game pace. On the other hand, Huberdeau’s production has to be a welcomed sight for those owners who were getting used to his early season dominance. The skilled winger came into this tilt with just three points in his previous eight games.

  His name has been in trade rumours leading up to the deadline. 30 teams should be calling if Dale Tallon is dumb enough to move him. 

  **

No points for Rasmus Dalin despite leading all Buffalo skaters in PPTOI with 5:59.

  **

The illness-riddled Penguins overcame a couple of one-goal deficits to defeat the flailing Devils 4-3. Sidney Crosby posted an assist to extend his point streak to six contests, while Evgeni Malkin’s apple pushed his personal streak to eight games.

  Matt Murray stopped 33 in this one, including some bell ringers in the final frame. He has three wins in his last four tries. He’s 14-5-0 with a 0.931 save percentage since returning from injury in mid-December.

  The Pens are third in the Metro and just two points behind the Caps.

  **

Carter Hart was given the Tampa Bay treatment on Tuesday. The 20-year-old netminder surrendered three goals on six shots before getting the yank. No sweat, kid the Bolts are chasing history as one of the all-time great teams.

  Here’s a look at the a few of the top seasons of all-time (Win %)

1929-30 Bruins (0.875) – 44 GP

1943-44 Habs (.830) – 50 GP

1976-77 Habs (.825) – 80GP

2012-13 Blackhawks (.811) – 45GP [Lockout season]

1977-78 Habs (.806) – 80GP

1944-45 Habs (.800)  -50GP

1995-96 Red Wings (.799) – 82GP – 62 wins [NHL RECORD]

1975-76 Habs (.794) – 80GP

2018-19 Tampa Bay (.787) – 61GP – on pace for 62 wins

1970-71 Bruins (.776) – 78GP

  Yes, we can look to the shootout and overtime frame as boosters for this squad, but their RPt% (regulation point-percentage) is still a very pretty 0.730.

  This is a special team, doing special things.

  Sadly, Nikita Kucherov was held off the scoresheet and wasn’t able to hit triple-digits on Tuesday despite the Lightning beating Philly 5-2. Tampa has now won seven straight games for the THIRD time this season.

  Nutty.

  **

Sean Couturier continued his hot streak by adding two assists. The 26-year-old has recorded four consecutive multi-point outings; has 22 points in his last 15 games, and is playing just a hair below a point-per-game output on the campaign.

  His 132 points over the last two seasons sit tied with Sebastian Aho and Brent Burns for 27th most. Not bad company to keep.

  **

Henrik Lundqvist made 43 stops as the Rangers defeated the Hurricanes 2-1 a crucial tilt for Carolina. The loss kept the Canes a single point out of the final Wildcard spot held by Columbus.

  **

Speaking of Columbus, they weren’t able to create any extra separation on Tuesday when they fell 3-2 to the Canadiens. Tomas Tatar tallied the game-winner with under seven minutes to play in this one. Tatar has been a very shrewd pickup for many poolies. Left for dead in Vegas, he’s risen from the fluorescent ashes of Sin City to be a contributing member of the fantasy landscape once again.

  The 28-year-old has 11 points in his last 12 games and has vastly outperformed the player who went the other direction in Max Pacioretty.

  Jesperi Kotkaniemi chipped in with two assists in the win. The 18-year-old is posting a very respectable rookie campaign, clicking right at the half-point-per-game mark. 

  He's the real deal. 

  **

For those gearing up for a lottery pick, get excited for Kaapo Kakko. The recently turned 18-year-old is scoring goals in the Finnish Liiga at an unheard of rate.

  {source}<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kaapo Kakko- making goal-scoring history among u-18 players in Finnish Elite League… check this out. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Octagon?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Octagon</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/2019NHLDraft?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#2019NHLDraft</a> <a href="https://t.co/OTISEamGFP">pic.twitter.com/OTISEamGFP</a></p>— Andy Scott (@Andy_Scott15) <a href="https://twitter.com/Andy_Scott15/status/1097946211468730368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2019</a></blockquote>

<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>{/source}

  **

Roman Josi tallied two goals and an assist, Ryan Ellis chipped in three assists, and Pekka Rinne made 36 stops as the Preds defeated the Stars 5-3. The Stars have lost three straight and are heading the wrong direction heading into the trade deadline next Monday. 

  **

The Oilers were without Connor McDavid on Tuesday against the Coyotes due to illness. I'd be a little queasy too seeing my team tumbling to the bottom of the standings once again.  

  The Oilers stuck to the script and lost their fifth straight and 11th of their last 12 with a 3-2 shootout defeat. 

