Kyler Murray Gets Paid; O’s & Sotos; Year #2 QBs
Kyler Murray Cashes In!
Kyler got his bag, but it was significantly less than one of us expected.Kyler looks to get $230m, with $160m guaranteed.In fairness, this is sort of just the “nature of the beast” in the NFL. Teams work day and night to find a franchise QB so when they find theirs, they pay what they need to, to keep them around. Critics say he hasn’t earned it, but this is what the market calls for, and the Arizona Cardinals feel like they can win, long-term with Kyler Murray.
Chris poses the question, “What does that mean for Lamar Jackson & the Baltimore Ravens?” and Tom doesn’t think that’s something that is going to happen anytime soon. Whenever it does happen though, it will be for “silly money”. Herbert and Burrow, too. The critics will be there, too because people (fans) get really invested in how the owner’s money is spent. The front office wants to get a deal done. We’ll see when it comes to fruition, but it doesn’t sound like Lamar is even interested in talking about it at the moment.
Orioles/Yankees Series
The Yankees have lost a little bit of momentum over the last few weeks, but they are still probably the best team in baseball; either them or the Dodgers, according to Tom. The Orioles are catching the Yankees at the right time, it appears. The rotation is performing incredibly well at the moment, and the bullpen has been solid all year but the AL has a lot of good competition. The formula is working right now, but expectations should be tempered as we get into the later part of the season.
Meaningful baseball will be played at Camden Yards late into the season, this is a win for the club and the city! Oh, and it’s looking a lot like Tom will be accompanying Chris to an O’s game!
ANNOUNCEMENT: “Madden stinks! Those people are bozos” Tom says, and he’s really fired up about it.
Soto Time!
Juan Soto showed out in the Home Run Derby! Which was a pretty fun spectacle in itself. Julio Rodriguez and Pete Alonso both put on a show.Rodriguez hit 73 home runs! 73 HOME RUNS! That was incredible, but the format was very hectic. The announcers could hardly keep up, and Schwarber “took a dive like a company man” for Pujols to advance. It was a good show!
Back to the point - Juan Soto is clearly not staying with the Nationals after rejecting their offer a few weeks back. Then the Nats snubbed him on a charter to the All-Star game so it sounds like Soto is on the trading block moving forward.
“Everyone needs Juan Soto”, according to Tom.If he was Brian Cashman he would trade Aaron Judge for Juan Soto, because Judge leaving is almost a forgone conclusion.Tom has some hot takes, but we’ll let that one marinate for a second…
To be fair, Soto is a younger commodity than Judge and would be under team control for another 2 years. It will never happen, but it’s certainly an interesting idea and one that the Yankees could probably pull off, if they wanted to. No matter what happens, any takers will have to give up the farm, literally and figuratively, to get Soto. The Yankees are certainly a candidate, along with the Padres.
Year #2 NFL QBs
We take a look at Year #2 QBs in the NFL and which ones of them may have some success this year. Tom struggles with this one because there isn’t a lot to work with here on this list, but there is some potential upside.
Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson really can only go up but the Jags and Jets will still probably be below .500. Lawrence has the superstar talent though, but it’s not easy in the wrong situation. Justin Fields is very talented, but the Bears organization is a circus and who knows what will happen there. Mac Jones & Davis Mills probably had the best situations for growth. The teams were built to help them settle and grow a bit more than the guys mentioned earlier.
Trey Lance is probably in the best overall situation to win now. The 49ers are a complete team and could really push the Rams in the NFC West. Trey is a unique situation though with his limited college record and limited NFL snaps. Either way, Jimmy G is finished in San Francisco, and Kyle Shanahan offenses are QB friendly, so it could be a big year for the young man.
College Football Snapshot
Alabama, Georgia,and Ohio State are the clear cut “Top 3”, pretty much unanimously. Chris has a few under-the-radar picks in USC, Texas A&M, and Clemson. The expectations on C.J Stroud and Bryce Young are enormous this year, so there should be some exciting Satrudays in our future. USC being back on the radar for the core millennial crowd is exciting because the Coliseum is a fantastic atmosphere for college gameday.
Sept. 3rd Ohio State and Notre Dame meet to kickoff the season and this will be must watch TV! Sync your smartwatches!