With A Little Bit Of Luck (2016 Edition)

112 thoughts on “With A Little Bit Of Luck (2016 Edition)”

1. Weeeeee

   “I don’t know this, um, I think that the synthetic marijuana story
   might be just a story,” Carter said. “Just for me, it don’t pass the
   smell test for me. To me, I think that — I think he was smoking
   marijuana, and I think he was smoking some marijuana laced with PCP, or
   angel dust. And I think that’s what made him trip out. Now, he could
   have been smoking synthetic, but it’s a better story — it’s a better
   story to tell: ‘That’s the reason I’m here.’ So when he got to the
   police station, why was he smelling like marijuana? Because synthetic
   doesn’t smell like marijuana. So for me, I don’t know all the details of
   the case, but I’m just a little — uh, the synthetic, that’s a better
   way to put it.”

   Carter then invoked the name of Aaron Hernandez, the former Patriots tight end now in prison for murder, as a cautionary tale.

   http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/01/15/cris-carter-speculates-chandler-jones-smoked-pcp/

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   1. To really be convincing, Carter should have said “Speaking from experience…”

      Also, I forget, did Carter make any baseless speculation about Manning and the HGH shipments received at his house? Or did he wait for “more evidence” in that case?

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      1. Three weeks ago, Cris Carter was sensitive to potentially untrue reports about drug use. He chastized Al Jazeera. pic.twitter.com/O9g82A9a9J

         — Michael Hurley (@michaelFhurley) January 15, 2016

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      2. He probably applauded Manning’s ability to “find a fall guy” in that case….even though the fall guy turned out to be a fall gal, his wife.

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   2. “Do you have any idea what this does to kids?”

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   3. I don’t think those accusations will stickum.

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      1. You just made me FallGuy out of my chair laughing

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2. Meanwhile, OTL is doing some investigative journalism on the chess club dudes running meth labs:

   E-Sports and PED use? https://t.co/u6aKser9GA

   — Bob Ley (@BobLeyESPN) January 15, 2016

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3. I would say the biggest luck in the 2015 super bowl was that ridiculous catch by Kearse.
   The fact Seattle even got down to the goal line was a miracle.

   The playcall on the goal line was fine, the execution was terrible.

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   1. Right! Some people would say to me the Pats got lucky and I would say to them it evened out because Seattle was lucky for even getting down there. That drive should’ve stalled out mid field.

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4. Anyone care to venture a guess on HOW IN CHRIST’S NAME does Cris Carter have a job on TV? From the “have a fall guy” at the rookie symposium to the outrageous accusations and comparisons made on Mike & Mike in regards to Chandler Jones. From Carter to Ray Lewis to Keyshawn and Ditka, ESPN wants the names and not the substance. Their hiring process must be get a name in the studio and if he can sound intelligent or knowledgeable, well, we’ll just call that a bonus. How does Bruschi even stand to work there?

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   1. I think you answered your own question.

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   2. . Most of those TV analyst jobs, for former players, are 6+ figures. You get to work basically 6 months of the year, enjoy really nice fringe benefits, fly first class, etc.

      I ask the same but.. we all do have to put food on the table.

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5. Karma is a fickel master.

   http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14577195/espn-senior-nfl-analyst-chris-mortensen-throat-cancer-taking-sabbatical-treatment

   No one wants someone to suffer with cancer. By all accounts Mortensen is not an evil or bad human being…instead he ruined a sterling reputation all in the name of god knows what…access, marching orders, some misplaced idea that he was doing right when in reality he was being manipulated…who knows. We will never now get him to face the Boston media and explain why he did what he did to Tom Brady…he has far more important things to worry about. I wish him good luck in his battle against the scourge that is throat cancer (some of them can be particularly evil and difficult). He has a family and a life outside of reporting…he needs it now more than ever.

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6. It's becoming clearer that Chiefs will beat the Patriots. This has the makings of a lock-it-up situation. Official prediction on Saturday.

   — Manish Mehta (@MMehtaNYDN) January 15, 2016

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   1. He’s the gift that never stops giving in terms of an idiot media member to make fun of. Did the same thing with the Jets – Bills in the last game of the season. Guaranteed a Jets win. They lose and are eliminated.

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      1. Yeah, his “confidence” on these and then how he acts like a child when they don’t go right is funny.

         Just say I think X wins. That’s fine. The stone cold stuff makes him look like some gambling clown who sells “picks”

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         1. Didn’t the Gare Bear say the Pats had no chance to win too? lol

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7. Heard referees forgot the kicking balls & gauges at their hotel. Needed an escort to retrieve them prior to game….nice job NFL

   — Scott Zolak (@scottzolak) January 17, 2016

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   1. Whoops!

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      1. I’m surprised that the NFL didn’t already fabricate a story about some Patriots agent breaking into the hotel and stealing them.

