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Being a Jets fan makes it really easy to root for the underdog. We’ve been victim to one of the most dominant dynasties in all of sports for far too long, and therefore, I love to see a team beat the odds to win. The Pats have ruled the AFC for almost 20 years now, and we have to play them twice a year. Being that I’m such a huge fan of underdogs, I’d like to talk about some dark horse picks for a deep playoff run next year.

 

The Browns:

The team I started this blog off with have made some serious moves this offseason. From despair with Hue Jackson to exciting bombastic football with Gregg Williams, the Browns have made a serious step forward from being the laughing stock of the league. With ex-college teammates Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. they now one have one of the best, if not the best, receiving corps in the league. With both receivers more than capable of running their own offense, it is going to be a true air raid in Cleveland. To add to that air raid is a scary duo in the backfield. With rookie revelation Nick Chubb partnered with proven talent Kareem Hunt, they will be an incredibly hard team to stop with such a multi-faceted offense chock full of talent.

They aren’t just all offense though. Myles Garrett is perhaps one of the best athletes the NFL has ever seen at an edge rusher position, and adding Sheldon Richardson into the mix creates a real nightmare for offensive lines and quarterbacks everywhere. The Browns had a real shot this year, with an overhaul at coaching and new weapons on both sides of the field, they are quickly becoming one of the most talented teams in the league.

 

The Colts:

Maybe this isn’t so much of a Dark Horse pick as a pretty obvious one, but I think people are still sleeping on the Colts. Andrew Luck came back last year after an almost two year hiatus from organised football, and aside from some little things, looked like he hadn’t missed a step. With Luck, who is a sure bet to throw 30+ touchdowns a year, and new talent on offense they are sure to make a run for the playoffs again this year. Eric Ebron has turned his career around since being a bit of a bust for the Lions, and Quentin Nelson is quickly becoming one of the most feared lineman in the NFL, who is sure to be a perennial pro bowl pick, T.Y. Hilton has still got it and remains one of the best deep threats in the league and Marlon Mack is looking like another rookie revelation coming out of the backfield. Not to mention Darius Leonard, who is sure to put up 100+ tackles every year of his career and is looking like one of the best linebackers in the league. The Colts are perhaps the most slept on team in the NFL, and are sure to surprise everyone this upcoming season.

 

This week has been pretty action-packed in terms of free agency. With some of the league’s finest moving across the country to try to make a name for themselves in different franchises, it’s only right that I outline what I think were the best signings of the week. A small disclaimer though, this has been one of the biggest windows for the Jets in a long, long, long time. So I might be a little biased.

 

Oh, the things you can do with star players still on rookie contracts. Our star players on offense and defense are still on their rookie contracts, which has allowed us to make some big-time moves in Free Agency this week. Aside from having some key players on both offense and defense, and having our guy Darnold, some major holes still needed filling on both ends of the field. Although one of the Jet’s most pressing concerns wasn’t addressed, a pass rusher, we got a great out and out linebacker CJ Mosley who was brilliant for the Ravens since being drafted from ‘Bama. And we got Le’veon Bell. We got our guy. Perhaps the best running back to have with an up and coming now sophomore QB, because Bell can do it all. Great blocker, one of the best pass-catching backs in the league and has a flair for making something from nothing. Furthermore, he has some great experience running for one of the best offenses in the league, which cannot be understated who a Jets team who struggled at times to pound the rock.

Brown and Beckham

Perhaps one of the most polarizing talents to enter the league in the past couple years, Odell Beckham Jr. has set sail for Cleveland. What was once the laughing stock of the league, going 1-31 the past two years before this one, had a complete 180 of a season. Then they added Odell Beckham and sneakily acquired Kareem Hunt as well. Beckham has everything in his arsenal, some of the best hands in the NFL and is truly electric after the catch. The Browns now have Baker Mayfield, Jarvis Landry, David Njoku, Nick Chubb and with their new acquisitions are quickly shaping up to be one of the best young offenses in the league.

