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College Football Marty McFly Rankings Week 6: Tennessee, L.A. football, and Texas are all back
Like a poorly thought-through movie-to-TV series, it appears the Marty McFly rankings are on life support. The actor I hired to play Michael J. Fox’s character is no Michael J. Fox, the de-aging for Christopher Lloyd is too expensive, and the DeLoreans keep breaking down. Never mind that these are t...
The NFL could easily make its unnecessary roughness penalties more tolerable for the masses
Penalties that turned all of social media into Atlanta Falcons fans and made the crowd at Arrowhead Stadium even angrier than when they booed Unity in 2020 are not new. It only feels like the illegal contact to/with-the-head penalties are a result of the NFL being forced to admit the long-term effec...
There’s a reason Mike Leach’s quarterbacks have never cost him his job
The next time a pundit says “Missing on such-and-such QB cost coach X his job” will be my next visit to the psych ward. You know why Spencer Rattler didn’t cost Lincoln Riley his job, and Paul Chryst couldn’t survive Graham Mertz? One looks at a chalkboard as a place to draw plays, and the other see...
Why don’t teams run more QB sneaks?
About a week ago, Jason and Travis Kelce were discussing goal-to-go short-yardage plays on their podcast, “New Heights.” Travis, a pass-catching tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, seemed to think a pass play was the way to go. “I’m running some type of rollout,” said the younger brother. Jason, t...
Geno Smith is making the most of this opportunity by playing historically well
You remember Geno Smith, don’t you? The former New York Jets starting quarterback whose career was derailed in 2015 after getting sucker punched by a defensive player who hasn’t played in the NFL since that season. The guy who replaced Eli Manning for one week in 2017. The quarterback of the last-of...
Trevor Lawrence is finally looking like the QB we thought he’d be coming out of Clemson
Following Trevor Lawrence’s rookie NFL season, many people questioned whether he’d develop into the quarterback he’s been projected as since high school. After one tumultuous campaign (mainly because of Urban Meyer’s behavior) in the NFL, many analysts and fans were ready to write Lawrence off. But ...
The D-List, Week 3: Anthony Richardson’s been the nation’s most disappointing QB
Welcome to the D-List. It’s the Deadspin Dean’s list for the absolute worst of the weekend in college football. The beauty of college football is that we witness raw football talent being molded every week before our very eyes. This is a place for the sloppy sculptures of talent, the gridiron undera...
Geno Smith was always a starting QB
If you think Geno Smith’s performance Monday night was a fluke, you haven’t been paying attention....
The Favorite
I won’t be alone in saying that Roger Federer was the first winner I consistently cheered for. Part of that was growing up in Chicago, when as a child, being a fan of a consistent winner really wasn’t much of an option (as it is now. And everything turns, turns, turns…). But a sports fan’s natural i...
The Patrick Mahomes hate continues
I know that it’s just an image, from a corporate Twitter account nonetheless. It’s there strictly for engagement purposes....
Beware the YouTube footage of the transfer quarterback
A change of scenery doesn’t change a player’s DNA. Coaching staffs can alter the way a quarterback is used and improve his production, but the flaws will surface under intense stress. It’s like Tim Tebow’s throwing motion. The guy could have the footwork of Peyton Manning and the accuracy of Drew Br...
The Marty McFly Rankings Week 1: Which college football program is most on its way to being ‘back’?
It feels like an abundance of college football programs are “back” this season more so than in recent iterations. USC beat Rice 66-7, and they’re already the Pac-12’s best hope of making the College Football Playoff. Florida State topped LSU (who’s still a candidate to make this list if Brian Kelly ...
It’s come together for Frances Tiafoe
There’s a pretty common narrative for tennis players, which has been blunted on the men’s side for a while because well, there’s been three guys stopping anyone else from taking the final step. The arc is supposed to be that a player shows up in his late teens or early 20s, flashes some serious game...
A.J. Terrell's absence from the NFL Top 100 is inexcusable
The NFL Top 100 Players of 2022 list, a group compiled by the players themselves, included eight cornerbacks, who were ranked from 89th (Saints’ Marshon Lattimore) to ninth (Rams’ Jalen Ramsey). Every player mentioned is a tremendous talent, even Trevon Diggs (ranked 23rd). I just don’t think he’s w...
Desmond Howard… explain yourself
College football season kicks off today and already people are looking to the future, making predictions for conference championships and national titles. Some of these takes are scalding hot....
College Football’s 2022 Jekyll & Hyde QB situations
The top 25 is littered with pinpoint passers or dual threats, ranging from Bryce Young to Devin Leary to Tyler Van Dyke and K.J. Jefferson. For programs returning subpar starting quarterbacks, the offseason was about ironing out the deep wrinkles in their existing starters or hoping a clipboard-hold...
Jimmy Haslam is to blame for the vile T-shirts and signs in support of Deshaun Watson
Talent trumps anything in the NFL — and Jimmy Haslam knows that....
No surrender in Calgary
One of the familiar tropes in the NHL is the “poor ol’ Canadian team.” Lord Stanley’s chalice hasn’t been parked north of the border in 29 years, and there must be a reason for it. After all, the first two Great Bettman Lockouts were somewhat based on the fact that Canadian teams couldn’t have their...
The Seahawks’ unofficial depth chart is officially certifiable
“What if — and this is purely hypothetical — we float out an unofficial depth just to see how they react?” — (Probably) Pete Carroll buzzing around a 3 a.m. coaches meeting, a few Adderall and five sugar-free Red Bulls deep, trying to figure out how to ease Seattle fans into a reality where Geno Smi...
Expect more illegal contact calls from refs this NFL season
It is bad enough how bold the league is about its financial goals. The NFL wants to bring in $25 billion in revenue by 2027. It has been two years since the start of the pandemic, and the league generated $11 billion per Sportico. That number includes no local revenue dollars....