data-mm-id=”_fzes2cxpf”>The NFL Draft will take place as scheduled April 23-25 and commissioner Roger Goodell doesn't want to hear any belly-aching about it. In a league-wide memo sent yesterday, he warned that any public dissenters would be risking penalty. "Public discussion of issues relating to the Draft serves no useful purpose and is grounds for disciplinary action," he wrote. On the democracy front, Goodell said the NFL Management Council Executive Committee was "unanimous and unequivocal that the Draft should go forward as scheduled, despite the coronavirus pandemic that has disrupted work for most of the nation." On the totalitarian front, those speaking out will do so at their own peril. There are no easy decisions right now. Conducting the draft wil…
data-mm-id=”_x6fdkm0oc”>The ripple effects of coronavirus are far-reaching and plainly terrifying. Every new day brings another sobering reminder of the economic impact rubbing salt in the still-fresh health wounds. Multiple media outlets have already announced significant staff and salary reductions. And the one life preserver propping up revenue is not being spared. Yes, COVID-19 is bringing with it a precipitous drop in podcast consumption. “Downloads in the space overall have dropped about 10 percent since the start of March, according to data from Podtrac, which follows trends and usage in the space. Total unique listeners also dropped roughly 20 percent in the same time frame. “The cause and effect here is clear: No commuting and reduced alone time results in less listening. The…
data-mm-id=”_ifbd38kkt”>Jorge Masvidal says he wants an immediate rematch with UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Masvidal got dominated by Usman at UFC 251, losing a unanimous decision and looking completely outmatched. While Masvidal took the fight on six days notice and had a brutal weight-cut, he should have to win at least one fight before he gets another shot at Usman. Masvidal told ESPN's Ariel Helwani, "I want that damn belt and I'm stubborn. And I know I'm better than Usman, and I want to prove it. I want to fight again."He continued, "I'm not going to take nothing from him; he won the first one. Let's do it again."While it wasn't an exciting fight, Usman put on a clinic for how to slow down and neutralize a dangerous stri…
data-mm-id=”_5vukpw1fn”>How do you pronounce things? It's a complicated matter with a rich history of confusion going back to at least 1937 when Fred Astaire and Ginger Rodgers debated the correct way to say "tomato." Just last week we learned how we're supposed to pronounce Nevada. Earlier this week, I was having a discussion with some friends about polecats. Eventually, we shared a laugh at the way some people might say coyote. The official pronunciation is kai-ow-tee, but you may have heard people on television or even in real life (specifically, Colorado) say kai-oat or kai-yote. So my follow-up question for these people is whether they call the infamously ineffective Warner Brothers character Wile E. Coyte something along the lines of Why-lee Kai-oat. It would …
data-mm-id=”_sl2r6e7r3″>Boston Red Sox fans were raring to go on a very chilly Thursday as the team kicked off its 2023 MLB season by hosting the Baltimore Orioles. Corey Kluber got the nod as the starter for a home team and almost immediately fell apart, leaving the Sox in a hole and the fans grasping for something resembling optimism. Who knows if they found that, but one man earned the admiration of the bleacher creature crowd by chugging his beverage out of his boot. Season going off the rails already pic.twitter.com/IOme89lb4C— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) March 30, 2023That's really the only response to watching the Red Sox get smacked around by the AL East's perennial cellar dweller. Perhaps this fan was merely inspired by Adley Rutschman's unusual use of his…