Jon Gruden made a blockbuster move to go get Antonio Brown and barely gave up anything in the process. Retaining all their picks from the Khalil Mack trade made last offseason was huge, and getting one of the best receivers the NFL has ever seen is a massive plus. Antonio Brown is magic on the field, he has almost everything you could want in a receiver and is arguably the best route runner in the league.

It’s almost here. The moment every season culminates in, and one of the biggest sporting events of the year, The Super Bowl. The biggest football stage in the world, and where every aspiring and current professional football player wants to be, the Super Bowl is an epic and often drama-filled game, and the game this year is looking like it will be one of the best. The upstart Rams led by the prodigal son of all head coaches, Sean McVay, with one of the best all-around teams in the league versus the best dynasty the league has ever seen in the Patriots, led by the Darth Vader-esque Tom Brady and football genius Bill Belichick, has the makings of a both a memorable and epic game. With the hype going into this years super bowl, let’s take a look back at some of the other great Super Bowls of the past.

 

Super Bowl 51

 

25 points down. At one point during the game, the Atlanta Falcons looked like they were cruising to victory with a massive 25 point lead over the much-maligned villains of the NFL, the Patriots. With every sports journalist a click away from their “Tom Brady is Done” and “The Dynasty is OVER!” articles, the Patriots scored, and scored, and led the game to overtime. Not only the greatest comeback of all time in NFL history, but it was also one of the best in sports history. With the GOAT Tom Brady throwing for over 466 yards, and relative unknown James White having a career game, it was business as usual for the Pats, who through great coaching, discipline and adjustments brought their 5th championship home to New England.

 

Super Bowl 3

 

I might have a little bias being a Jets fan, but along with this being a masterclass in coaching adjustments and film analysis, it was one of the most important games in the Super Bowl Era of the NFL. In a game that featured two NFL Legends, Joe Namath and Johnny Unitas (who only featured for a fraction of time) faced off in a Super Bowl that cemented the AFL as a force that could compete with the NFL. Joe Namath guaranteed a win going into the game, and his swagger and confidence showed, leading the Jets to a convincing 9 point victory over a dominant Colts team, and their terrorizing and historic defense.

Super Bowl 43

 

A game featuring a number of future Hall of Famers, and borderline Hall of Famers, is destined to be a great one. This game featured two of the greatest plays of all time, James Harrison’s 100-yard pick six and Santonio Holmes’ insane toe tap catch to clinch the game in the dying minutes of the 4th quarter, arguably the most clutch catch off all time. The Steelers vs. Cards epitomises the saying “Big-time players make big-time plays in big-time games” and brought the Steelers their 6th Lombardi trophy, a relatively long-standing NFL record.

Referees are the most necessary evil in the sports world. This year in the NFL, refs were the source of a massive controversy due to new rules. It seemed like almost every time a QB was sacked, a flag was thrown, but luckily this dwindled throughout the year. In professional leagues, people expect professional referees, especially in the playoffs. You expect to always be in control while playing a sport, and in ideal situations, you expect the win or the loss to be totally up to how you and your teammates have played. However, this weekend, that was not the case.

The Saints vs. Rams NFC Championship game was a prime example of how sometimes a game isn’t always up to how you played. With less than two minutes left in the game, Tommylee Lewis came streaking down the right side for what looked like an easy first down throw, until Nickell Robey-Coleman came screaming across from the middle and laid him out before he even had the opportunity to make a play on the ball. Not only is this blatant Pass Interference, but was also an obvious helmet to helmet hit on a defenseless receiver, both of these penalties would have resulted in a first down for the Saints, and the opportunity to bring the game to less than 10 seconds. With so little time left on the clock, it would have been an easy win for the Saints and a trip to the Superbowl. Sean Payton was understandably livid, and the crowd went berserk, but the refs stuck to their guns and no flag was thrown. Payton has since called the league office and Saints have filed a lawsuit to have the game replayed. But it looks like no progress has been made for the Saints.

Referees making some seriously questionable calls in the past, much like this one, and it often spells controversy. Even America’s Team isn’t safe.

