Carey

Meh on Kaep (though that's total crap to do that with the purpose of getting cut, if that actually is his intention). Just more overkill with this story, but for me, I'm okay with it. The reason why is that on September 8, NBC (and later CBS, FOX, and ESPN) will be too busy talking about actual football that actually counts to worry about what some guy does during the anthem

I feel awful for Teddy as well. That injury is just not good at all. However, I don't think it's the Top Ten of brutal losses that turns one team from good to bad. As mentioned, the defense and running game gives Minnesota hope. I just don't think I would have picked them to finish over Green Bay WITH Bridgewater. It's a shame since we'll never know. Definitely a significant loss, but I have belief that Minnesota will be okay. Not as great as pre-injury but barring another big hit, they'll be okay

Sounds like a story that's lead to a question from Jayson Stark (leading to a wrong answer). Though I'd be curious to know if there are 2-3 other father-son duos with as many as 25-40 homer seasons. Smart of Cecil getting out. Nice to love the sport, but IMO, it pales in comparison to loving life in general (even if your career is your life, and in most cases, that's probably not a good thing)

Painful and crushing. I feel for Hannah Storm, who had to break this unexpected news about more than 18 months after having to be the person to break the expected but sad news re: Stuart Scott. Both on Live Sportscenter. Agreed, mojoween. John Saunders will live on for me as being apart of college football (this year obviously and the next year and so on). In spirit but I guess I echo the feelings of many (at ESPN) in terms of his work and presence in NCAAF (as well as college hoops and hockey).

Looks like the College Football Playoff Committee finally caved... The only thing that wasn't addressed was the times, but that is really only a concern in 2021, 2022, and this year

I was actually happy when they won. I'm not a Cleveland fan, but I admire LBJ as well. So it was really more in the lines of seeing LeBron (and Kyrie & Love) win than the Cavs win. No hate toward any of their players, but I think I definitely would have been okay with a Warriors win. Though with their loss, it's a loss for the James haters, the media, & Skip, while it's a win for the 1995-1996 Bulls and Chicago. BTW, even if Golden State had won, that Chicago 72-10 team would have had a better win-loss percentage (including regular season and playoffs) I guess the lesson here is to fire your head-coach mid-season; you might win a world championship!

Yeah it stopped, but ESPN kept showing baseball (that I probably would have watched in most other cases). So they won't talk about that. They'd probably move Cubs/Bucs to ESPN2 had the Warriors won

Well, it took about a decade, but Dustin Johnson is finally off that greatest to not win a major list. The man was facing a penalty, but chose to continue to play like a professional. Probably helped but I doubt it meant much

I'm with Golden State for the win, but the Cavs winning would be pretty awesome to see. The fact that they overcame everything and got this far is amazing. It'll hurt if Cleveland wins, but the Warriors winning probably won't be that great for Chicago Bulls fans

The thing is there's a rule about that (hitting a fan or a ref). There was a guy for Miami that got suspended for doing the same thing (Udonis Haslem I believe) a while back. He hit a ref and it was confirmed that hitting a ref or a fan was grounds for suspension. Throwing it randomly into the stands (not a person) or on the floor is just a fine. That being said, I'm with you on Steph's status, FuriousStyles (never was on the side of him being unavailable). There's a 100% chance that there's a 0% chance he gets suspended. After all the supposed calls on the league extending the series for money and ratings, it would not make any sense. It was totally unintentional, so it looks like they'll be able to spare Steph. Just surprising that he was on tilt there (even though he hadn't been booted from a game in quite a while)

I'd be surprised if Curry did get suspended. I'm pretty sure the league would do anything to not have to suspend him. For one, if Steph isn't there, then that actually screws LeBron over no matter what (in terms of public opinion). But when a fan gets hit by said mouthpiece, what are you going to do. That is a tough call only because it's the most important game and point in an NBA season. Otherwise, it's nothing. Adam Silver is going to get this one wrong as much as he gets it right.

Bogut likely being done might not matter since GSW is getting a rested Draymond back. Barring a Lance Stephenson to LeBron James rehash that might piss off Green, it's more a matter of when and not if. But that's why they play the game. No matter what, hats off to Cleveland for not burning out and making this a series. I'll have to make up for sleep (in advance) on Tuesday & Wednesday since Thursday is going to be a great night!

