jonmhoefling Page 7 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Have the Mets learned nothing from Bobby Bonilla?
A few days ago, the New York Mets officially re-signed closer Edwin Díaz to a five-year deal worth $102 million, the largest contract ever for a reliever, by a wide margin. The details of Díaz’s contract are as follows:...

Germany has always wanted American football
When tickets for the NFL’s first game in Germany went on sale in July, the worst seats in the entirety of Allianz Arena were being sold left and right for upwards of $600. Germany has never had a mainstream NFL game in the country before, and although the first matchup would obviously be given a ser...

Jacob deGrom and Bruce Bochy are a match made in heaven
The MLB hot stove is not officially underway, but it’s warming up, and arguably the biggest name on the pitching market is two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom. Earlier this week, deGrom officially opted out of his Mets’ contract — a decision most people saw coming — and almost immediately th...

Tua Tagovailoa is the real deal
Prior to the season, the NFL world was conflicted on Miami Dolphins starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s viability as a franchise quarterback. Even after his six-touchdown performance in Week 2, the world was still divided. Maybe it was just a fluke game. Hell, even I pointed out that bad quarterba...

This awful stretch of Raiders’ 1st-round draft picks is a sign
Yesterday, after failing to find a trade partner, the Las Vegas Raiders cut former first-round safety Johnathan Abram. According to reports, the Raiders were shopping both Abram and fellow 2019 first-round selection Clelin Ferrell, but, after being unable to find trade partners, Vegas opted to cut t...

Chris Ballard ruined the Colts, not Alec Pierce
During the Colts’ Monday press conference announcing former All-Pro center Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach, GM Chris Ballard expressed dissatisfaction with several parts of the team, particularly the offensive line....

Edwin Díaz might be overpaid, but that just shows the Mets are moving in the right direction
This past Sunday, the New York Mets re-signed closer Edwin Díaz to a five-year, $102 million deal — the largest reliever contract in MLB history. For reference, the previous all-time high in terms of average annual value was $18 million given to the White Sox’s Liam Hendriks prior to 2021. The previ...

The 2022 Astros don’t absolve the 2017 Astros of anything
When the Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal was exposed in 2019, team owner Jim Crane wanted to make sure everyone knew the championship wasn’t tainted. “Our opinion is that this didn’t impact the game,” Crane said. “We had a good team. We won the World Series and we’ll leave it at that.” Then-right fiel...

History is not on the Philadelphia Eagles' side despite an 8-0 start
Thursday Night Football saw the Philadelphia Eagles win their eighth game in a row, a 29-17 victory over the woeful Houston Texans. While many people have claimed the Eagles are frauds due to their lackluster schedule, it’s hard to deny just how electric their offense has looked and how stout their ...

Could this Philly prop bet be the worst bad beat of the century?
Last night, the Philadelphia Phillies dropped Game 5 of the Fall Classic, falling behind 3-2 in the series. It was a better showing than their efforts the game before which saw Rob Thomson’s crew get no-hit, just the second time in World Series history any participant has been held hitless. However...

Thursday Night Football Preview: Can the Philadelphia Eagles run the table?
The Eagles are the only remaining undefeated team in the NFL. With 10 weeks left, though, it seems impossible that the Eagles could remain undefeated through the rest of the year. Then you look at their upcoming schedule....

Hear me out: Cristian Javier should’ve remained in Game 4
Last night, the Houston Astros’ pitching staff combined for the second no-hitter in World Series history. Cristian Javier, Bryan Abreu, Rafael Montero, and Ryan Pressly allowed only three baserunners (all walks) while striking out 14 Phillies en route to evening up the World Series. There were only ...

Najee Harris' career arc is starting to look a lot like Trent Richardson's
Most people could’ve predicted Najee Harris’ sophomore slump. One look at the Steelers’ payroll, offensive line depth, or quarterback situation should’ve been enough for anyone to foresee backfield struggles for the 2021 first-round pick out of Alabama. Still, several believed his feature role and p...

D’Ernest Johnson should have been an NFL trade deadline target
The NFL trade deadline has come and gone, and the positional group most represented in the trades was running back. Christian McCaffrey (San Francisco 49ers), Jeff Wilson Jr. (Miami Dolphins), Chase Edmonds (Denver Broncos), James Robinson (New York Jets), and Nyheim Hines (Buffalo Bills) all found ...

There's no universe where Zeke should be the Cowboys' RB1 next season
Anybody who watches the Cowboys — HELL, anyone who watches football! — knows who the best running back in Dallas is. It’s not the former No. 4 overall pick getting paid $15 million a year. It’s 2019 fourth-round selection, Tony Pollard. Even prior to last Sunday’s game, there’d been shouting from Co...

Does TJ Hockenson to the Vikings actually make a difference?
Prior to this morning, the NFL trade deadline had been a very quiet affair. Aside from Christian McCaffrey and Roquan Smith, there wasn’t much for NFL fans to get excited about. There were dozens of rumors, revolving mainly around running backs like Kareem Hunt, Cam Akers, and Nyheim Hines, but no a...

Should a player’s legacy be defined by postseason results?
Justin Verlander has a great shot at winning the American League Cy Young award this year. He pieced together a dominant season — at age 39 — after recovering from Tommy John surgery and helped lead the Houston Astros to another World Series. ...

NFL Week 8: The Falcons are the least pathetic team in the pathetic NFC South
Another week means another heavy underdog getting tons of money thrown its way. This is interesting because the dog seems to win when bettors throw a lot of money behind it. Just this season, most of the reviews I’ve written about have surrounded the 6-1 New York Giants. Big Blue has an incredible a...