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Tuesday, January 31, 2017

TIDBIT TUESDAY: 1/31/2017

We are now in Super Bowl week! Superbowl LI will be played Sunday in Houston. The AFC Champion New England Patriots will play the NFC Champion Atlanta Falcons.

The Superbowl is one of the most watched programs on TV every year.  But here is a tidbit that I bet you didn't know.

Did you know the most watched Superbowl ever was Superbowl XLIX?  What is cool about that is the game was played here in Glendale Arizona at University of Phoenix Stadium,  home of the Arizona Cardinals.

The New England Patriots won in dramatic fashion when Malcom Butler intercepted a pass in the end zone when Seattle decided to throw from the one yard line.

Sunday, January 29, 2017

WHY NOBODY WATCHES THE PROBOWL

Today is Sunday January 29th 2017 one week before Super Bowl LI. Many people will say there is just one game left in the football season. There is actually two games. But nobody talks or even watches the second game, the Pro Bowl, which happens today in Florida.

The Pro Bowl is the All-Star Game of the NFL yet it is not as popular as the regular season. The NBA and Major League Baseball make big events out of their All-Star games. Even the NHL makes a big deal about there's and those three leagues are having success doing it.

But the NFL's is rarely watched.  The big question is why?  Football is the most popular sport yet it's all star game is the least popular.  This doesn't make any sense.

When you ask why doesn't anyone watch the Probowl, the answer is simple.  It's boring.  Why is it boring?  Here are three reasons why.

The top reason is the players.  The game is played the week before the Superbowl so you have some players that can't play.  Then you get players that just don't want to play.  To make it worse the players that do play don't put the effort tbey did to make the team.

Reason number 2 is the NFL.  Plain and simple the game is not advertised enough to generate any interest.  If the front office put in as much effort in showcasing the Probowl as they do the NFL Draft more people would watch.

The last reason the Probowl is watched is the timing.  The game is played the week before the Superbowl to try get more viewers.  Years ago it was the week after the Superbowl, but the change didn't help.  There have been several idea's as to when to play the game, but none have ever made sense.

Maybe an All-Star game doesn't belong in football.  Maybe the correct answer is to just take the game out all together.

Sunday, January 22, 2017

PREVIEWING THE AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

The New England Patriots host the Pittsburgh Steelers in today's AFC Championship game. These two teams are always in the hunt for a another Superbowl. They are both playing great football, but the problem, only one of them can emerge as AFC champion.

Pittsburgh seems to have all the pieces and has been playing great football as of late. New England has dominated all season and looks to continue to do so today. When the two teams play it is always a great match up. Today should be no different.

After his four game suspension, Tom Brady seems to be on a mission to prove he is best QB to play the game.  The Steelers don't have enough power to compete with the Patriots.

THE PREDICTION: New England 27, Pittsburgh 19.


PREVIEWING THE NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Today is the NFC Championship Game. The Atlanta Falcons host the Green Bay Packers in what promises to be a fun and exciting game. Both teams have quarterbacks that have been on fire as of late.

The Green Bay Packers are led by Aaron Rodgers. Rogers has a history of making great throws at the right time and he made another one last Sunday that put the Packers into the NFC championship. The Packers feel confident they can win any game when Rogers as their quarterback.

Atlanta Falcons are quarterbacked by Matt Ryan who in his own right as a candidate for MVP.  The Falcons have written under the radar for most of the season, but there's no doubt they are a Super Bowl contender.

This game will be a shootout and I think someone needs to score more than 30 points if they're going to be victorious. The two quarterbacks are the focal point of the game but it will be decided by the defense. Whichever defense makes a big play late expected that team to be victorious and headed to the Super bowl next week.

Everything on paper says the Packers will win.  But don't count out the Falcons.

THE PREDICTION:  Atlanta 35, Green Bay 29

Tuesday, January 17, 2017

TIDBIT TUESDAY 1/17/2017

Welcome to another edition of Tidbit Tuesday.  This week we visit the Atlanta Falcons.  This weekend they host the NFC Tittle game against the Green Bay Packers.