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8. Some media critiques in no particular order following the Pats/Chief’s game:

   – I had an hour drive around 10:00 pm last night. I tuned into WEEI and listened to a part of the Real Post Game show… WEEI had Glenn Ordway, Fred Smerlis and Butch Sterns doing the wrap up. I have no idea how well they did right after the game but the 10:00-11:00 our was absolutely brutal. It instantly took me back to all of the bad things about the old drive time Big Show that we all spent years documenting. From talking over each other, to inane points, to idiotic callers, to a pace that glacial…BRUTAL. What is interesting to me is that Ordway has been quite good on MFO. I think Merloni is the weak link on that show and out of season Fauria does nothing for me but Ordway’s presence has really cleaned that show up and made it pretty good. Not so with the Real Post Game show last night. You would think the playoffs would bring out the best in WEEI…they certainly made an offer bringing Ordway on to the show. Failed miserably.

   – I thought CBS’s coverage of the game was bad. I take that back…it was worst than bad. Dan Fouts had absolutely no idea what game he was calling. He barely understood the game. He had problems with getting rules right and with describing accurately the plays he was watching. Several times he wanted calls to go against the Pats when it was clear they should not go against them. He just did not know what he was talking about.

   – Because it needs to be asked…what were the air pressure readings from the game balls last night. If you measure them in a 72 degree room and then play the game in a damp 37 degree environment…how much did they pressure drop. Enquiring minds want to know. I ask this because the conditions yesterday were almost identical to the conditions the ones a year ago in the Pats/Colts game.

   – Speaking of the Colts and the Ravens and the Cowboys how is the Golf going…yes I am petty and vindictive.

   – Lastly, this one has nothing to do with the Pats game. I think the coverage of the Rams moving to LA has been fascinating. Your Glenn Ordway has been the most on the ball about the whys and hows locally and to be honest has had a better perspective and grasp than most of the national guys. The reason I find the who conversation interesting is that people have somehow forgotten that the Rams started out in LA. That the team was only moved to St. Louis because they could not get a stadium done in LA. It took 22 years to work out those details (talk about the pace of government). If you look at what Kronke is going to do at the old Racetrack you will see Patriot Place on steroids. The repercussions of that project are going to change Englewood, and the flow of traffic in LA for years as it will become as big a destination as Disneyland. I think the scope of the project has been lost on a lot of people who look at renderings on a phone or even a computer monitor and don’t comprehend what a $3 -$5 bill complex will look like. I hate LA…it is my least favorite place in North America…yet I am already looking forward to going out to see a game at the new facility and see all that they do in the min city they are building around it.

   –

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   1. I lost track of how many times Fouts said a missed catch was a touchdown if they caught it. I think there were 6-7 hypothetical touchdowns scored in the 1Q alone, according to Danny Boy. My favorite was when he said a Chiefs DB would have had a pick-6 on the Edleman bobble (eerily reminisant of the Colts game) even though Jules tackled the guy. Or how he kept insisting the Pats need to run the ball and you can’t pass every down!! Ironic coming from Air Coryell himself.

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      1. The “announcing” across the board for the NFL is parody-level now. This year I haven’t caught much or when I did, I was watching a Redzone feed somewhere or had the radio on. I think it’s usually Harlan doing the Westwood One games that WEEI got but I never kept track.

         As far as TV, I’m not even sure how to judge quality between everyone that is on. Simms does something dumb multiple times in a game. Mike Carey is a joke and gets everything wrong. Even Pierra seems like he’s just hawking products in an expensive suit. Aikman is so bland and uses the same seven cliches. Even Gruden is tiring now. It’s not like these networks don’t have their pick on who can do games. Not helping matters is the product. Nobody knows what a catch, PI or many of the rules are.

         I’m still wondering who this was:

         Nothing like a squeaker of a fart while you are announcing a football game! #PITvsDEN #NFL #Football #NFLPlayoffs https://t.co/3RTmsZnQOP

         — patrick (@PeegeRiley) January 18, 2016

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9. Rules?

   The NFL confirmed this morning that its rules do not require a coin to actually flip during the coin toss. But… https://t.co/S4B072ckdf

   — Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) January 17, 2016

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10. If I consumed enough paint thinner, could I morph into Phil Simms?

    Phil Simms already in 3rd quarter form- "very confidence" @JohnDennisWEEI @kirkmin pic.twitter.com/mWXgXyDMVP

    — Graig Murphy (@GraigMurphy) January 17, 2016

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11. Damn, I’m already aggravated about the Pats having to go to Denver next week because of the “head-to-head tiebreaker.” The officiating on Nov. 29 was a disgrace; I’m not expecting it to be much better next Sunday either. This is, after all, the golden boy (nothing to see here) HGH user’s last real shot at a Super Bowl, right? Yes, after the league’s conduct towards the Patriots’ organization over the past 12 months, I’ve gone full-blown conspiracy theorist, and I hate that Goodell and his minions have turned me into a tinfoil-hat wearer, I really do.

