Each year the NFL Draft provides teams the opportunity to add players they hope will make them better, while also trying to find the right players to fit their needed positions. The team’s draft board is filled with names of players from those specific positions they hope will still be available by the time their team is on the clock. However, as important as it is for teams to fill specific holes on their roster, a key strategy many GMs implement is taking the “best player available” – regardless of position. Sometimes…
Monthly Archives: April, 2016
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Best Available
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What Makes a Wise GM?
Continue ReadingWith the NFL Draft starting tonight, my thoughts are drawn toward the role of a team’s general manager. For the most part, their resume or track record is based on which players are drafted under their leadership. There is very little room for error, and they count on their decision-making process to produce tremendous choices of players. I tend to wonder what eventually leads a GM to pull the trigger on drafting a particular player. How much is based on game film, the player’s pro day, the combine, or the…
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The Ability to Chill
Continue ReadingCarson Wentz is expected to hear his name called on Thursday night at the NFL Draft and is believed to be one of the next great franchise quarterbacks – most likely with the Philadelphia Eagles. I’m already a fan because he’s from a small school (North Dakota State), is a winner, and very open about his faith. I also like hearing that he has a relaxed attitude. Louis Bien describes him like this in his SBNATION.com article: “Wentz’s most important attribute may be his ability to chill. He has been…
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The 49ers’ Fantasy vs. Reality
Continue ReadingThe San Francisco 49ers are an intriguing team to follow as we head into the NFL draft and the new season. They have a rich history of winning, with high expectations, yet they are coming off a 5-11 season. They hired Chip Kelly as their new head coach and haven’t fully committed to Colin Kaepernick as their starting quarterback. Columnist, Tim Kawakami, covers the team and recently wrote an interesting article about the state of the 49ers with this headline: “49ers, Balke Continue to Operate in a Fantasy World.” Tim…
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The Remarkable Grizzlies’ Season
Continue ReadingThe NBA playoffs are moving right along, and a couple of teams are already heading home after being swept 4-0. This morning I want to shine a light on one of those losing teams – the Memphis Grizzlies. They may not have been a match for the Spurs in this series, but when you consider their season, it’s unbelievable that they even made the playoffs. They struggled with the health of two key players, Mike Conley and Marc Gasol, and set an NBA record for putting 28 players on their roster…
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Tiger Woods and the Search
Continue ReadingESPN.com published a fascinating article this week titled, The Secret History of Tiger Woods. The overall takeaway from the piece is that Tiger is just a man like you and me. He’s not the superhuman golf machine that we made him out to be for so many years, but he has issues, pain, brokenness, and real feelings like the rest of us. Tiger is someone who is on a pursuit for more than green jackets. This in-depth article describes his longing for normalcy and companionship. It also explains his relationship with…
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Color Rush Thursdays
Continue ReadingAs sports fans, we are well aware of the new marketing strategies that sports leagues roll out to receive more attention. I don’t blame them, but sometimes these promotional schemes get a little “gimmicky.” Take for example the NFL’s “Color Rush Thursdays,” where each team wears all one color. During last season when the Jets wore all green against the all-red Bills, it turned out to be quite a viewing experience – especially if you happened to be colorblind. Apparently, these frustrated fans were totally confused as to which team was which….
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Laziness on Defense
Continue ReadingThe Houston Rockets squeaked into the NBA Playoffs, and they are already down 0-2 in their series against the Warriors. The Rockets are a disappointing team, considering they have James Harden. As one of the best offensive players in the whole league, Harden can score in multiple ways and has a unique style of play. As impressive as Harden is on the offensive side, he’s gotten a terrible reputation for being an extremely poor defensive player. Sports and social media have put a spotlight on his defensive laziness, which is unfortunate since he’s such a…
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With Attitude, Everything Follows
Continue ReadingMario Williams was the first player taken in the 2006 NFL draft. He has had a solid career playing for the Texans and the Bills, but last season he complained about how Buffalo was using him and the team raised concerns about his effort. So, in the offseason, he signed with the Miami Dolphins, and his recent comments via the team’s website sound like he has a good approach moving forward: “The No. 1 thing that you can definitely look forward to [from me] is attitude. I think any year,…
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Star Treatment
Continue ReadingLeBron James and the Cleveland Cavs escaped with a win in game one of their series with the Detroit Pistons. Although a competitive game, a comment made by Pistons’ head coach, Stan Van Gundy, in between quarters, has raised some questions. Van Gundy said, “A couple of calls have upset our guys. They’ve got to understand, LeBron’s LeBron. They’re not going to call offensive fouls on him. He gets to do whatever he wants. They’ve got to understand that.” He downplayed his comment after the game by saying he thought…