Did you know the Falcons franchise is 51 years old?  They have been to the playoffs 13 times and the Super Bowl once.  Their only appearance was a loss to the Denver Broncos in 1998.  Another little known fact about the Falcons is their mascot is Freddy the Falcon.

The Falcons are hoping to make Superbowl LI their first ever championship!  They have to beat two of the leagues best teams if they want to achieve that goal.

THE WEEKEND REPORT 1/17/2017

It was a long weekend in sports due to Martin Luther King Jr Holiday.  We are now down to four teams in the NFL, unfortunately one of them isn't the Cardinals.

That's okay though because the Phoenix Suns are doing there best to make themselves the talk of Arizona sports.  They did so with a memorable victory of the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday in Mexico.  Yes you read that right the Suns played two games in Mexico.  Even though they only won one it was a coming out party Devin Booker.  The Suns finished the weekend witj a loss to the Utah Jazz yesterday.  The Suns are now 13-28 on the season.

In the NHL the Coyotes were outscored 6-1 this weekend, losing two and dropping their season record to 13-24-6.  But the big news came down Sunday when it was reported that Shane Doan would be willing to wave his no trade clause to go to a contender and compete for a Stanley Cup.

In college basketball the Arizona Wildcats hosted in state rival Arizona State on Thursday.  There was much talk over this game with ASU coach Bobby Hurley trying to add fuel to an already intense rivalry.  There was even more action during the pre-game when an ASU player flipped off the crowd.  With all this anticipation and activity one would have thought the game would have been close, but it wasn't.   Arizona dominated the entire night and came away with a 91-75 victory and improving to 16-2 on the year.  ASU is now 9-9.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

NFL PLAYOFFS: ROUND 2 PREVIEW

The NFL playoffs resume today and tomorrow. This weekend's match ups promise to be good games. The winners this weekend will advance do the NFC and AFC Title Games. Let's take a look and make some predictions.

The first game is Saturday between the Seattle Seahawks and the Atlanta Falcons. The game will be played in Seattle but I think their luck has ran out. Matt Ryan and the high-powered offense is going to be too much for the Seattle defense.

The prediction: Atlanta 25, Seattle 21.

The night game on Saturday is the New England Patriots hosting the Houston Texans. The last time these two teams met New England had a third-string quarterback and still won 27-0. I won't spend much time talking about this game because it won't take much time for New England to dispose of the Texans. The bright side for Houston is this one will not be shut out.

The prediction: New England 34, Houston 10.

Sunday Green Bay travels to Dallas to take on the Cowboys. This will be the most competitive game of the weekend. It will also be a shootout. Dallas is led by two rookies who have never tasted NFL playoff action before.  The way they handle this change will directly affect the outcome of the game. On the other side Aaron Rodgers is on fire. He has the rest of the Packers believing this is their year. And if they can get past the Cowboys it may just be true.

The prediction: Green Bay 14, Dallas 13.

The final game of this weekend's playoffs was moved to Sunday night due to weather. The Pittsburgh Steelers travel to Kansas City to play the Chiefs. This will be another excellent game that will be decided in the final minutes. I was wrong last week going against Pittsburgh, so that won't happen this week.

The Prediction: Pittsburgh 17, Kansas City 16.

Monday, January 9, 2017

THE WEEKEND REPORT 1/9/2017

This past weekend felt a little weird here in Arizona because the was no football. There was however plenty of other sports action around the state.

Let's start with the Arizona Coyotes. Saturday they beat the New York Islanders 2-1. Despite the victory they are still struggling.   They are 12-22-6.

The Phoenix Suns played host to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday.  They showed some fight taking the defending NBA Champs to the limit.  But in the end it wasn't enough as they ended up losing 110-106.   The Suns are now 12-26 but seem to getting better by the game.

