Matt Moore (Credit: Getty Images)
There are three starting quarterbacks in the playoffs that aren’t like the others, and they’re all in the AFC. Matt Moore is Ryan Tannehill’s backup, Connor Cook is a third string quarterback for the Raiders, and Brock Osweiler is a a 72 million dollar meme who lost his job to Tom Savage, yet finds himself starting a playoff game at home against Cook and company. Continue reading
Posted in jimbearor, Miscellaneous, NFL
Tagged Houston Texans, Miami Dolphins, nfl, NFL Playoffs, Oakland Raiders, sports, wildcard
LeSean McCoy is ready for Week 1, are you? (Getty Images)
On an all new Hard Foul Podcast, football is back! Jim Bearor and Evan Sally dig into Sam Bradford’s trade to Minnesota, and preview the big games of the weekend:
Two Ways to Listen:
If you have an Android device and don’t want to use SoundCloud there are several apps on the Play Store that our show is available on. We recommend Podcast and Radio Addict. Continue reading
The Steelers own the best offensive trio in the league when they are available. Will it be enough to win the AFC North?
On an all new episode of The Hard Foul Podcast, Jim Bearor and Evan Sally discuss the way the media is covering the Colin Kaepernick situation, and try to figure out the plan at quarterback for Minnesota and Dallas after the injuries to Teddy Bridgewater and Tony Romo respectively. They finish the show continuing their NFL Preview series, 32 Teams, 32 Questions. This time it’s the AFC North under examination.
Two Ways to Listen:
If you have an Android device and don’t want to use SoundCloud there are several apps on the Play Store that our show is available on. We recommend Podcast and Radio Addict. Continue reading
Aaron Rodgers’ miracle no-look Hail Mary seemed to turn the tide of the game in the Packers favor. 10 minutes later the Packers season was over. (Getty Images)
– Cruz Serrano
As the NFC Divisional playoff game between the Packers and Cardinals drew to a close, all hope seemed lost as the Pack faced a 4th and 20 down by 7 with less than two minutes to play. Two incredible throws later, including a ‘see it to believe it’ game tying Hail Mary by Aaron Rodgers to end regulation, and it appeared that Green Bay had seized all momentum. That was until Arizona marched down the field in 3 plays in overtime and scored a touchdown despite the apparent momentum swing that Green Bay carried from the Hail Mary. Perhaps Arizona was magically able to steal the momentum away again as OT started. Or perhaps the idea of Psychological Momentum in sports is just a myth that people perpetuate as a way to try to predict performance and outcomes for players and teams. Continue reading
-Brian Wolf
First loaded Saturday of hoops is here!
There are always games. That is one of the best parts about the college basketball season, and sometimes we take that for granted. With the college football season now officially in bowl season, that means more free time on Saturday to watch college hoops. While we all enjoy a Monday night double header, nothing quite beats a full day of action on the hardwood. Sleep in a little bit, turn on GameDay, and then watch college hoops for twelve straight hours on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, CBS, the SEC network, the YES network. This is one of those Saturdays!
December 19th is the first really good hoops Saturday of the 2015-16 season. We have two quality neutral court doubleheaders, a top 10ish match up in Virginia, and at least 10 watchable fixtures to get you through 12 hours of the day. Now that college football takes a back seat and final exams should be wrapped up, it is time for some college hoops!
Here are some of the match ups you must watch, according to awesomeness: Continue reading
Posted in brianwolf, Miscellaneous, ncaa
Tagged basketball, brianwolf, collegebasketball, collegehoops, hardfoulsports, hfs, hoops, ncaa, sports
-Mike Tolsma
The Hard Truth: Arthur Ashe Courage Award
The Arthur Ashe Courage Award is known as one of the most prestigious awards in sports. The popular award is given to one person every year who displays “courage in the face of peril and the willingness to stand up for their beliefs no matter what the cost.”
Read that last phrase: no matter what the cost. Tonight at the ESPY’s, ESPN’s yearly award show, Caitlyn Jenner was the recipient of the award. Jenner has been an overwhelmingly unpopular choice for the award. Some have said that it is a publicity stunt by the worldwide leader in sports. Fair? Maybe. There is the argument that other people are more deserving, such as local Buffalo hero Jim Kelly, or basketball player Lauren Hill who famously accomplished the goal of continuing her basketball career and registering minutes in a college game before cancer took her life. Are these fair? Of course they are. The bottom line is this: Jenner does matter. It is an awful choice in the eyes of some and an amazing choice in the eyes of others.
Posted in miketolsma, Miscellaneous
Tagged arthurashecourageaward, awardshow, caitlynjenner, courage, espn, espys, hardfoulsports, hfs, jenner, sports
– Zachary El- Sharif
It’s starting to feel like summer out there, so it’s getting to the time of the year that even if you’re the biggest sports fan in the world, you still may find yourself doing things outside instead of sitting on the couch and watching every second of every game. So, I’ll take it upon myself to fill you in on everything you may have missed this past week of sports.
