A lot is going on in the world of sports right now. Major League Baseball and its minor league levels have begun to play. The NHL and NBA playoffs will begin soon.
College basketball men’s and women’s tournaments came to a close. NASCAR began with a race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Pro golf is in full swing once the weather becomes pleasant.
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The United Football League is into Week 2. So is the National Lacrosse League. The WNBA draft is next Monday, whereas
the NFL is just three weeks away. The NWSL is in full swing. The World Cup is coming to North America in just a few months.
Have a few things on my mind. Let’s get after it.
1. Odell Beckham, Jr. showed up to the owner’s meeting in Phoenix recently to pitch the New York Football Giants’ new head coach, John Harbaugh. The pitch was to get hired by his former coach while with the Baltimore Ravens. Which is odd since Harbaugh is a defensive-minded coach. Why didn’t OBJ approach the Cleveland Browns head coach, Todd Monken, instead? Monken was the OC while with the Ravens and OBJ’s actual coach.
OBJ didn’t play at all last year and apparently is looking for a job. He didn’t play in 2022 either. From 2020, he has had just 155 receptions, combined. He has five seasons where he gained over 1,000-yards, just hasn’t worked much since. And the Browns need receivers, yet OBJ hasn’t pursued his former team.
2. The UFL got off to a good start last weekend with three new cities. They also have a few new rules. One is that any successful field goal from 60+ yards will now count for four points. Former Browns kicker Matt McCrane nailed a 60-yarder with just nine minutes gone in his team’s first game. So, that became the league’s first four-point field goal.
But four-point field goals are not something new. Neither are five-point field goals.
When American Football first morphed from rugby, touchdowns were worth four points and field goals netted five points. In 1898, the TD was changed from four to five points. In 1904, field goals were altered to be worth four points. The year 1909 saw the field goal reduced to three points, while in 1912, the touchdown was increased to six points.
But understand, record-keeping at games wasn’t great back in those days. Oftentimes, they did not know what certain plays or actions were because it was all brand new. The interception did not become an official stat until 1933. The sack was first cataloged in 1982. In fact, the NFL didn’t start keeping game stats until 1932.
In 1908, it was recorded that Harvard defeated Yale 4-0 with a 24-yard four-point field goal by Victor Kennard.
Another new UFL rule that is changing offensive strategy, if an offense crosses the midfield stripe, they can no longer punt on that drive. Any fourth down from that point on has to be a pass, run, or attempt a field goal. It really is changing the way an offense has to operate once it crosses into enemy territory. The UFL has been used for exploratory rules, and this one just might stick in the NFL one day.
3. One of the new UFL cities is Columbus, Ohio, who have ties with the Browns. For one, the Columbus Aviators play their home games in Historic Crew Stadium, an arena built for soccer with a seating capacity of 19,968. It was the home of the Columbus Crew, an MLS club, from 1999 to 2021. The Crew is owned by a group headed by Dee and Jimmy Haslam, owners of the Browns.
This venue is also the home of the Columbus Crew 2, a team in the lower-level MLS Next Pro league. The Haslams own this soccer club as well.
The name “Aviators” is a tie-in with the State of Ohio’s slogan, “Birthplace of Aviation,” and also the tie-in with the region’s aeronautics industry. The Wright Brothers owned a bicycle shop in Dayton, Ohio, the state opened the nation’s first airport, plus astronauts John Glenn (Cambridge) and Neil Armstrong (Wapakoneta) grew up in Ohio.
Care to guess what the Aviators’ costumed mascot is? An airman with googles? A World War II Spitfire with a smiley face? Orville Wright? An astronaut? Nope, a dog. He does have that Top Gun aviation tie-in, being named “Maverick.” But what other reason does a team named after air travel have with a canine? The sole intent is to meld with the Dawg Pound, right?!. Woof! Woof!