  **

Kucherov has been getting most of the attention these days, and for good reason. Before his scoreless evening on Tuesday he had 18 points in his previous five games and has a whopping 99 points in 61 games. He’s on pace to be the first player to break 130 points in nearly 25 years.

  Here’s the thing though, Patrick Kane is somehow running even hotter right now. He has an incredible 65 points in 37 games stretching back to Nov. 24th. He recently surpassed Mike Hoffman’s earlier season point streak of 17 games for the longest run of the season.

  Kane has produced 40 points on his current 18 games run. 40.

  In the Last 10 years, the top streaks are:

  Kane – 26 games in 2015-16

Crosby 25 games in 2010-11

Taylor Hall – 19 games in 2017-18

Steven Stamkos – 18 games in 2009-10

Corey Perry – 19 in 2009-10

Phil Kessel – 18 in 2008-09

  Don’t take these lengthy point-streaks for granted. They don’t come around too often. 

  And don't go handing that Hart trophy to Kuch just yet. If Kane can drag the Blackhawks to the post-season – and they're only one point back right now, his massive point totals and lack of surrounding talent will be difficult to argue against. 

  **

Follow me on Twitter @Hockey_Robinson

      from All About Sports https://dobberhockey.com/hockey-rambling/ramblings-panthers-producing-lightning-chasing-history-binnington-murray-couturier-feb-20/

[truesportsfan]

Rangers’ playoff dream takes big hit with loss to Blues

This was the definition of a moral victory — which, of course, means that in reality it was a loss.

The Rangers were sure happy that they played better than they did while getting swept by the Flyers in a weekend home-and-home, but it was a third straight defeat when they dropped a tight 3-1 contest to the defending Stanley Cup champion Blues at the Garden on Tuesday night.

The Blueshirts (35-27-4) played with energy and pace. They battled through the huge bodies on the Blues (40-17-10) and some obvious missed calls that could have awakened their dormant offense. But in the end, it was a soft wraparound from Brayden Schenn at 9:56 of the third period that went off the skate of goalie Alex Georgiev and in to break a 1-1 tie and stand as the game-winner.

“It is all about winning and losing, but you also have to take into consideration: Do you give yourself a chance to win?” coach David Quinn said. “That was a big-boy hockey game right there. There wasn’t a lot of room out there, there was a playoff feel to it. A little unfortunate a bounce ends up in the back of our net, which was the difference in the game.”

The playoff contenders have not run and hid just yet, as the Islanders, in the first wild-card spot with 78 points, got blown out at home by the Canadiens, while the idle Blue Jackets hold the second wild card with 78 points (and two more games played), followed by the idle Hurricanes at 75 and then the Rangers at 74. So after the Blueshirts went and won nine of 10 before this three-game slide, they really haven’t lost a ton of ground — even if they missed a giant opportunity to actually get themselves over the threshold for the first time since the standings started to matter.

Alexandar GeorgievHoward Simmons

“We’re disappointed in our result, and we just have to keep focusing on ourselves,” Quinn said. “We can’t do anything about how the Islanders play, how Carolina plays, how Columbus plays. That’s completely out of our control. We have to stay focused on what we’re doing.”

That focus got the Rangers to play a much tighter defensive game — and one in which they hung with one of the toughest teams in the league. There were so few scoring chances as the game flew by in real time, which is why it was such a shock when Schenn’s seemingly innocuous wraparound managed to bounce in.

“I need to check the replay [to see] what happened, but I saw that he had a couple options there. I didn’t really expect him to shoot,” said Georgiev, who finished with 19 saves in his fourth start in the past five games. “Just have to make that save next time.”

Neither Georgiev nor his counterpart, Jordan Binnington, was overly stressed in a game that had 48 combined shots.

St. Louis defenseman Colton Parayko scored on a power play at 2:35 of the second period, equalizing Mika Zibanejad’s team-leading 33rd of the season on a power play at 12:26 of the first. And the Rangers seemingly should have had a handful more chances on the man-advantage, but, as it is on most nights in the NHL, the officiating was arbitrary. This time it kept the Rangers offense in neutral.

“When that team is allowed to do some of the things they do — and they compete their asses off, so not taking anything away from them,” Quinn said with a shake of the head. “But I loved how we fought through it. We just kept playing through it.”

But despite more good chances for snakebitten rookie Kaapo Kakko over the closing minutes, the Rangers couldn’t get the equalizer and Jaden Schwartz ended it into the empty net.