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    1. Me too. I haven’t watched any football this year because of the nonsense and the fact that I am 100% sure the league won’t let the Patriots win this year. I hate it. #FireGoodell

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       1. Me either. I have watched — I kid you not — maybe 20 plays, total, of other NFL games this season that did not involve the Patriots. This past weekend I watched what I could call “most” of the Pittsburgh/Denver game (probably two and a half quarters) because I wanted to see if the Pats would get a break and have home field for Sunday’s game. That’s it. That “great” Green Bay/Arizona game? Didn’t watch a single play. The channel was immediately switched over to the last half of the Bruins game after Brady took his final knee against KC in Foxboro. I’m done with that corrupt league run by that corrupt, lying jackass of a commissioner. The Patriots, and only the Patriots, are my focus. As for this coming Sunday, I’m really in full tin-foil hat mode over this game, and I HATE IT. I was never like this before the made-up joke that was the “Deflategate” saga. Even with Spygate, I thought that was just a combination of Goodell being clueless about the history of the NFL and the “unwritten/unspoken rules” between teams that were always allowed to go on behind the scenes under previous commissioners, and his loving the media spotlight a bit too much, plus the hateful agenda of a media that had been drooling for a chance to “get” Belichick and “make him pay” for the way he “treated them” in press conferences over the years. Of course, that was before Deflategate and Tom Curran’s excellent reporting about just how many ex-Jets (and ex-players/personnel from other teams) with axes to grind against BB (e.g. Kensil) are actually employed in important positions in the league office. I really don’t see the NFL letting them win this game Sunday. If they were playing the Steelers at home, I could see the Pats being “allowed” to sneak by and then get hammered by the league/refs in the Super Bowl two weeks hence. But this game? This game is against Saint Peyton — whose alleged involvement with HGH isn’t worth investigating or even talking about, apparently — in what could very well be his last shot at the Big Dance. I expect A LOT of laundry to fly against NE, and I expect most of it to fly after the Pats make big plays on either side of the ball….just like in November (and in the 2006 AFC title game at Indy, when ALL of the questionable/bad calls went the Colts’ way). I mean, they could lose this game fair and square, too. Now they’re beat up on defense just as their offensive guys are starting to come back, and stopping the run has been an issue for them over the last several weeks, so who knows? But if they’re playing well, and doing well early in the game, I really expect the “balance-tipping” by the refs to ramp up to “11”.

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12. Troy Aikman entering into Fail Simms category:

    VIDEO: Troy Aikman wanted the Seahawks to kick a field goal…on third down:https://t.co/zB6kGKBcey

    — Someone's An Idiot (@SomeonesAnIdiot) January 18, 2016

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13. Anyone else have Brad Edelman on their DFS team? He’s won me some big bucks!

    

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    1. He was just o with D/C/M. Literally a laugh out loud funny interview. Not because he was being funny but because….well, you know. “Peyton was razor sharp and very accurate. Brady, not so much.” I just….I can’t even….

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       1. He named the 3 incidents but it seems like there’s something missing from it all.

          Link: https://twitter.com/WEEI/status/689114548691845122

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          1. “I reported it, OK?” “I reported that too, OK?””I reported this too, OK?”

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       2. Casserly’s face should be in the dictionary next to the definition of delusional.

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       3. He still crows about “going against public and media opinion” and drafting Mario Williams #1 overall for the Texans in the ’06 draft when “everyone” said they should draft Reggie Bush. So, that’s one thing he got right during his career (but isn’t “going against public and media opinion” and making “unpopular” decisions part of what being a GM is all about?). He also drafted Heath Shuler fifth overall during his tenure in Washington (and later claimed that Shuler really wasn’t “his guy” in that draft), and traded up to draft Desmond Howard in ’92, expending a lot of draft capital to do so. He was on Beathard’s staff when Beathard built those semi-dynastic Redskins teams in the 80s, but when Casserly got a chance to run things on his own, well, he was no Beathard. The team that won it all in ’91 was pretty much in place already by the time Casserly took over as GM, though he deserves some credit for tweaking around the edges and putting on the finishing touches.

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14. I thought Matt Hasselbeck was legit gonna try and fight Minihane this morning. “How DARE you say something bad about my binkie, Peyton Manning!! How dare you, sir!!” Unreal. Pats fans may #DefendTheWall but my sweet lord, the media will die on the wall for Manning without question. They’d turn on each other just for the right to be the one to take the bullet.

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15. Deflategate turns 1 today:

    Monday is the one year anniversary of the start of Deflategate. Ah, the memories…

    — Bob Kravitz (@bkravitz) January 18, 2016

    I love how he celebrates it at 12:15.

    It still remains one of the juiciest stories out there for a reporter to become the next Woodward/Bernstein, whom many idolize and got into the business because of, but we’ve yet to have any takers.

    http://thornography.weei.com/sports/boston/2016/01/18/reporter-who-started-deflategate-celebrates-1-year-anniversary/

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    1. Ah yes, Kravitz, the memories…….of the final lost shreds of whatever journalistic credibility you may have had before you helped the league launch this phony witch hunt at the behest of your beloved Colts. Eff you, moronic hack.