NBA:
Western Conference Finals: Houston got booted from the playoffs thanks to Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Lil B. (No clue who this guy actually is, but he put a curse on James Harden.) Dwight Howard is still a champion (in his eyes), but the Golden State Warriors won the Series (4-1).
Eastern Conference Finals:
Matthew Dellavedova has played important minutes this postseason run. Source: Mike Lawrie/Getty Images North America)
No Kyrie, no K. Love, no problem. LeBron James, Tristan Thompson, and Matthew Dellavedova take care of business rather easily against the top seeded Atlanta Hawks. LeBron James showed why he’s the best player on the planet, Tristan Thompson showed why he needs a new contract, and Matthew Dellavedova showed that even if you’re a long lost cousin of the O’Doyles (Always Sunny in Philadelphia), you can still be an X factor on an NBA team. Cleveland swept the series (4-0).
Posted in MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, Soccer, zackelsharif
Tagged arod, baseball, basketball, easternconferencefinals, fifa, football, hardfoulsports, hfs, hockey, lebron, lebronjames, mlb, nba, nfl, NHL, playoffs, sepp, seppblatter, soccer, sports, stanleycup, thefinals, toews, westernconferencefinals
-Evan Sally
Thoughts on the NHL Eastern Conference Finals: Lightning vs Rangers
Lightning lead the series 2-1
The Triplets Coming Out Party
Thinking about the Tampa Bay Lightning usually conjures an image of Steven Stamkos. He’s their undisputed best player, their talisman, their leader. As he goes, so do the fortunes of the Lightning. And yet even though he’s collected 4 points in the first 3 games of the series, he’s been overshadowed by the play of the line of Tyler Johnson, Ondrej Palat and Nikita Kucherov, who’ve supplied 8 of the Lightning’s 13 goals so far this round. Lightning coach John Cooper has dubbed them “The Triplets” because of their similar size (small), speed (very fast) and incredible skill level. Their speed in particular gave the Rangers fits, opening holes and causing odd man rushes throughout the game with a devastating forecheck. Game 3 was particularly evident, as they combined for 7 points and Kucherov scored the game winner in OT to give the Lightning a 6-5 win in a wild game. The Kucherov goal was a beauty. He came through the neutral zone with speed on the right side, attacked the slot in front of Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist, was surrounded by 4 defenders that had no idea what to do with him, and he fired a shot past Lundqvist. Each of them are capable of outstanding individual efforts like this and they also play so well together, making them extremely dangerous. The Triplets line combined with Stamkos has made the Tampa offense a joy to watch if you’re a neutral fan. And if you’re a Rangers fan? They’ve been a nightmare.
King Henrik Dethroned
Henrik Lundqvist is arguably the best goaltender in the NHL. Henrik Lundqvist has not played like it the past two games. He’s given up 12 goals in games 2 and 3 combined, the same amount he gave up in the ENTIRE last series against the Capitals. In Game 2 he gave up 6 goals on 26 shots for a paltry .760 save percentage. I can’t imagine how concerning that must be for Rangers fans who are used to Lundqvist being their rock when all else fails. New York’s defensive collapse can’t just be blamed on goaltending however, they’ve been a mess in their own zone. Particularly in Game 3, when they gave up 40 shots, and were routinely victimized by the speed of the Lightning. While the Rangers offense did get going in Game 3 scoring 5 goals, Dan Boyle, Ryan McDonagh (who were each -2 in Game 3) and the rest of the Rangers D-core have to get their house in order before Game 4 or else they’ll be heading back to Madison Square Garden on the brink of elimination. The Rangers cannot afford to waste great offensive games from a team that’s scored 3 or more goals in a game only 4 times in 15 playoff games so far.
Tagged column, evansally, hardfoulsports, hfs, hockey, kinghenrik, lightning, lundqvist, newyork, NHL, nhlplayoffs, NYR, rangers, sports, stamkos, stevenstamkos, tampa, thoughts, triplets
Hard Foul Sports co-founder Evan Sally previews the highly anticipated match up between the number 1 seed Atlanta Hawks and the 2 seed Cleveland Cavaliers with the 5 questions he’s thinking about as we await the start of the series on Wednesday.
– Cruz Serrano
Teams with something to prove:
With the renewal of spring comes a new baseball season, and for seam heads like myself, that brings about the happiest time of the year. As happy as I am to see green grass begin to peek through the months of accumulated snow, it pales in comparison to the overwhelming exuberance brought about by the first sight of the shining emerald grass that can be seen on a major league baseball diamond. With the excitement that comes with the new season, it can sometimes be hard to remember that every single game of the 162 game schedule has the same meaning. A stunning walk-off win, or a disappointing loss, count just as much in May as they do in August and September. With the excitement of pennant chases, sometimes it’s hard to think back to the four game sweep at the hands of a last place team that had no business even splitting the series. Early season games and series can often help to define a team, as well as show whether they’re contenders, or they just enjoyed a lucky April as they listlessly regress. With that being said, here are some teams with something to prove with the series they play this weekend.
Posted in cruzserrano, MLB
Tagged baseball, brewers, cruzserrano, hardfoulsports, hfs, mets, mlb, nationals, padres, royals, sports, yankees
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