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The NFL has no equal. None. No one hypes anything like them and when they throw a party they deliver. Maybe they got lucky by choosing a city to host the NFL Draft that just happened to go on and win the Super Bowl but wow. The crowd was insane. The stage looked awesome. Fans flew in from across the country and the NFL money machine keeps printing. Heck, they even teased their next big event...the schedule release.
Round one of the NFL Draft delivered. There were surprising picks and big trades and players dropping and players going earlier than expected. But like I have said many times over the years, no sport has mastered the 12-month run like the NFL. They play games from August to February and fill the others months with drama like in free agency, draft prep, the draft itself and minicamps.
Even before the draft started there was big news in the days and hours before Bryce Young was the first pick. The Jets and Packers completed the trade and press conference for Aaron Rodgers and Lamar Jackson finally got the deal he wanted with the Ravens.
Then the day was set for the draft and the wild speculation about who was going second behind Young. Earlier in the week a simple Reddit post had people and bookmakers thinking Will Levis was going second and then early Thursday odds and final mock drafts zeroed in on Alabama's Will Anderson Jr. But the Texans started the wild ride of the first round by taking CJ Stroud despite their GM, Nick Caserio saying "he has a lot of work to do and even he knows that." Then the Texans trade back up and take Anderson in a deal with the Cardinals that includes giving up a first round pick in 2024.
The Colts then took the draft talk in a new direction by selecting Florida's Anthony Richardson, who despite his few starts and bumpy ride as the Gators' starter, will get a chance to start in year one and prove critics wrong. I think Richardson is an amazing athlete but wonder if he will succeed but I am interested in finding out.
As for Kansas City, the scene was amazing and the show was spectacular. The NFL has mastered this event. I said the NFL Draft is sports version of the Oscars. No non-game event comes close to what the draft produces over three days. Is the hype too much? Of course it is but it's because of our obsession of this sport and why networks keep paying billions for the rights to not just games, but things like the draft...and schedule releases...
Nuggets: The Eagles add two more Georgia defensive players and may have had the best first round getting Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith. In total, seven starters from the Bulldogs' national title team in 2021 were taken in the first round in the last two drafts...I feel for Will Levis and his family as he became the guy who dropped and had the camera on him for what became four hours while he went undrafted last night. And as it typically happens, when that player falls all the draft experts then start throwing out reasons why he's dropping despite not mentioning those issues in their final mock drafts that had him going in the top five. Levis may wait a few picks in round two before a team that might need a quarterback picks. Perhaps the Rams, who pick fifth in the second round, might take him. The Seahawks and Raiders come after the Rams so Levis likely goes then. While he certainly can use the drop as motivation, the difference of being picked where the Colts took Richardson and going 5th, 6th or 7th in the second round is about $25M. He can go on to be a great player and earn a huge second contract but he is not getting back the $25M he is not getting for not going in the top 5 compared to the second round contract he will get...If you need a few draft grades, here you go: B+, C, A-, B...The College Football Playoff committee announced dates for playoff games for the 2024 season and admitted they can't compete with the NFL. First round games will be played on Friday(one game) and three on Saturday the third weekend of December. Quarterfinal games will be played New Year's Eve(one game) and three on New Year's Day. The Semifinals will be played on a Thursday and Friday to not compete with the NFL's Wild Card weekend and the title game will be the third Monday in January. Don't try to compete with the NFL...True story from a non-state of Florida college football fan who gives money to a collective. The fan has committed to $1,000 a month and says he can afford it. When I asked why he is doing this, he answered: "Because I want to win and I know my money is going to buy players." My next question was what happens if the team goes 5-7? He answered: "Oh, then I'm out. I'm not giving money to these guys to lose." Good grief, what are we doing?...
Final note: Do you know the cost of a stamp? It's $0,63. In 2002, it was $0.37. How many stamps are in a book of stamps? 20