ASU split this past weekend beating Colorado by 1 point 78-77 on Thursday.   On Saturday they were looking for there second straight win but were denied by the Utes of Utah 88-82.  They are now 9-8 on the season and face in state rival Arizona on Thursday.

17th ranked Arizona continued there winning ways beating Utah and Colorado to improve to 15-2.  They beat Utah 66-56 and Colorado 82-73.

Saturday, January 7, 2017

PREVIEWING WILDCARD WEEKEND

The NFl playoffs begin this weekend.  It is unlikely that the next Super Bowl champ will be playing this weekend, but there are a lot of good matchups this weekend.   Lets take a look.

The first game is the Houston Texans hosting the Oakland Raiders. This game has lost its luster since Oakland quarterback Derek Carr went down for the season.  The Texans are favored to win the game but don't count out the Raiders.  They are down to a rookie quarterback that has never played a snap in the NFL comma but they have a great defense that will help take the pressure off of him.

THE PREDICTION:  OAKLAND 13, HOUSTON6

In the night game on Saturday the Seattle Seahawks host the Detroit Lions. Detroit has had a disappointing end to a very good season that I feel will continue with a lost today. Seattle is playing very good and I see them running away with the victory.

THE PREDICTION: SEATTLE 35, DETROIT 14

The playoffs continue Sunday when the Miami Dolphins travel to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers. Pittsburgh has had a very good year but I feel they have underachieved. The Dolphins will be playing with a backup quarterback, but that shouldn't slow them down. This will be a close game but I see the Dolphins pulling off the victory.

THE PREDICTION: MIAMI 24, PITTSBURGH 16

The final game of Wild Card Weekend may prove to be the best yet.  The Green Bay Packers host the New York Giants. Both teams are on fire right now and have played excellent throughout the last few weeks of the regular season. The Giants have put the rest of the NFL on notice beating Dallas 2 times during the regular season. But the question is will that be enough against Aaron Rodgers and the rest of the Packers. I don't think it will be. Rodgers is on a mission to win a Superbowl and his excellent play has backed that up. The Packers will come out Victorious.

THE PREDICTION: GREEK BAY 38, NEW YORK 31

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

TIDBIT TUESDAY 1/3/2017

Today's Tidbit Tuesday comes to us from the Arizona Cardinals. As you all know they finish their season yesterday with a blowout victory over the Los Angeles Rams 44-6. It was a disappointing season for the Cardinals finishing 7-8-1.

Despite the disappointment there were some bright spots for the Cardinals yesterday. One of those bright spots was wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald. Larry Fitzgerald late touchdown catch gave him the league lead in receptions for this season. But did you know he set another record also?

Fitzgerald became the first receiver in league history 2 leader in receptions 11 years apart. Fitzgerald was in just his second year with the Cardinals when he left the league the first time. Now the major question is was that touchdown catch Fitzgerald's last as a Cardinal?  Only time will tell.

Monday, January 2, 2017

THE WEEKEND REPORT 1/2/2017

This weekend we rung in the new year with friends, family and sports.  Here in Arizona we had an action packed weekend of sports to entertain us.

The Phoenix Suns finished 2016 with a loss to the Utah Jazz. The score was 91-86 and it capped a disappointing start to the basketball season. The Suns are now 10-24.

The Coyotes were also in action on New Year's Eve. They too ended the year with a loss to the Flames 4-2.  They are now 11-21-5.

The Arizona State Sun Devils got a big win in basketball on Friday. They beat Stanford 98 - 93. Then on New Year's Day they lost to Cal 81-65.  There record is now 8-7.

The 18th ranked Wildcats of Arizona defeated Cal 67-62 on Friday night.  When they took the floor on New Year's Day they dominated the Stanford Cardinal.  They win 81-52 bringing there season record to 13-2.

It wasn't the best weekend in Arizona sports but the Cardinals made it one to remember.  They played there final game of the season in Los Angeles against the Rams.  They finally put together a complete game and ran away with the easy victory 44-6.  The Cardinals season is now over and they finished the season 7-8-1.