What a night! I didn't get to enjoy it as much as I did in 2009, but for me, it made up for what has been a rather awful week. Pretty quiet, but nice to see the Pens look and play like they were the best team in the league. Loved the underdog role from late last decade but this time, Pittsburgh looked like a team that was going to have great things come their way over the next several years. Coach Sullivan running things is pure awesomeness Agreed on how San Jose wasn't going to score. It was pretty much what happened with Tampa. They get momentum to achieve a tie, and that goes away before one could even tweet or post about it. The Penguins opponent would not score again. Meh on Crosby winning The Conn Smythe but similar to where the Pens won it all, I don't care. Amazing how there were a few that actually were okay with a Pens loss so they could win it at home on Wednesday. No thanks to that! Hopefully next year, if Pittsburgh can stay true to form and improve, they'll get Chicago. If things are close, however, the league might make that happen. Don't agree with that, but it would be great for the NHL to see Sid vs Kane

Not sure what to think of these athletes anymore. First it was a fleet of them getting caught violating the league's substance abuse policy. Now we have a fleet of them being suspect to sexual assault and related. It's just rather sad; one of several reasons why I'm not one to look up to a celebrity and/or get excited when they're nearby or on television

Looks like we have a series. Though that's what was said about San Jose in the NHL and that team could be dusting off the golf gear by this time tomorrow. I have no idea what'll happen in Game 4. If Steph returns to form, as mentioned, it could be a close game. Curry right now has no shot at his first Finals MVP, but I think he'll earn it by default if, say, he makes a winning shot at the buzzer on the road, followed by "vintage" Steph in Game 5. That alone would have the voters forgive him for doing very little in these first three games (foul trouble doesn't help)

Pretty much agree with both of you as it relates to Djokovic. Don't hate him, don't love him, but that's mainly since I don't know him. I've only seen him as a star. That said, I was pulling for him like he's family to make history. So glad that he did. I'll probably root for him to eventually pass Federer, and maybe even Steffi Graf. Not sure that he will despite the pace. It might be too soon (February 2019 is a long way from now), and I wouldn't bet that Steffi would have the record at that point anyway

Yeah the NFL really doesn't have anything to worry about. You can put an entire series and combined it with a Game 7, and that would still trail the NFL. I know people have sighted some cases where the NFL lost to the NBA, but I think it's more likely that the NFL would schedule a Super Bowl opposite a Finals (game 7 or whatever) than the other way around. The NBA wouldn't even be happy going up against the World Series, whereas the NFL decided that they would no longer skip SNF for the Fall Classic. Despite that, those are very good numbers for Game One without the huge market areas. People would factor in summer and no competition, but it's the best ever (especially after comments that the game isn't as great as it once was). I'll wait and hold judgement on Cleveland until they play at home. They blew it at the end, but if they don't win substantially there, then that might be it. Every game is different so there's that

It's been a year of history for Golden State. To best culminate that, I guess I'd bet on Cleveland winning its first three games, only for the Warriors to deny the Cavs of a sweep as they go on their 4-game winning streak on their way toward repeating. In other words, I'd say it, but hardly bet big, the mortgage or my life on that. Warriors are not dropping both of their first games at Oracle. IMO, they should have beaten OKC in 6 (by winning each of their first two games). It should be a great series, but there are no guarantees. Tough to choose a side to root for or against. LeBron is due, but I can't say I'll pull for Cleveland winning a title for the first time in 50 years. Curry is due for that glorified Finals MVP (and the Warriors are due for obtaining the best team at the ESPY awards that they were sorta robbed from last year). Either team winning is okay, but I guess I'll flip a coin. Heads = Warriors in 5; Tails = Warriors in 7

Best game ever. Well, no, but as mentioned it was probably up there with the best (I've seen) if not the best. After all the upsets, all the buzzer-beaters, and madness that occurred in the Dance over the years, but not so much in the title game. Until now (first time in about 33 years, or 6 years if you count almost buzzer-beaters). It sure as heck made up for Saturday, and even without the ending it was a great game against two of the best. Not sure it was a valid upset, but Villanova did all the correct things, even within their mistakes and deficits to prevail. Feel bad for North Carolina, but someone had to lose that game (and there was no guarantee they'd win in OT). Probably the most exciting/outstanding end game since Superbowl XLIV and the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals, IMO. Not sure how 2017 tops yesterday, but that's a year away & I don't think it needs to be a game-ending basket to do so

Same. I guess it was a reminder of Superbowl 48 where even the biggest of stages can have its one-sided result. I guess it was a combination of the fact that a great team prevails over one star and Nova feeling that everyone was against then (which they weren't).

