2014 A Bad Year for the NFL. They'll Take More, Please.

2014 was a bad year for the NFL, right? Problems with domestic violence, drugs, rampant repeat cheaters won the title, the commissioner is loathed by most everyone. Bad news, no doubt. And all true. The league has problems. Question is, does anyone care?

Do a quick google search - after you read this, of course. For now take my word. None of this is anything new. Hollywood Henderson, a DB for the Dallas Cowboys, reportedly had a cocaine habit rivaling Tony Montoya's in the 1970's. Brandon Marshall has been accused of domestic violence as often as the Patriots have been accused of cheating. Paul Tagliabue, patron saint of commissioners, started the NFL's ritualistic cover up of brain damage caused by playing football. All of this information is readily available.

Image Credit: Forbes.com

2014 was a bad year for the NFL. Only 113 million viewers, on average, watched the Super Bowl. This doesn't count people steaming the game, parties of multiple viewers, or packed bars. 30 second commercials (most of them awful) only raked in $4.5 million for NBC. Ticket sales and prices were up. Jersey sales were up. Television coverage of everything NFL related, good and bad, was up. Oh, and, although the numbers aren't in yet, revenues are, no doubt, up. 

So why were things bad for the NFL? Because saying 2014 was a bad year for the NFL implies 2015 will be different, will be better. Because $7,000,000,000 of the NFL's revenue comes from the networks that carry it. Because if 2014 wasn't a bad year, it was a normal year. And no one wants to believe that. Next year will be better.

Article by: Josh Henderson

Twitter: @verybadwrong 

The Super Bowl Half Time Show May Have Sparked Missy Elliott's Comeback

Article by: Christine O'Connor

Twitter: @ChristineeeeO

​Image Credit: usmagazine.com

Sunday night, in the middle of Katy Perry's flashy Super Bowl Halftime Show featuring dancing beach balls and sharks, rapper Missy Elliott and her dancers dropped in. They stole the show with a three-song medley of "Get Ur Freak On," "Work It" and "Lose Control." Those songs are, respectively, 14, 13 and 10 years old, so any teenagers watching might be forgiven for assuming Elliott was a brand new act that Perry was introducing to the world.

Still, it's been 10 years since we've been blessed with a full-length project from the Virginia native who blended R&B and hip-hop into a futuristic funk that still sounds a bit out of arm's reach of today's musicians. 

However, Missy is one of the most revered rappers and producers of her generation. She helped pave the way for female MCs. But she has been quiet in recent years. She reportedly has Graves' Disease, which is a disease of the thyroid and has very different symptoms depending on the person who has it. So it makes sense that she has been on hiatus. 

According to Forbes, her collection saw a 676% bump overall on Spotify. As if an almost 700% increase wasn’t amazing enough, the growth Spotify saw on each of the three songs she performed was astronomical. “Lose Control” was the biggest winner here, with streams increasing by just under 1,400%. After that, “Get Ur Freak On” was up 922%, and “Work It” went up almost 900%.

Those same folks apparently rushed to iTunes to download Elliott's music. Eight of her songs cracked the iTunes top 200 chart, including 2002's "Work It," 2001's "Get Ur Freak On" and 2005's "Lose Control." It really shows that Missy's music is timeless when it resonates with people over a decade later. 

I think we are all ready for a comeback from Misdemeanor!

A Recap of Superbowl XLIX

Article by:Christine O'Connor 

Twitter: @ChristineeeeO

Image Credit: CBSSports.com

Seattle, seeking to become the first repeat NFL champion since New England a decade ago, was outplayed for the first half, yet tied at 14. The Seahawks scored the only 10 points of the third period, but the NFL-leading defense couldn't slow the Tom Brady when it counted most.

Strong early play by the Patriots gave way to a halftime tie and a 10-point Seahawks lead as the Chris Matthews came out of the woodwork, but things were only getting warmed up. Matthews was one of Seattle's least-used players before the postseason. Matthews recovered the onside kick that helped the Seahawks beat Green Bay in overtime for the NFC crown, and had a breakout performance during the big game.

The Pats grabbed the lead with two fourth quarter touchdowns, the second of which set Seattle up with the ball and a little more than two minutes to play. A crazy catch with by Jermaine Kearse put them on the doorstep, but then we were introduced to Malcolm Butler intercepted the ball on a slant pass as he sealed a 28-24 win for the Patriots.

Brady was intercepted twice (the total of two times he was intercepted in his previous five Super Bowls),

yet he surpassed Joe Montana's mark of 11 Super Bowl touchdown passes with a 4-yarder to Danny Amendola to bring the Patriots within three points. Brady has equaled Montana with four Lombardi Trophies and three Super Bowl MVPs. He stands alone with 13 Super Bowl touchdown passes. He was 37 for 50 for 328 yards against the NFL's top-ranked defense.

