NFL's Jigsaw Playoff Picture Puzzle/WK 16 Winners & Losers. College Football Semifinal Preview. Is The Laker Experiment Toast? NHL's Wise Moves To Save Their Season? A Final Note From Me To You!
As Santa is back at the North Pole, all of the gifts are unwrapped, Christmas dinner and leftovers have been consumed, so now it's time to get into who's been naughty and nice in the sports world as the final podcast of the year ensues as Episode #230 is primed to be an entertaining one. On deck:
(5:27) The NFL season is coming down to the homestretch as this extended season is still three weeks away from the playoffs. For now, I'll go through my winners (Buffalo & Cincinnati) and losers (LA Chargers & Seattle) of Week 16. Two teams that I did not buy into the hype (i.e. San Francisco & New England) that many people have jumped on their bandwagon, suffered big losses on Sunday. Is Baker Mayfield worth franchise QB money in Cleveland? Are the Browns still in contention to win the AFC North? NOTE: Baltimore does need to lose one of their last two, on top of Cincinnati losing to KC on Sunday, in order for the Browns to win the division. Can the Cardinals gain any momentum as they're reeling in the NFC? I'll also touch on the resurging Raiders, Joe Judge and the dreadful Giants, dissect a log jam of an AFC playoff race and an NFC that's taking shape, but with lots to still be determined as I look ahead to the Week 17 schedule.
(41:38) I'll set my sights on the College Football Playoff semifinals come Friday. I'll preview both Cincinnati vs. Alabama and Georgia vs. Michigan. Can the Bearcats stack up against the almighty Crimson Tide? What about Georgia having to overcome the sting of an SEC Championship loss to play against the magic carpet ride and pixie dust of the Wolverines? I'll get into how both games may play out as they'll set the stage for the National Title Game on January 10th.
(50:19) The big story in the Association is the floundering of the Los Angeles Lakers as they're in the midst of a five game losing streak, with a record of 16-18, will they ever get their season back on track? The Clippers will lose Paul George, again, for an extended period of time due to a UCL strain. And an in-season tournament that could be implemented next year? Is this a gimmick? Is it legit?
(59:19) The NHL had to pause their season this past week due to players and teams in the COVID protocol, but with the Winter Classic on Saturday set to be played in Minneapolis, is it still a go? Also, the players will forgo the upcoming Olympics to make up games that were lost due to the pandemic. In a similar move to what the NBA did last week, they've increased the rosters to replenish rosters to protect themselves of potentially cancelling more games down the road.
(1:02:34) Baylor is still your #1 team in the country in college basketball for the third week straight as they've shown no hangover from winning the National Championship this past April.
(1:04:15) All is quiet on the MLB players and owners front as talks of a collective bargaining agreement have stalled. When will we see both parties reconnect?
(1:04:51) Of course, I'll have my Hero & Zero of the Week.
(1:07:17) I'll wrap up the final episode of the year with a tremendous THANK YOU to all of the listeners and followers who support the podcast. I plan to take this endeavor to greater heights in 2022. I appreciate you all for sticking with me as I embark on my fourth year of hosting and producing the best sports podcast out there on a weekly basis.
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Intro/outro music by Cyklonus.