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       1. Portnoy is already trolling him. Asking “Little Bobby Kravitz” if he’ll “see him in Santa Clara.” LOL

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    2. “It still remains one of the juiciest stories out there for a reporter to
       become the next Woodward/Bernstein, whom many idolize and got into the
       business because of, but we’ve yet to have any takers.”

       That really is hard to believe. A story that would embarrass the leadership of a sports league is just sitting there. So much of the information is publicly available that anyone who posts here could put together a decent article. Imagine what someone with contacts, inside information and an audience could do. The fact that no one will is an interesting sub-story.

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       1. The salient things that come to mind w/o doing a true balance sheet:

          – Complete dismissal and ignoring of science. (Shocking, too, the public has no interest.)
          – Problems in methods used trying to convict Patriots (difference in gauges)
          – The dozens? hundreds? of lies from Goodell/NFL proven wrong thanks to testimony and required discovery.
          – League has still not released PSI. Why isn’t the media going nuts here? Perfect opportunity to nail the Cheatriots, right?
          – How the whole thing was started on two lies that have been discredited.
          – How the league lied to the Patriots thanks to them dumping the emails from Pash and the other clowns on Park Ave.
          – The “independence” of Ted Wells. You could write a book on how this is a joke.
          – Remember the theft of the balls? When Schefter send a TOW missle directly into Bob Ley, live on OTL and Kelly Naqi? Nothing followed up there.

          I’m going off what I can recall from wasting so much time invested in this. There’s probably dozens more if you were to go back over the past year and just look at documents + PR. We’re not even talking some pretty extreme liberties with circumstantial evidence and negligent conjecture, like Wells did.

          This isn’t a fishing expedition. There’s voluminous, tangible facts out there for someone that it seems like anyone with some interest and sources could unearth within a month.

          I’d like to know why nobody has done it either. Not everyone is “owned’ or affiliated with the NFL.

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          1. “I’d like to know why nobody has done it either. Not everyone is “owned’ or affiliated with the NFL.”

             My spiteful Pats fan hope is someone is investigating this behind the scenes and getting their ducks in a row to write an airtight expose of the NFL. Seems to me that could make a career. I wonder if Dan Wetzel (who you linked above) has considered it. He’s been on the NFL’s case since the beginning.

             I have to believe Bill Simmons is lining something up for his new show to incriminate the NFL & ESPN. Hell of a way to make a premier.

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    3. In related news, Bob Kravitz starts pleasuring himself at 12:16 AM.

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16. Peyton’s move of sliding then popping up and throwing is being described mostly as savvy and heady despite the officials blowing the call. What would the reaction be like if Brady pulled that maneuver?

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    1. Tom Shady! Cheatriots! Belicheat! Waahhh waahh I lost my binky!

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    2. 

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17. I’m curious on the ratio of Deflategate references to Peyton’s HGH references during Sunday’s CBS broadcast. I predict 3-0. Synthetic MJ to HGH will be 2-0.

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18. If nfl releases ball inflation week before super bowl than Kraft should have Stallone and Arnold take out HQ in NY. HTF can this even be under consideration let alone floated to the press?

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19. Curran tackles the “NFL might release PSI” and does a usual succinct shredding of the debacle this whole thing is:

    http://www.csnne.com/new-england-patriots/why-would-anyone-believe-nfl-psi

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    1. And there are still some commenters below that article who say “Brady cheated!” Facts…..they just don’t matter these days; not to enough people anyway.

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20. *ALERT! ALERT!* CONTRARIAN RADIO AHEAD! To nobody’s surprise Felger has flipped the script. For two months he’s been leading the “Manning is done” charge, but now “he’s not as bad as everybody thinks he is.” By everybody, you mean you, as well, Mike? And he’s parlayed that into people saying Manning is garbage are really saying Denver as a whole is garbage. It’s amazing. It really is. Evil, trolling, contrarian genius. Dale said it best – “You are the best straw-man argument in this town.”

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    1. He’s been accusing “Patriots fans” of taking Denver lightly ever since the final gun sounded in the Denver/Pittsburgh game on Sunday night. WTF? The Patriots almost never win in Denver. They’ve lost to good teams, mediocre teams, and even a couple bad ones out there. It goes all the way back to the Elway days and it’s continued through the BB/Brady era. It’s a house of horrors for them out there. Bad, weird things happen to them when they play in that city. Also, the Broncos have won 13 games this season. As BB’s former boss used to say: you are what your record says you are, and Denver is 13-4. So….who the hell is taking Denver “lightly” next Sunday? Maybe some of the more yahoo-homer types out there, but certainly not most Pats fans. I imagine most of them are as pessimistic as I am about this game. Between the Manning “swan song” story, the fact that Denver is a good team, the home crowd, and the NYJFL’s desire to see ANYONE but the Patriots win the Super Bowl this year, the Pats are certainly facing long odds next week IMO. Felger can suck it (h/t Shawn Thornton).

