Hey man, pull my finger.
Seriously? What are you, 12?
Nah, I was 12 during the Bicentennial.
That's good information -- I'd assumed you were actually one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, but then I realized that couldn't be right.
Why is that?
Crayola didn't go into business until the 1880s.
Good detective work, young fella! I suppose you want me to stop with the antics and pick the game, right?
Yep. It's the big game, Geritol Fan! It's special! And because this Super Bowl is so special, I will be making a Very Special Comment about recent events that may have cost the NFL more than what they hope to gain. It is time to get down to it, so watch me work!
Carolina Panthers (-6) vs. Denver Broncos, in Santa Clara, California. It seems like the Panthers have already been crowned as one of the best teams of all time. Ask an expert:
They dominated the Cardinals two weeks ago and if you ask the experts, there is no way that Denver can win. Well, as always there are some people who do not see that the Broncos have things that Carolina does not. Denver has experience in the Super Bowl, having only been here two years ago. In addition, while Cam Newton has gotten plenty of well-deserved praise, he also has yet to fail in championship games. One thing I noticed -- Carolina seems to have taken elements of the Auburn offense, which Newton was very successful at running in college. However, one thing that Cam has said is going to bite him a bit. He claims that he is really unique and that people are not ready for him. Well, I am sorry Cam. You are not unique. You remind me of Doug Williams, who by the way I consider a trailblazer for African-American quarterbacks, as well as former Michigan quarterback Dennis Franklin, who 40 years ago proved that a quarterback could lead Michigan to success. So what Denver needs to do is to just make Cam work for every single yard, and to keep it close. If Carolina doesn't win, then this whole season will have been a waste, and Cam might have squandered all the goodwill that he had. And in my view, he is not even the best quarterback in the history of his team. Denver 27, Carolina 19.
I'll admit it -- I'm rooting for the Broncos. It would be a great story if Peyton Manning could ride off into the sunset as a Super Bowl winner. I think the young fella has the formula correct. The Broncos were absolutely ferocious in the AFC Championship game and that defense made Tom Brady look ordinary. It was an impressive performance. Can Peyton score enough points to win, though? I'm not sure. Cam Newton is having a tremendous season, but this will be the fastest and nastiest defense he's seen this year. He's made a lot of big plays with his feet, but I'm not sure he can outrun the Denver defense. Still, I think he'll have enough to win this one. Carolina 28, Denver 24.
And now, time for a Special Comment. As we all know, the NFL has decided that the Rams are going to be playing in Los Angeles next year. I am glad that those old Rams fans get to see their team again, and certainly there will be a lot of interest in them next year. However, I think the NFL has made a mistake. First of all, Los Angeles has a lot of entertainment options on fall weekends. Remember, USC and UCLA are very popular and that the Dodgers and Halos are playing well now, so they are still going to get a lot of interest. Will a mediocre Rams team draw consistently? That being said, the other problem is this: The NFL is ending the second year of a record television deal, and the networks are perfectly happy to pay boatloads of money with no team in Los Angeles. If the Rams have trouble selling out their games, especially while they labor for the next 2-3 years in the ancient and dangerous Los Angeles Coliseum, will the NFL be willing to enforce a blackout, which would hurt television ratings in the second biggest market in the country?
In addition, while the Rams will sometimes get sellouts, the worry is that when teams like Pittsburgh and Green Bay come out, there is going to be a loss of home field advantage. One other factor -- don't forget that the Cowboys hold their training camp in Oxnard, so they have at least planted their flag in the region as well. Most of all, the NFL has used L.A. as a lever for years to get teams in other markets to pony up for new stadiums. The old dude wrote about that quite a lot when the league was essentially blackmailing the politicians in the Twin Cities. Do you think that, when the NFL tries to get public money for a stadium, the threat of moving to St. Louis is going to be especially frightening to other municipalities? Los Angeles has had multiple professional teams leave, and the NFL is well aware about that. So why do you give them another shot? Because the NFL thinks that LA needs them. Well, they are wrong. The NFL is doing better than ever without a team in LA, yet now they send the message that no team is safe? All in all, this is a risk that I would never have taken. Ben out!
4 comments:
Benster seems to have forgotten just how huge and dense los angeles metro is. a fraction of that market is all it would take to make the Rams successful.
besides, seems the Rams Fever has caught on. i'm sensing lots of excitement here on the ground. the loser is the Chargers, though.
as for USC and UCLA, they have been stand-ins for a pro team for many peeps. and now that you have to pay for a subscription to watch them on TV, they have left the door wide open for the NFL.
oh and, Go Panthers. lots of former Bears on that team, being lead by a member of the 85 Bears.
as for USC and UCLA, they have been stand-ins for a pro team for many peeps. and now that you have to pay for a subscription to watch them on TV, they have left the door wide open for the NFL.
They've gone to pay-per-view? That's interesting.
I don't necessarily agree with the Benster on everything he wrote, but I do think losing the leverage of the L.A. market may be something the NFL may come to regret. I'll be curious to see how that goes.
If the Rams don't sell out the NFL only has to black out the Rams game. It can continue to show the rest of the games, just as it has been doing all along.
The Super Bowl game was pretty good. It was nice to see that Broncos didn't start out with a first-play shotgun snap over Manning's head this time. Newton played well enough on the big stage, but still has some growing up to do; dealing with and overcoming adversity will do that for you. Everyone pretty well knows what Manning is going to do, and he was right to not upstage the moment by announcing his retirement. I think he gave a really big clue, though, by twice mentioning that he was going to drink a lot of Budweiser; IIRC, the NFL doesn't like or allow active players to endorse adult beverages.
I have grown weary of the Super Bowl ads. It seems to me that the fails are vastly outweighing the wins - and like certain players - those who don't have "game" are exposed under the pressure of the event.
It can continue to show the rest of the games, just as it has been doing all along.
Yep, but that limits the over-the-air options by a game. That may not be as much of a consideration any more with the proliferation of streaming options, but it's lost revenue to the local stations, which still matters.
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