In the bottom half of the fourth quarter, the Cowboys found themselves down 26-21. Facing a fourth and two against the Packers in shockingly cold Wisconsin weather, the Boys had no other choice but to go for it. Romo threw an almost picture perfect pass in heavy coverage to arguably the best receiver in the league that season, Dez Bryant, who came down with the ball after an amazing catch on the one-yard line. Although looking like a clean catch, the Packers challenged. In true heartbreaking fashion, the refs overturned the catch, the Packers got the ball back, and the Cowboy’s season was over. Bryant was in disbelief and the Pack advanced to the NFC Championship game. Perhaps the most controversial moment before the blown call last weekend, the League has since ruled the infamous play a catch….shocking.

NFL Fans might not agree on much, but everyone comes together to riot against a blown call that cost a team a game. Referees might be some of the most unanimously hated forces in any professional league, and everyone athlete has a story to tell.

 

Now that we’re fully in the mix of playoff football, the most wonderful time of the year, I want to take a look back on the regular season and explain why I think it was one of the greatest of all time. Although we didn’t see a team reach the fabled status of being undefeated or a team spiral into the pits of despair, this season was perhaps the most fun I had watching football in a long time.

My number 1 reason for why this season why so great was the rookies. Although Patrick Mahomes wasn’t exactly a rookie this year, this was the first time he took the reigns as a starter and boy did he light everyone up. Over 5,000 yards and 50 touchdowns, is a human highlight reel and not to mention an absolute cannon for an arm, Mahomes had one of the best seasons a quarterback has had and likely ever will have. Some of my favorite moments in the season came from Mahomes’ highlight reel. His no-look pass against the Raiders, his left-handed pass with Von Miller draped and not to mention his numerous deep bombs to Tyreek Hill. Mahomes is truly the future of this position and I can’t wait to see what he has left in the tank.

Another rookie that made this season great was Baker Mayfield. He has proven time and again that he will do whatever is best for the team, and doesn’t care what anyone has to say about him. His moxie is what makes him such an exciting player and his unfaltering confidence continues to prove why the Browns took him 1st overall. Despite not having out of this world numbers like Mahomes, he has brought something to the Browns that they haven’t had in almost 20 years, a quarterback who can win them games.

Aside from just rookies, the NFL saw a jump in offensive numbers across the board. New rules pertaining to quarterback safety have given the quarterbacks new confidence in the pocket and has been the right step forward for the league. Despite some outright terrible calls at the beginning of the season involving the rule changes, it has definitely improved play from a spectator standpoint and has allowed for more extremely entertaining and drama-filled games. Although the rule changes have caused an explosion in offense, it has also forced some defensive players to step up to the plate.

One defensive player to absolutely go off this season was Khalil Mack. Although just being eliminated from the playoffs by a missed kick, Mack was a force this season. In his debut for the Bears, Mack had an interception and a strip sack amongst multiple tackles, and that was his just his first game. Mack continued to be a game wrecker for the Bears and was a large part of them making a playoff run after a long period of mediocrity.

This season was truly great, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it all ends.

 

Kyler Murray is tearing up the college football scene and has taken the reigns from Baker Mayfield to sustain Oklahoma’s superpowered offense.

 

Despite the fact that Murray is currently a frontrunner in the heavily anticipated Heisman race, but what’s most interesting to me is his immense talent in multiple sports. Murray was the King of Texas high school football, winning three straight national championships and 43 games in a row and as a starting quarterback was 42-0. Following his senior year in 2014, he was the Gatorade National Football Player of the Year. He was the first High School player to be an All American in both football and baseball, was the number one dual-threat quarterback in the nation and a top prospect in the 2015 MLB Draft. He was drafted in 2018 by the Oakland Athletics in 2018, is playing his last year of eligibility for the Oklahoma Sooners and will start his MLB career in 2019.

 

Kyler Murray isn’t the only multi-sport phenom to grace the football field. Many future Hall of Famers have set the path that Murray has followed. The most famous examples of multi-sport athletes having success in the NFL are college basketball players playing Tight End and quarterbacks being great baseball players.