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       1. Denver being good and Peyton Manning being good are two separate issues and he’s trying to wrap them into one. I would give Denver a much better chance with Osweiler behind center.

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          1. I wouldn’t. I see Osweiler as having different weaknesses. He might have a stronger arm but his decision making is slow and the decisions he makes are questionable. The Broncos have a sophie’s choice to make…the guy with the dead arm who sees and processes fast or the guy with the live arm who processes slow and makes poor decisions. In reality Denver doesn’t have 2 QB’s they have none.

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    2. Agreed. It has been extremely frustrating. But let us never forget that at his core, Michael Felger is a massive troll. Yes, he’s been far better than usual this season, but there had to come a time when he was going to pull this. He has many points that aren’t bad ones, such as the Pats having a real tough time playing in Denver, that the refs will likely be against us, etc… But much of that is his non-existent strawmen. He gets a few yahoo callers who might say that, but most logical people out there are not taking this game lightly.

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21. Jerry Thornton sums up Dan Shaughnessy and gets a a shot in at the Globe at the same time:

    Like I said, it can’t be easy to be the Curly-Haired Boyfriend in an
    age like this. He owes his career to the miserable, downtrodden teams
    and nut-crushing losses he grew up covering. And now, faced with
    unprecedented levels of success in a league designed to prevent
    long-term, sustained excellence, he’s never figured out how to adapt.
    He’s a communist party apparatchik after the fall of the Soviet Union
    struggling to embrace the freedom and democracy of the decadent West he
    always hated.

    If the Pats should win another Super Bowl and Shaughnessy is further exposed as the trolling fraud he is, at least he’ll have a paper route to fall back on.

    http://thornography.weei.com/sports/boston/2016/01/19/dan-shaughnessy-claims-patriots-blew-season-by-losing-to-miami-on-purpose/#more-6202

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    1. That last line….FATALITY.

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22. Got in my car today and fired up the Tune-In Radio app on my phone. Dale & Holley were in commercial so I turned to DB & YARM and honest to god, I hear Felger que up Danny in Quincy and when he’s done screaming who’s next? Carlton in Norwell. I seriously contemplated taking my hands of the wheel and letting fate drive. Safe to say it was the longest Dale & Holley commercial break in the history of radio. The Big Show “celebrity” callers were mostly dumb, in some cases funny. The guys Felger parades on the airwaves? Infuriating. Rage inducing. Maddening.

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    1. Remember when Felger bragged in the beginning of the Hub that they wouldn’t do celebrity callers like the Big Show? Felger has become what he destroyed. He cuts off callers, gets mad at his staffers when they don’t agree with him, insults,mocks callers and listeners,relies on the same “celebrity” callers everyday to troll the audience and just like Glenn mostly ignored “serious” hockey talk so has Felger done the same with the NBA. The only thing Felger hasn’t done yet is gain 100 lbs and grow a mustache but that’s coming.

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       1. Don’t forget the mock turtleneck sweaters.

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    2. This is the 2nd time in 3 weeks you’ve referenced vehicular mayhem -. We need to track you on WAZE.

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23. Our long National nightmare is over, third shifters and early risers. Noted Patriots troll, Deflategate Truther, Jets fan and gambling addict Jason Page is going off the air! Woo-hoo!

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    1. Him vs. Marlboro Man vs. Freddie Coleman was rough if I had to be driving at those hours. I don’t know if he was good or bad before DG but, over the past few months, he made so many football segments about trolling Patriots fans.

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    2. The same guy beating his chest with his “national audience” and how D/C/M were “obsessing over him?”

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    3. Page used to have a local show in CT on ESPN radio and only lasted a few years there. It didn’t help him that he decided to attack the UConn basketball team. Not for an off court issue or the school giving him a hard time about interviews. He apparently thought it was a good idea to mock the team and alienate his audience. After this latest failure, maybe he should realize that talk radio is not for him.

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       1. “He apparently thought it was a good idea to mock the team and alienate his audience. ” I dunno, sounds like he’d be perfect for the Boston market.

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24. Hope CHB won’t count on the paper route if this “columnist” thing doesn’t work out. Print, everywhere, is on life support. The USA Today drop is insane. Did hotels stop giving it out? That’s why it was so high in the first place.

    print sure appears to be on life support these days https://t.co/fMdRenpHbN pic.twitter.com/ZS6mSYvC00

    — Eric Kay (@ekaycbs) January 20, 2016

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    1. I’m actually shocked that the drop isn’t worse….

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       1. I would like to know what the numbers are of people who dropped the paper copy and pay for the digital like my father and the WSJ or my uncle and the NYT.