I'm not one to ever root for Syracuse for anything, but any hate is gone. People I know said they shouldn't have been in the dance, but when people that more than earned a spot say "no thanks" and lose significantly, that is not cool. Syracuse making it is surprising, as mentioned, but not a shock. Total respect for proving people wrong about your participation (and whether they would have beaten MSU, which I think they would have). I am saddened for Virginia. Not a Northern Iowa collapse, but with a cushion like that I think they should have been able to escape with the proper mid-half adjustments. Learning experience. Next year they might learn from it (though Louisville returns to further add to the difficulty of the ACC)

Probably the most exciting (and painful) opening two round in a long time. I forgot who said CBS is missing Gus Johnson right now, but I have to agree somewhat. No guarantee that he would have called Wisconsin & Texas A&M winning, and he's doing okay at FOX. Had he called those games? It would've been a coin-flip to see if he'd get out of there alive! So Jamie Dixon is out at PITT. End of an era; while his program was trending downward over the past half-decade, there was more good than bad during his 15 year run (2 years as an assistant). The good news is that it's always nice to go back home. I doubt I'll pick TCU to dethrone Kansas today, but they probably will fair well, IMO

Really, for me, I'm glad the committee made that the infamous 12-5 match-up to best give everyone a shot at going with an upset to help have a decent & winning bracket. I picked Yale to win, and as mentioned the uniforms were a factor to that. Doesn't hurt that Ivy League schools tend to destroy the landscape of the field almost annually (with Harvard doing so earlier this decade)

Yeah, Cousins isn't going anywhere. $20 Million is totally worth it, IMO, for Washington to tag him. Especially with Philadelphia not solid at the QB position (no guarantee Foles gets back there and perseveres) Von Miller has a rather substantial history when it comes to his appearances on television. Yeah, as mentioned, there is concern for Manning to get in (immediately after he's eligible) over what's been happening to him or what has happened to him. Personally, right now it doesn't look good, but it's more probable than not that the ugliness of this story becomes less of a factor the closer we get to 2021. Barring something outstanding (and if so, it's probably going to surface closer to 2016 as opposed to 2021). The only way Ray doesn't get into Canton in 2018 is if it's due to other people that "have to get in" including another linebacker. It's different with him and T.O. because Lewis was loved, as mentioned. Also he was accomplished individually (several POY awards). In addition, he was more accomplished as it relates to the overall result of his team, or his franchise (2 titles, several divisional titles, and a ton of playoff appearances, a lot coming toward the end of his career consecutively).

To be fair to Favre, his records were broken because they changed the rules to make it easy as hell to break them. The fact that he played in nearly 300 consecutive games despite the beatings he took which would knock off anyone else is impressive. Of course, to be fair to the current and future players, unlike the past, it'll be impossible to break Brett's streak because the rules of today as it relates to injures and the aftermath prohibit players from being active for the game (whether they like it or not). All of those turnovers didn't help, and that IMO was cause for concern in terms of Brett getting in (on the first try), but I hardly think the voters were going to hold that against him. It does help to be a QB, for one (IIRC,that IMO is what caused Irvin to have to wait a couple years to get in when he did). Finally, if they put in Jim Kelly, Dan Marino, and Dan Fouts, then IMHO, I'm surprised it even took six seconds to accept Favre. For the record, those other three totally deserve it; I'm in no way saying they didn't, regardless of postseason success. Can't say that I felt bad for T.O. for missing. But I agree that he got screwed for being a first-timer. Not so much for being a problem with teammates, but the voters have a thing against WR's, which is not cool. I think it was a combination of things; including his behavior, they had to get Stabler in (for that immediate posthumous entry) and Eddie DeBartolo (which while overdo as much as not, made sense added to the venue of the big game). Also, Marvin Harrison was due, as mentioned. In addition, Tony Dungy is deserving. Terrell Owens will get in, and while it's not on the first try, it's better than not getting in at all. That's probably cheap punishment from the voters. He's not the first person to miss on first opportunity. Strahan missed surprisingly but he was up against Sapp, and Curtis Martin had to wait due to Marshall (totally right call there). As for Ray, I think it's a federal crime to not put him in on February 3, 2018 (assuming he doesn't return or the schedule stays the same) I don't have any issues with the Class of 2016, but sometimes, when one is borderline, they typically get the nod based on who's hosting the super bowl as well as who's playing in the game. For example, Manning was a top story. Harrison benefited off of Peyton, and Dungy helped turn around Indy. I believe, at the end of the day, the Pro Football Hall Of Fame is at least 100 times better than Baseball's HOF