 

Antonio Gates

 

Gates was one of the best basketball players in Kent State History. He led the team to their first ever elite eight berth while averaging 16 points, and his number 44 is retired by the University. However, after being largely ignored as a prospect in the NBA draft he entered the NFL Draft and was eventually taken by the San Diego Chargers. Gates is now a sure first-ballot Hall of Famer having 946 catches for 11,747 yards and an astounding 116 touchdowns, which is 6th all time.

Bo Jackson

 

It’s honestly surprising that I have never written about Bo Jackson on this blog. He’s the biggest what if in NFL history, and despite only playing a few seasons is widely regarded as one of the best running backs of all time. On top of absolutely decimating every defense he came up against, he was an MLB all-star and an absolute freak of an athlete. Jackson won the 1985 Heisman Trophy while also competing in baseball and track and field. Furthermore, Jackson was one of the only athletes of all time to be an all-star in multiple sports, both baseball, and football.

Deion Sanders  

Similarly to Bo, Sanders was a three-sport athlete in college at Florida State University. At Florida State Sanders was a record-breaking punt returner and had similar levels of success in both baseball and track. Sanders had an extremely prolific career as both a professional baseball player, playing over 600 games with 4 different clubs, and was a perennial All-Pro cornerback and widely considered one of the best cornerbacks and punt returners to ever play the game. He was a revolutionary player at the cornerback position, the only man to hit a home run and score a touchdown in the same week, appear in the world series and the Super Bowl and one of the only man to score a touchdown six (yes SIX) different ways.

Rookies always enter the league with immense pressure.

 

No one wants to be a bust. We often hear all too much about high round picks never hitting the mark, but sometimes they exceed the pressure and their expectations. Rookies have often had historic seasons in the NFL and have always turned heads when they do so. Every rookie going into the NFL is an underdog, adjusting to the speed and higher levels of play in the NFL is incredibly difficult for any college player going into their first season, but some have managed to exceed all expectations and absolutely dominate in their first few seasons. Let’s take a look at just a few of these rookie’s seasons.

Gale Sayers

 

Sayers put up some absolutely ridiculous numbers as a rookie. He was perhaps the most dominant triple threat rookie the NFL has ever seen and was ahead of his time as a player. He is as true an athlete the NFL has ever seen, he rushed for 867 yards and 14 touchdowns, caught 29 passes for 507 yards and 6 touchdowns and had a return touchdown to boot. He set two massive records as a rookie, 22 touchdowns and 2272 all-purpose yards. Sayers was a truly revolutionary player for his time and has gone down in history as not only a Chicago bears great, but also as one of the best NFL players of all time and on top of all this, turned in the best rookie season of all time.

Lawrence Taylor

 

LT is the most feared and intimidating player of all time. Quarterbacks knew they were in for a handful when Taylor was drafted by the Giants with the second pick, but they had no idea what was coming. His 9.5 sacks and several quarterback hits and pressures netted him both Defensive Rookie of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors, and he was the first ever to do so. Taylor didn’t stop there, he continued to terrorize quarterbacks the rest of his career seemingly without breaking a sweat, being the first and only defensive player to win MVP.

Cam Newton

 

Supercam came into the league in 2011 as the number one pick. As the number one pick and reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Cam came into the league with a tremendous amount of confidence, but also a huge amount of pressure. When looking at his stats, it was clear that he overcame his almost overwhelming expectations. His nature as a dual-threat quarterback shone through as he piled on 706 yards and 14 rushing touchdowns (a record), on top of his already impressive 4051 yards and 21 touchdowns through the air. Cam’s efforts weren’t ignored as he went on to win Offensive Rookie of the Year for the 2011 season. He is now the NFL’s all-time leader in QB rushing touchdowns and of the most beloved players in the league.