“A game of that magnitude with such little room and not many scoring chances, the margin for error is so small,” Quinn said. “Unfortunately, we were on the wrong end of it.”

source https://truesportsfan.com/sport-today/rangers-playoff-dream-takes-big-hit-with-loss-to-blues/

[junker-town]

How Carson Wentz and an injured-depleted roster are powering the Eagles

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Despite playing with some no-name guys, Philadelphia has a chance at a postseason run.

The Philadelphia Eagles are in the playoffs for the third consecutive year. Even though they were just 5-7 a month ago, the Eagles won four straight games to finish 9-7 and take the NFC East. But what’s most impressive is how they made the postseason despite so many injuries to key players.

In 2019 alone, 13 players landed on the injured reserve list. Even worse for quarterback Carson Wentz is the number of weapons he’s been missing.

The Eagles have lost their top three wide receivers (DeSean Jackson, Nelson Agholor, and Alshon Jeffery), and have had to deal with injuries to their top tight end (Zach Ertz) and four running backs. Corey Clement and Darren Sproles are on injured reserve, and primary backs Miles Sanders and Jordan Howard have been banged up too.

Philadelphia is hosting the Seahawks in the Wild Card Round on Sunday, a game in which Las Vegas has the home team as a 2-point underdog. Here’s a look at the current injury report ahead of that game, as of Friday afternoon:

Six of these players who are officially out — DeSean Jackson, Malik Jackson, Brooks, Agholor, Jeffery, and Darby — were all Week 1 starters. So how did the Eagles make it this far, and can they keep it up?

Carson Wentz had to get production out of only the weapons he has at his disposal

Wentz started off the season slow, before he took his play up a notch in the last four weeks of the season. Let’s take a look at his numbers.

Weeks 1-13: 236.7 yards per game, 20 TDs, 7 INTs, 90 passer rating, 6.5 Y/A

Weeks 14-17: 299.8 yards per game, 7 TDs, 0 INTs, 100.8 passer rating, 6.9 Y/A

By Week 13, the Eagles were 5-7 and coming off a 37-31 loss to Miami. Then Wentz sparked the team to those last four wins and a spot in the playoffs.

Granted, Philadelphia played all divisional matchups to end the season and no other NFC East team had a winning record. Still, Wentz putting up these numbers despite the injuries around him is encouraging:

Amazing stat & the context is crazy: Carson Wentz is the first QB to throw for 4,000 yards without a single WR hitting 500 yards. Along the way this season, Wentz lost his WR1, WR2, WR3, TE1, RB1 & RB2. Finished the season w a CFB QB as his WR1 & a 5'6" 6th rd RB as RB1.

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) December 30, 2019

Wentz had one of the worst outings of his season when he played the Seahawks in Week 12, finishing with one touchdown, two interceptions, and two lost fumbles. Heading into the rematch in the playoffs, though, he looks much like his former MVP candidate self.

The wide receiver corps has taken the biggest hit, but has gotten help from unexpected places

Wentz began the season with Jackson, Jeffery, Agholor, and Ertz as his main targets. Only Ertz, who was cleared to play the day before the Eagles’ wild card game, is left (though Jackson could come off IR if the Eagles advance). Ertz missed a must-win Week 17 game against the Giants due to a cracked rib and lacerated kidney. He’s the Eagles’ leading receiver by 309 yards.

As a result, some guys that NFL fans may not have even heard of have been pressed into duty late in the season.

Take, for instance, Greg Ward Jr. Ward played quarterback at Houston from 2013-16. He was signed as an undrafted free agent with the Eagles in 2017, and he had various stints with Philly’s practice squad, as well as in the AAF. After starting 2019 on the Eagles’ practice squad, he was promoted to the active roster for a game in Week 3, then again in late November.

Greg Ward has endured 16 roster moves with the #Eagles, the most recent being promoted to the 53-man roster last month: pic.twitter.com/LbSx2iMK0L

— Jeff McLane (@Jeff_McLane) December 16, 2019

Ward has become a reliable slot receiver for the Eagles, and since he was called up, he’s caught 28 passes on 40 targets for 254 yards and a touchdown. His lone score gave the Eagles a Week 15 victory over Washington with 26 seconds left:

One play can make or break your season.@G_Ward1 has made the most of his season as one of the new playmakers for the @Eagles.#NFLTurningPoint: PHI vs WAS pic.twitter.com/Idh1FWmUU1

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) December 19, 2019

Tight end Dallas Goedert has stepped up recently, with 13 catches for 156 yards and a touchdown in the last two games. Rookie receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside has been limited by a foot injury, but he still had two catches for 39 yards in a pivotal win against the Cowboys.

Receivers Deontay Burnett and Robert Davis were also promoted from the practice squad in December and combined for 54 yards over the last two weeks. Tight end Joshua Perkins, brought up at the end of November, had 50 yards and a touchdown against the Giants. These three guys have just seven career starts between their careers.