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          1. Yes, I think a lot of this can be attributed to that. People are growing more accustomed (resigned) to paying for digital subscriptions. But, man, look at USA Today, which doesn’t have digital subscriptions (perhaps many hotels don’t leave papers in front of every room)

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             1. A few months back, I stayed at a local Holiday Inn (300 rooms) for a conference near-by that I know used to give papers to every room each morning, and they no longer do it. They did have about 10 copies between the restaurant and front desk, but asked that you kept them in the area. I didn’t ask why the change was and don’t know if this is the same w/most hotels.

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          2. Same questions I had.

             None available.

             It’s like the internal metrics for people like me who stream WEEI or SportsHub all day, not that I count w/o a PPM anyways.

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25. No doubt you guys have heard about the Flemming saving a woman story. It came from his HS in Chicago.

    Guess it might not be true? I’m not jumping to any conclusions since #1 Boston LOLbe Investigative Reporter, Chief Inspector Ben Clouseau is on it.

    Not jumping to any conclusions on Fleming story. He described incident in great detail. Told same story to teammates that he told me today

    — Ben Volin (@BenVolin) January 20, 2016

    (I sure hope to hell this guy isn’t making up stories but is this something you make up, let go viral, and lie to your teammates about? Yeah, I am sure there’s a DSM V entry/disorder for this but you know people check up with this stuff.)

    EDIT: Chris Villani follows up

    On Darius Fleming, per Walpole police log, there was a multi-vehicle accident last Thursday 4:19 p.m. on Rte 1 & Foxhill Drive, no injuries

    — Chris Villani (@ChrisVillani44) January 20, 2016

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26. The NFL media spends more time scrutinizing a heroic act by a Patriots 3rd string LB than they do illegal PED shipments to a 5X NFL MVP.

    — Patriots SB52 (@PatriotsSB49) January 20, 2016

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    1. Yeah, just chill! He’s a journalist! It’s not like eight years from now people will still be talking about this. You know like the time the Pats filmed the Rams practice.

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       1. Bazinga! Slow clap for you my friend……

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    2. This whole thing is pretty pathetic. The Globe, TMZ and Deadspin (others I’m sure) have spent most of the day “trying to corroborate” the story with the inference being that it might not be true. Trollin ,et al should spend more time vetting their OWN stories first. He who lives in a glass house, etc etc.

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27. INTEGRITY

    State Police confirm #NFL refs left the kicking balls at #Boston hotel before #Patriots – Chiefs game. Troopers drove them to Gillette.

    — David Wade (@davidwade) January 21, 2016

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    1. The best is Bert Breer trying to make this about the fact that the cops were used, not that the NFL officials screwed up…again.

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       1. 

          He could ask his boss on that one.

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28. Did Kraft get one of these from Ben Lol-in after he mistakenly connected the wrong dots last year?

    I would first like to apologize to Darius Fleming, who acted like a true hero last week in helping save that (cont) https://t.co/QZKfVlcant

    — Ben Volin (@BenVolin) January 21, 2016

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    1. No I don’t think he did…maybe its lost in the notoriously slow inter office mail system at Schaefer Stadium.

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    2. Insert irony and joke about Boston LOLbe and “delivery”

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    3. As if the media wasn’t problematic enough before Twitter, this episode further illustrates how ridiculous the “race to be first” really is. In the end, NO ONE except for the mediot that is first, cares about who or what outlet was the first to report something. But to these mediots, it’s their Super Bowl trophy. So instead of working through ALL of the channels and carefully fact checking what amounts to be a molehill of a story in the grand scheme of things, the mediots race to discredit Fleming. And let’s give give Trollin’ some credit, most of the mediots that did the exact same thing will never issue any kind of an apology to Fleming. It’s just business as usual.

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29. If the NFL does decide to “release the PSI numbers”, I think we’ve got our PR strategy:

    “A couple days after the HGH news on him broke, everyone from ESPN’s Tom
    Jackson to Jim Nantz declared it a non-story, but the stuff about me
    and PSI is still lingering,” said Brady. “Peyton told me that, first of
    all, I should claim it was Gisele who wanted to deflate footballs. And,
    second, I need to imply that anyone who speaks ill of me is likely a
    Muslim who just wants to bring down an American sports hero.”

    Peyton Manning Advises Tom Brady: "Just tell everyone your wife deflated those footballs" https://t.co/kqzLXR6Eqv

    — SportsPickle (@sportspickle) January 21, 2016

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30. OK, OK….this is the last of my conspiracy stuff about Sunday’s game, I promise. BUT, the Patriots are 8-10 in the last 18 games ref’d by Hoculi, and Denver is UNDEFEATED IN THIS MILLENIUM in games ref’d by Eddie “Gun Show.” I don’t even know if I can watch this thing……

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    1. I don’t think anything the NFL does is by accident

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       1. And the local media (Neumy being the most recent one) is calling us “crazy” for fearing what the NYJFL may try to pull. They’ve just spent the last 12 months brutalizing the Patriots organization and its marquee player over a huge, made-up pile of nothing. Does anyone out there really believe that Goodell and Co. will tolerate Brady, Belichick, and the rest of the Foxboro Legion of Doom being the team to oust Saint Peyton from what could be his last playoff game, and his last legit shot at another Super Bowl appearance? And if anyone out there doesn’t believe Goodell is having nightmares about the possibility of handing yet another Lombardi over to BB and Brady on Feb. 7th — while the 20,000 or so Patriots fans in attendance in Santa Clara mercilessly boo him and chant “Fire Goodell” or “Roooooogeeeerr!” — then they simply haven’t been paying attention.