Eric Dickerson

 

In Dickerson’s first year in the league, he not only put up insane numbers for a rookie but for any running back ever. He was drafted 2nd overall by the Los Angeles Rams in 1983 and had a lot of pressure on him heading into his first year as a Pro. Donning the famous Sports Goggles, Dickerson toasted almost every defense in the NFL rushing for 1808 yards and 18 touchdowns, both are NFL records for Rookies. His single-season performance is probably in the argument for a top 10 season for any running back of all time and Dickerson continued to dominate for the entire span of his career.

Is the Madden Curse Real?

 

Madden NFL is a long-running football video game franchise produced by EA. After EA founder Trip Hawkins approached hall of fame coach John Madden with the original idea for the game, the first issue was released in 1988. EA has released annual copies of the game since 1990, and when the company received the rights to use the NFL and its players in the game the game really exploded in popularity. Now the company has sold over 130 million copies and as of 2013 has built up over $4 billion in revenue.

 

Each year since 1999, a player is chosen by fans to be on the front cover of each copy sold, and since Garrison Hearst has first appeared on the cover in Madden 99, a curse has been attributed to earning the cover. However, does the curse really happen each year?

 

Garrison Hearst was the first ever cover athlete and appeared on the front of Madden 99. The Georgia running back was drafted by the then-Phoenix Cardinals, and later joined the 49ers, where he set club records for all-purpose yards from scrimmage in a single season in 1998. However, in the ‘99 NFL season Hearst suffered a horrific injury in the form of a broken ankle, and after complications during surgery, a bone in his foot died. Hearst spent over two years recovering from the injury, and although he won NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award in 2001, he never saw the same levels of success. Hearst certainly received the worst of the infamous curse, in which he suffered from an injury that severely affected a large bulk of his career.

 

However, the “curse” wasn’t really talked about until Daunte Culpepper’s knee injury he suffered in the Viking’s 2001 campaign. In 2000, Culpepper threw for over 4000 yards, rushed for 500, and led the Vikings to an 11-5 record and a trip to the NFC championship game. Several games into the 2001 season, Culpepper was voted to star as the Madden NFL 2002 cover athlete. Soon after, Culpepper suffered a season-ending knee injury and was forced to miss the rest of the 2001 season, and the next season threw 23 interceptions to only 18 touchdowns.

 

However the curse doesn’t always hit, wide receivers Calvin “Megatron” Johnson and Odell Beckham Jr. recorded career season after appearing on the covers of Madden 13 and Madden 16 respectively. Johnson broke multiple NFL records in the Lion’s 2012 season, including the single-season record for yards at 1964 and tied the record for consecutive 100-yard performances. Although not breaking records, Beckham had a career year as well, putting up 1450 yards and 13 touchdowns. Both receivers were named to the Pro Bowl and are likely future Hall of Famers.

 

In the majority of cases, the “curse” truly does strike. Quite often, the curse results in serious injury for the player or an out of place losing season for the player’s team. Superstition is rampant in almost every sport, and the Madden curse is one of the most famous examples of it.

 

Let’s take a break from football for a bit.

Sports has long been a key part of pop culture and today’s athletes often have a large involvement in many facets of society. Since the likes of Muhammad Ali, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and most importantly Jackie Robinson, athletes have often taken a stand for what’s right and stepped aside from sports to take up a more significant role in order to right some serious wrongs in society.

Jackie Robinson

Jackie Robinson has one of, if not the most, important legacies in the history of any sport. Robinson was the first African-American athlete to play in the Jim Crow era of baseball, and despite the rampant racism and some of his teammates threatening to leave the Brooklyn Dodgers, he managed to break the colour-barrier in all American sports with his impressive and groundbreaking play. Robinson was also an incredibly important figure off the baseball field. He was a catalyst in the starting of the civil rights movement and took part in Martin Luther King’s March on Washington with his son. The number 42 is now retired across the MLB, and he was named to the league’s all-century team and is a hall of famer. Without Robinson’s massive impact on racism in America, this country would likely be an entirely different place.

