This is a guest post by TBScene’s Ryan Hatter.
Deflate-Gate
Has there been any story in sports as annoying as the deflate-gate in the past year? Sure, Michael Sam’s makeout sesh with his husband-to-be replayed for weeks. At least there’s something monumental about the first openly gay player drafted into the NFL. The exploits of Johnny Football were also extremely irritating, but let’s face it: Americans love a famous jackass, or, rather, jackasses make for a popular story. The only reason deflate-gate is getting so much press is because the Super Bowl amplifies everything 1,000-fold. If this happened in week six of the NFL regular season, would this have garnered more than a brief spot on SportsCenter?
Via: Komonews
Let’s let the situation take its course. The NFL will spend a few more weeks conducting a shambolic investigation. There probably won’t be enough evidence to find Brady or Belichick guilty of anything and nothing will happen. Or, the NFL will find the New England Patriots guilty and give the team another Spygate-esque slap on the wrist, the perfect cherry to the NFL’s PR nightmare that was the 2014-2015 season. The point is this; discussing deflate-gate has absolutely no outcome on what will go down during Super Bowl XLIX. So let’s move on until the NFL reaches a verdict.
Beast Mode
In the run-up to last year’s Super Bowl, every media network from ESPN to Fox News discussed almost nothing but Richard Sherman and his ridiculous “interview” with Erin Andrews. This year, one of Sherman’s teammates is under the spotlight for his interviews, Marshawn Lynch.
Lynch is the man. He is an incredibly talented running back who has never enjoyed the spotlight, yet beat writers hound him after every game. Lynch has skipped out on several league-mandated postgame media sessions, and the NFL has retaliated to Lynch’s refusals to interview with several heavy fines, a sum to the tune of roughly $131,000. In rebuttal, Lynch began to attend the sessions and answer reporters’ questions with a variety of simple and absolutely irrelevant responses. “Thank you for asking… I’m just here so I won’t get fined… Shoutout to my real Africans out there.” His interviews are the funniest we have seen since Clinton Portis’ alter egos.
Via: blogs.thescore.com
He may be insubordinate, but he’s a marketing genius. He has attended each of his three Super Bowl media sessions wearing “Beast Mode” gear, his clothing line named for his aggressive running style. While he will get fined a substantial amount for wearing unauthorized gear to an NFL event, his merchandise has been rapidly selling out. He has picked up sponsorship deals with Skittles and Progressive, and MeUndies has pledged to match whatever amount of money the NFL fines Lynch if he executes his crotch-grab in the Super Bowl and donate to his charity, the Fam 1st Family Foundation. Here’s to hoping we see Beast Mode grab his junk a few more times on Sunday.
Tom Brady’s Legacy
Last year, I said that if Peyton Manning wins, he will go down as the undisputed greatest quarterback to ever play the game of football. Well, he lost, and now it is Brady’s chance to earn that distinction. With already three Super Bowl titles to his name and the distinction of being widely renowned as one of the all-time greats, a fourth title will cement Tom Brady as the G.O.A.T. The only quarterback to have won four Super Bowls? Terry Bradshaw, whose career (aside from championships) doesn’t really hold a candle to Tom Terrific’s. And this is coming from a lifetime Pittsburgh Steelers fan who despises the Patriots.
Via: luggageonline.com
So, we’ll try this again: If the Pats win it all, Tom Brady will go down as the undisputed greatest quarterback the NFL has ever seen.
The Big Game
Last year, I predicted the Super Bowl would be a highly competitive matchup, with the Broncos high-powered offense eventually trumping the Seahawks. Obviously, I couldn’t have been more wrong. You’d think that I’d know better than to bet against the Legion of Boom and the Seahawks’ defense again, but I’m taking the Patriots. Their offense is explosive, Legarratte Blount is on a roll, and on the other side of the ball, Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner are two of the best cornerbacks in the game. More importantly, though, Eli Manning won’t be in attendance to spoil Tommy’s special day yet again.