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31. ESPN’s Kevin Van Valkenberg shockingly comes clean:

    “@bruceallen Thanks for the RT, Bruce. For the record: I was wrong then. Pats had/have a right to be pissed. I was part of the problem.”

    https://twitter.com/KVanValkenburg/status/690203903560957953

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    1. Who?

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       1. Thorton did an article on who he is:

          http://www.barstoolsports.com/boston/the-entire-country-could-learn-a-thing-or-two-about-humility-and-honor-from-espns-kevin-van-valkenburg

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32. One thing I’ve noticed is that at 10PM on weekdays, Mikey Adams is either replaced by Mutt, Villani or Arcand. They usually start as his “co-partner” even if he has Megs? (I don’t know if its his name) in studio. He’s already “off” half the year for the Sox and is on for maybe an hour when they syndicate Westwood One’s MNF package. Harbinger that they’re transitioning away from him?

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    1. Boy, I hope so. I know Mikey has a niche audience, but there is nothing appealing about his program. I can’t even turn it on.

       I end up tuning in to 98.5 at nights just because Mikey is a total zero for me. It’s a shame too since I’ve always felt that a good night program on EEI could easily steal listeners from Adam Jones and his negativity. The only redeeming part of the either night program is Rich Keefe.

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    2. I think Mikey’s been on thin ice for awhile. He’s probably pretty cheap (which is why he’s lasted this long) but he needs a lot of support to get through four hours. I could easily see him being replaced by one of the younger guys when his contract is up.

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    3. Lenny Megliola is useless.

       As for Mike Adams…as much as I want to see him gone his ratings are rock solid and way outperform how much he is being paid. The WEEI evening show is impossible to listen to yet stoners and 70’s Sox aficionados do it so well that the show out performs 98.5. As much as Mikey should be put to bed he is not going anywhere.

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       1. On ratings, Finn’s article on 12/22/2015:

          From 6-11 p.m., The Sports Hub, which airs “The Adam Jones Show” and Bruins and Celtics games in that window, was first (11.4). WEEI, which broadcasts “The Planet Mikey Show” at night, was second (7.8).

          (The period covered is September 10 – December 2.)

          Even with the lack of optimism for the C’s and B’s, that must be a good # for Mikey, right? Some of that period includes MNF when it’s not the Patriots/Sox.

          I don’t know if it’s normal that stations take their evening show to the Superbowl. I recall, last year, that SportsHub even took Jones, but can’t be sure Mikey has been talking, for weeks, about how he’s planning to get into Santa Clara, since WEEI made it clear that they’re not taking him even if the Patriots are in it. I don’t have a count but I recall that both stations have sent their 6-6 groupings for the past few years, even if the Patriots aren’t in it, with how big of an event it has become. And, now, it seems like almost every sports talk station sends at least one of their drive-time crews for the week there.

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33. I know this news doesn’t affect us but this has to be a top5 nominee for “biggest sports lie of the year” The responses to the tweet are hilarious.

    LeBron James was informed of the decision to fire David Blatt today, he was not consulted on decision sources said

    — Brian Windhorst (@WindhorstESPN) January 22, 2016

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34. NYT gets in on the DG science and how the NFL ignored it:

    "NFL Ignores Deflategate Science" @NoceraNYT gets in on the action: https://t.co/fP2er0yLq2

    — Dan Wetzel (@DanWetzel) January 22, 2016

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    1. “The Deflator.” I’m an unabashed homer, and so my opinions will be dismissed as just that, but the more I think about WHEN Dorito guy called himself “the Deflator” (May 2014); the more I think about his use of the words “deflate and give me that jacket” when texting the other guy during the 2014 Green Bay game (from his couch in New Hampshire); and the more I think about how the word “deflate” has been used as a reference to weight loss in several men’s health publications, and even in an NFL Network program a few years ago, the more I think the guy really WAS talking about losing weight. He’s a big guy, after all, and he’s probably tried to drop weight a million times since he grew to that size. It’s just unfortunate that those texts exist, because, as you said, the term “The Deflator” and the infamous 90-second bathroom trip are the ONLY things the Deflategate Flat-Earth Society in the media (h/t Jerry Thornton) have left to hang their hats on, given that the “science” in the Wells Report has been utterly annihilated by far, far, far more credible sources over the last several months. Have I mentioned how much I hate Roger Goodell’s NFL? He’s got to go, and the first thing a new Commish should do is reinstate the stolen draft picks. It’s a friggin’ joke that they’re going to have to sit idle during the first round next May. It’s criminal, in fact.