4. The Buffalo Sabres NHL team made the playoffs this year, tied for second place in the Atlantic Division with the league’s fifth most points and two points out of winning the division. What is the significance of this? Before qualifying for a postseason berth this year, they shared the distinction of the longest active playoff drought in North American sports, a total of 14 years. And who did they share it with? The New York Jets.
So now, the NFL Jets begin on a 15-year journey of futility. Their fans assumed when they signed Aaron Rodgers away from the Green Bay Packers a few seasons ago that their streak would come to an end.
Last season, New York finished 3-14-0. Jets head coach Aaron Glenn was asked at the owner’s meeting last week about the streak. He explained:
“Every day. There’s not a day, there’s not an hour, there’s not a minute I don’t think about that. I want to leave a legacy, I do. When I’m gone, man, I’m looking at this team being a team that consistently puts themselves in a place to win.”
Yeah, good luck with that.
5. How did Alabama QB Ty Simpson end up being a later second-rounder when the college football season ended, and now the possibility of being grabbed in the Top 5?
He has been mentioned as going as high as the Arizona Cardinals at pick #3. Indeed, Arizona will most likely draft a young signal-caller in this year’s NFL draft, but Simpson that high? He certainly could crawl into the first round in the mid-20s just like Jaxson Dart did last year, but Top 5?
It’s Dart all over again. Before last year’s Senior Bowl, Dart had a third-round draft grade. He slayed it during Senior Bowl week and showed up more well-known quarterbacks such as Tyler Shough, Jalen Milroe, Dillon Gabriel, and Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard. Then the Giants traded up at the end of the first round and took Dart. Now it appears Simpson could follow that same trail.
6. The NFL has morphed into a pass-happy league. Let’s take a look at some of the original passing rules in this game of American Football.
Since American Football came from rugby, originally, the only passes allowed were backwards. Today, we call these “laterals.” In 1906, the forward pass became available when John Heisman convinced the Football Rules Committee to legalize it. But it had a ton of restrictions. At the time, nobody envisioned the forward pass would become such a prevalent offensive tool. Here are the rule changes that affected the passing game up until the 1950s:
1906:
- The forward pass was legalized.
- The passer could not throw a forward pass unless he was at least five yards from the center of the line of scrimmage.
- It is a penalty for throwing more than one pass during a series of downs.
- Yardage for a first down was changed from five yards to 10.
- The football was reshaped for the first time.
1907:
- Any incomplete pass was subject to the same treatment as a fumble: Either team could recover it and have offensive possession.
- Any incomplete pass that has traveled out of bounds became a turnover, as possession was given to the defense at the center of the field.
1910:
- Incomplete passes are no longer a turnover, but result in a 15-yard penalty, and the offense would retain possession.
1912:
- End zones were added.
- Completed passes in end zones permitted.
- Incomplete passes are now a loss of down without any yardage penalty.
1920:
- Official football launched with a more pointed, “perfect spiral” shape, the second reshaping. Manufactured by Spalding, labeled the JF-V ball.
1929:
- The first white football manufactured by Rawlings was used for a night game between the NFL’s Chicago Cardinals and the Providence Steam Roller. The color of the ball was developed because of poor lighting during this time period.
1933:
- Passing is now available anywhere behind the line of scrimmage.
1934:
- Third reshaping of the football, shortening it to 11 inches, making it easier to grip and throw.
1941:
- First “pebbled” football manufactured by Wilson Sporting Goods for superior grip.
- NFL started using “The Duke” football made by Wilson.
1953:
- Football with white stripes was first used during college and high school night games.
7. Which players will the Browns select with the #6 draft spot? Most have an offensive tackle penciled in, but there are so many elite pass rushers at the top of the first round. Can Cleveland pass on that? In 1982, the New Orleans Saints needed a running back and took George Rogers of South Carolina with the first overall pick. At the second slot, the Giants nabbed Lawrence Taylor. In the 1989 draft, the Dallas Cowboys had gone 1-15-0 and took QB Troy Aikman first overall. Then the Green Bay Packers needed a blue-chip offensive tackle and took huge Tony Mandarich in the second slot. Detroit was on the clock and grabbed Barry Sanders.