Against Seattle, the Eagles will have four active receivers who were all practice squad call-ups, to put how depleted the position has been into perspective.

It’s been a similar story for the running backs

This was the Eagles’ running back depth chart at the start of the year: Howard, Sanders, Sproles, Clement.

Howard suffered a shoulder injury in Week 9 against the Bears that caused him to miss the next six games. He was cleared to return in Week 17, but saw just one snap. Clement played in just four games before going on IR with a shoulder injury, and Sproles was lost for the season in Week 10 due to a hip flexor injury.

As such, the Eagles have had to lean on Sanders and Boston Scott late in the season. Sanders emerged as a valuable piece of the offense, totaling 818 rushing yards and 509 receiving yards. The rookie left the Week 17 game against the Giants early after suffering an ankle injury.

That left Scott to shoulder the load, and he did just that. Scott had 54 rushing yards, 84 receiving yards, and scored three touchdowns (the latter two of which were career highs) in the playoff-clinching win. Scott was a 2018 sixth-round pick of the Saints, and he spent time on the Saints’ and Eagles’ practice squads before being promoted on Oct. 11 this season.

Heading into the Wild Card Round, Miles says he is ready to go and Howard is also expected to play. If either is hampered, the Eagles might have to rely on Scott again this week.

The offensive line is banged up, too

Early in the season my colleague Geoff Schwartz ranked the Eagles’ offensive line, which includes three-time All-Pro center Jason Kelce and two-time All-Pro left tackle Jason Peters, as one of the best in the league. Since then, the rest of the line has dealt with some injuries.

Starting right tackle Lane Johnson has missed four games since mid-November. Johnson’s absence has been a problem for Wentz in the past. According to ESPN, the Eagles’ quarterback is 26-14 in games in which Johnson plays and 6-10 when he’s out.

During Philly’s Week 12 loss to the Seahawks, it had to play without Johnson, and Wentz had three fumbles and was sacked three times. Johnson will reportedly sit out this week’s game against Seattle due to an ankle injury.

Starting right guard Brandon Brooks was also sent to the IR this past week with a shoulder injury that he got during an extra point attempt. Backup Matt Pryor, who’s played in just 79 offensive snaps in his career, will get his first ever start while Halapoulivaati Vaitai fills in for Johnson. That’s not great news for a line that next has to go up against Seattle pass rushers Jadeveon Clowney and Ezekiel Anash.

The defense hasn’t escaped the injuries woes, either

The biggest injury problem on defense has been in the secondary. By Week 9, the Eagles played 23 games in a row with at least one starter in the secondary missing, and the team had started 16 different defensive backs during that time. It shouldn’t be a surprise, then, that the Eagles’ defense ranks 21st in passing touchdowns allowed (27) and 24th in passing yards per completion.

Cornerbacks Avonte Maddox, Sidney Jones, Ronald Darby, and Jalen Mills have all been hurt this year. Darby was placed on the IR after Week 16, though Jones, Maddox, and Mills all should be good to go against the Seahawks.

Along the defensive line, the concerns this week center around Fletcher Cox and Derek Barnett. Both are expected to play, but Cox is dealing with a tricep injury and Barnett with an ankle injury. Containing Russell Wilson is hard to do without a consistent (or healthy) pass rush. Barnett is second on the team in sacks, and the veteran Cox has made big plays when he’s needed to late in the season.

The Eagles are only allowing 90 rush yards per game, good for third in the league. It’ll be interesting to see what that run defense, even if it’s not 100 percent, can do against the Seahawks, who have rookie Travis Homer and recently unretired Marshawn Lynch at running back after their own injuries.

The 2017 Eagles team that won the Super Bowl also had a slew of injuries

Two years ago, the Eagles brought home the Lombardi Trophy even though they were without their starting quarterback (Wentz), left tackle (Peters), middle linebacker (Jordan Hicks), and a key playmaker (Sproles).

This year doesn’t quite compare because the Eagles have a lot more major injuries coming into the playoffs, but one thing is the same: they keep winning, and aren’t letting the injuries be an excuse.

When they need guys to step up, they have. In a Week 17 game that they needed to win to make the playoffs, they got big-time contributions from lesser-known names like Scott, Perkins, Ward, Burnett, and Davis. Those guys were all cut by seven different NFL teams a combined 18 times in their careers.

It’s hard to win a lot of games when your roster gets bitten by the injury bug. But the Eagles deserve credit for overcoming adversity and making it this far. We’ll see if they can continue to do so against Seattle on Sunday.