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    2. And this isn’t some schmuck writing it. It’s Joe Nocera. He’s one of the NYT’s big guns.

       Another passage that pissed me off was this one:

       “The other owners, feeling that the Patriots had been caught cheating a second time, wanted Goodell to crush them. Indeed, although the N.F.L. denies this, it was made clear to the commissioner that there would be repercussions for him if he went too easy on the Patriots.”

       That makes Kraft’s “for the good of the other 31” rah-rah-ing even more repulsive and pathetic.

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       1. Between this and the “process” of moving teams to LA, it’s clearer than ever that most owners are duplicitous sleaze who would stab their mother in the back if it were good for business and Goodell is a highly paid goon/punching bag.

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          1. I am confused. What was duplicitous of the Kronke move to LA. He owned a football team, he owned the land under the old Hollywood Race Track which is a perfect site for a football stadium and he never promised St. Louis he would stay. Now if you want to argue SD or the Raiders moving is duplicitous that I would entertain…but not so the Rams. They should have never have gone to St. Louis in the first place.

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             1. Regarding the Rams, that kind of my point. He never had any intention of staying in St. Louis and negotiated in bad faith with the city. He and the NFL presented an offer that was a virtual non-starter so Kroenke and Rog could shrug and say “well we tried”. An offer that, as a side note, would have been awful for the taxpayers.

                Also, regarding the other two, they switched the vote at the last minute to be a secret ballot and it resulted in a bunch of the owners Spanos believed to have not voting for his proposal. These people will turn on each other at the drop of a hat so long as they can do it in secret.

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             2. Exactly. To Spanos face, they agreed with him. Behind his back, they turned.

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       2. So those other owners are just as ignorant about “Spygate” as the fans and media have been for the last 8+ years. For the love of God, have any of them heard what guys like Cowher, Jimmy Johnson, Dick Vermeil, and Mike Shanahan have had to say about that “cheating scandal?” It burns me that something that was a common practice and had been dismissed (rightfully so) as gamesmanship between teams by previous commissioners was allowed to become the NFL’s Teapot Dome scandal — it wasn’t even illegal to film signals, technically, if you peruse what the actual rulebook says (a memo from the league office cannot change a written rule; that’s a bylaw, even I know what that means). And can we please stop with the “Goodell went easy on them” crap? A first round draft pick is not a minor penalty. It’s huge, and it’s a commodity that the league office (both times under Goodell, not surprisingly) has now confiscated twice from the Patriots, while salary cap cheats (Denver) and teams who tamper with other teams’ players on a routine basis have received the equivalent of slaps on the wrist for their transgressions (can’t blame Goodell for Denver only losing 3rd rounders since he wasn’t in charge back then, but it just goes to show how must more level-headed about stuff like that Tagliabue was when he was in charge). The bottom line is that everything that’s been said about, and done to the Patriots by Park Avenue, the “other 31,” and the despicable media since 2007 has been fueled by pure Hater-Ade. That’s what this is all about. It’s a joke, and it’s driven me away from the non-Patriots portion of the NFL, for good.

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       3. I think this was brought up before, but the ultimate dichotomy with Kraft is “31 or 5.5?”

          I don’t know who said it, and if they said it in that way, but we all know what it means. (A piece by Curran comes to mind.)

          Kraft seemed to “get us” here in the “5.5 Patriot States” but I
          think all of us wonder if he sold out at some point (and, if Jonathan
          did). Reasonable people don’t care if you make a shi-tload of money, but this whole incident all of us fight to this day; and, we’ll continue to because of your inaction. Even if you “lost” due to the NFL Charter, a la Al Davis, you’d still have a home, forever, here.

          Are you with us or against us? You want this zealotry and unbridled support? Basking in the glory of insane ratings, support, etc. (even with half the loser media in town being anti- )? You can’t sit there and just shill out like some f-cktard politician.

          Bob, we hold out hope.

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35. Patriots geographical cheating now!!!!!!

    

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36. Something tells me the Ted Wells “batsignal” won’t be hauled out of storage:

    FWIW, NFL is still reviewing any hgh allegations regarding Peyton Manning and the recent media report. Matter is not yet resolved

    — Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) January 24, 2016

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37. Bill Belichick coached horribly starting in the second half of the first
    Broncos game through the end of today’s game. He coached us out of the
    #1 seed in the regular season, then coached to lose today before the
    ball was kicked off. Frankly, it was startling to watch and, hopefully,
    it’s not a sign of things to come.

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    1. Hot take: Belicheck was secretly told by Kraft that the NFL couldn’t have the Patriots in the SB so he forced him to coach badly once they lost. Just bad enough, but allowed for Manning Brady and NFL to save face.

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