Offensive linemen and receivers will be available in all rounds this year. Don’t pass on an elite pass rusher. Pair one with Myles Garrett and watch the fireworks each week.
8. The Senior Bowl is the nation’s premier college All-Star game, and always has been. A player who does well during the Senior Bowl can elevate his draft status by one or even two rounds.
The practices are important, and everyone in the NFL attends these sessions. The Super Bowl allows both teams in the big game two weeks to prepare. The Senior Bowl has always been sandwiched in the weekend between the AFC and NFC Championship Games and the Super Bowl.
But now, the Senior Bowl is moving its game up a week to be played the Saturday before the Sunday slate of conference championship games.
The reason? Mardi Gras.
Every Senior Bowl week has an abundance of Mardi Gras events and parades in Mobile, Alabama. It is hectic and chaotic in this city for a solid week. The City of Mobile invented Mardi Gras, and New Orleans, just two hours west, made it famous. The events and parades consume both cities, with Mobile hosting 14 different parades. By moving the game up one week, it misses the first Mardi Gras events.
9. Former Browns middle linebacker Anthony Walker, Jr., retired from the game. He played for Cleveland from 2021 to 2023. He was a beast – when he played. He had 113 tackles in his first season with the Browns, but became injured with a hamstring that made him miss three games. In his second year, Walker tore a quad in Week 3 and ended up on IR. The following season, he was the Browns’ 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee and started 12 games before a knee issue ended the remainder of the season.
A great guy off the field, and productive on, but was always hurt. Which is not his fault. Nobody wants to leave the game due to an injury, much less work all offseason, only to have the year cut short. With the Browns, he stayed three seasons and signed three one-year deals. Went to the Miami Dolphins for a single season and then was on the roster of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year after playing in just two games.
Walker came to work always prepared and could have been one of the great ones. He retired with 83 NFL starts.
10. The Browns have got to solve the ineptness of the receiver room. GM Andrew Berry only signed Tylan Wallace in the free agency period, and yes, technically, he is a receiver. But he was signed for his return skills. The upcoming NFL draft should address this dire need with at least two really good players.
Will Cleveland take either Carnell Tate of Ohio State or USC’s Makai Lemon with the #6 pick? If not, what about Indiana’s Omar Cooper or KC Concepcion of Texas A&M at #24? A lot of folks have taken Arizona State’s Jordyn Tyson completely off their big boards because he is dealing with a lingering hamstring injury, which made him miss the Combine and his Pro Day.
Then there is the issue with Browns GM Andrew Berry and drafting receivers. His choices so far have been miserable. That is why, for three years straight, he traded for veteran receivers from other teams because he is not good at evaluating the talent at receiver.
Okay, then why doesn’t Berry stay away from receivers in this year’s draft, and instead go after A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles? The kid is an absolute lightning rod and would blow the lid off any defense paired with Jerry Jeudy. Eagles GM Howie Roseman hasn’t said that Brown is officially on the market, but he also doesn’t give any resolution by saying stuff like, “But my answer to any question on A.J. Brown is A.J. Brown is a member of the Eagles.”
That is not a strong statement. That is avoiding the question of what it would take to get Brown into the clubhouse. The receiver wants out of Philly. Brown’s frustrations with the Eagles’ offense have been well documented.
Meanwhile, Brown keeps posting cryptic messages on social media as he lets his frustrations boil over.
The Eagles’ best window is to move Brown after June 1 to officially strike a deal. The team’s dead cap hit is over $40 million if they were to ship him off before June 1, but that drops to about $20 million after the June 1 deadline. Philly signed two free-agent receivers, so they must have something in mind.
Browns had played eight seasons and gained over 1,000-yards in seven of those years with 56 touchdowns. Named to three Pro Bowls and voted Second Team All-Pro three seasons.