Colin Kaepernick

With Jackie Robinson opening the door for many other athletes to have a larger role off the field. The most recent example of this is Colin Kaepernick, who famously took a knee to take a stand against the injustice against African Americans across the United States. On September 1st, 2016, Colin Kaepernick took a knee with his teammate Eric Reid and started a firestorm of heated debates and exposed a sharp divide in American culture. Although his protest created an aggressive polarity in NFL fans, he undeniably brought even more attention to the controversial issue of police brutality targeted at African American men across the US. His impact grew even more with his Nike commercial with the line “believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything”. This ad furthered the conversation of police brutality on a national scale and many NFL players have taken notice. That despite many players across the history of the league haven’t been as outspoken as athletes of other sports, they can still make an impact in culture aside from just their play.

Jesse Owens

Jesse Owens was a track star at Ohio State, and set many NCAA records, and quickly became a star athlete on the American Olympics team. In the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin, Germany Owens had a historical record setting olympic games. He won gold in the 100m, 200m, 4x100m relay and long jump, but most importantly, he did it in front of Adolf Hitler. Hitler, who’s racist rhetoric claimed that the Aryan race was genetically similar in every way to every other race, received a cold metaphorical slap in the face by the performance of Owens. In a now-famous quote, Owens recalled Hitler’s reaction to his performance, “Hitler had a certain time to come to the stadium and a certain time to leave. It happened he had to leave before the victory ceremony after the 100 meters”. Owens’ is known for his incredible impact on not only racism in America, but for defying the most infamous and evil man in history. He is probably the most world renowned athletes, not only for his achievements on the track, but also his impact in society.

Inspiration. It’s what truly keeps us going and what helps us garner interest in life, as well as giving us hope for the future. In the NFL, it’s easy to find sources of inspiration through both the stories of players, coaches and the teams. Oftentimes in my high school career, I would be so close to quitting that I’d have my coach’s number dialed, ready to call him and tell him I’m done. But then I would be reminded of players in college and the NFL who have it much worse than I do, yet they pulled through and achieved their dreams.

One of the greatest stories of any NFL player of all time is Shaquem Griffin. On July 20, 1995, Shaquem and his twin brother Shaquill were born. Shaquem was born with an incredibly rare defect known as amniotic band syndrome, causing the fingers of his left hand to be significantly underdeveloped. At the age of 4, Shaquem’s mother caught him trying to cut off his hand with a butcher knife, the pain was so excruciating that the family had no choice but to opt for Shaquem to get an amputation. However, this did not stop him from participating equally as well as his brother in almost every sport they played together. He was a three-sport athlete in high school. However, when college recruits came around, they were seemingly only interested in his brother. The process was extremely tough for Shaquem, who despite being on the same level of talent and athleticism as his brother, schools were hesitant to offer him anything. His brother stuck by his side, and the twins both committed to UCF.

At UCF his brother shined, and Shaquem was left by the wayside in which he was nothing but a practice squad player who rarely, if ever, got a look in the first team. However, the school’s new coach Scott Frost, who was hired to turn around the forgettable UCF team, and started by promoting Shaquem to 1st string. Shaquem exploded onto the college football scene, and as UCF went from perennial failures to an undefeated season, Shaquem was at the forefront and one of the most important leaders on the team and was named as the defensive MVP in UCF’s visit to the Peach Bowl.

Despite the fact that many thought he was not NFL material due to his disability, he was invited to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis in which he shocked everyone by running the fastest 40 yard dash time for a linebacker in NFL history, 4.38 seconds. He also put up 20 reps of the bench press, which is set at 225 pounds, with only one hand. With a stunning day a the combine, Shaquem was the biggest story heading into the draft for all the right reasons. He was beloved by the media and received praise from a lot of major athletes all over the world.

After the combine came draft day. Shaquem had to wait until the 5th round, where he was taken with the 141st pick by the Seattle Seahawks. Not only did Shaquem achieve his but he was also he was reunited with his brother along the way. His whole life, Shaquem never used his disability as an excuse, but instead as a motivation to work harder than anyone else in order to get where he wanted to be in life. He approached everything in life head-on, and did things people never thought was possible.