The Patriots will celebrate their title with a victory parade at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Boston mayor Marty Walsh said. The parade will start at the Prudential Center and end at City Hall.

This Week's NFL Preview- Colts vs. Patriots

Article by: Christine O'Connor

Twitter: @christineeeeO

Image Credit: bostonblogger.sportsblog.com

The Colts are coming off 3 consecutive wins. Now they have Brady, a gridiron assassin going into his ninth AFC Championship Game after the largest playoff comeback victory in franchise history. Since Andrew Luck entered the league in 2012, the Patriots have crushed the Colts by an average score of 48-22 in three meetings. Brady is 60-7 in his last 67 home games.

Image Credit: nypost.com 

All of the signs and numbers point to the Patriots getting the win.

So why should we believe Indianapolis has a legitimate chance to get the victory? Andrew Luck, for one. They have the best young quarterback in the game, a magician in the pocket who makes more spectacular throws and works more defenses than any other passer.

Beyond that, the Patriots realize this is a  completely different Colts team than the one they crushed in Week 11. With young players such as versatile tailback Daniel "Boom" Herron, versatile tight end Colby Fleener, deep threat Donte Moncrief, star cornerback Vontae Davis, pass rusher Jonathan Newsome, and the talented threat T.Y. Hilton, this team is firing on all cylinders. 

​Image Credit: Fansided.com

This should be a great game to watch.

Players to watch:

Patriots:

Tom Brady (surprise, surprise), Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Darrelle Revis. 

Colts:

Andrew Luck (but of course), Daniel Herron, Donte Moncrief, Vontae Davis

The NFL Is Losing Money Because Of Suspensions? Wait just ONE second...

Image Credit: NYDailyNews.com

By: Kai Jones

Since 2012, the NFL has dealt with a major scandal every season. In 2012, it was the New Orleans Saints with Bountygate. In 2013, it was the Dolphins with Bullygate. This year, it has been multiple incidents: most famously Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, and Josh Gordon. The NFL suspension list has increased since Commissioner Roger Goodell came into office. In 2005, Ricky Williams was the only player suspended. In 2006, Goodell’s inaugural year as commissioner, it jumped to seven players suspended throughout the year. The number has seemingly increased almost every year, as Goodell tries to hold the players to a higher standard. But this year over 40 players have been suspended. That does not include Ray Rice who has been nearly erased from anything NFL related. Also does not include Peterson, who was placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List for allegedly abusing his son; or Greg Hardy who was also placed on the Commissioner’s Exempt List for his ongoing domestic violence case.

It seems like the NFL cannot avoid bad publicity this year, as the St. Louis Rams received outrage because they cut the first openly gay player: Michael Sam. Many believed he was cut for being gay. The Dallas Cowboys picked him up as a favor to the league, so the league could avoid more bad publicity as they were dealing with the backlash of Ray Rice’s domestic violence case. Sam was cut two days ago, and the league avoided the LGBT community’s backlash that they had began to receive after the Rams cut him. Other than that incident, it seems like the league’s image has taken a hit at almost every other angle. From having to suspend Josh Brent for intoxication manslaughter (a case from 2012) to Josh Gordon for drug abuse: but does it matter?

With all these suspensions and outrage from various groups you would think the NFL would be hit where it hurts (the wallet), right? Nope, the Super Bowl rematch received a 44 percent increase in TV ratings from the Super Bowl game, and Monday Night’s matchup between the Texans and Steelers received better TV ratings than MLB’s World Series Game 1. The NFL has moral issues, but do the owners really care considering their wallets aren’t hurt? Probably not, but do the fans care? Probably not, but Commissioner Goodell doesn’t care as long as he can flex his iron fist and receive his paycheck. It seems we all turn a blind eye to the shortcomings of these athletes. Even though these athletes play a gladiator sport, but at the end of the day they are just humans and make mistakes: so grab a beer and watch football since we all have our vices, even millionaire athletes. 

A-Rod gives up, Knicks can't keep a win streak, Super BLOWout, Jeter dumps his girl to concentrate on baseball, and more.

A-Rod has went on to prove he is, in fact, GUILTY! Well, that's not a fact, but it sure looks like Alex has a guilty conscience. He has decided to accept his 162 game suspension, and drop his lawsuit against the MLB and the MLBPA (Major League Baseball Players Association.) The Yankees third baseman, however, is now suing The Daily News and former New York City Police Commissioner, Bernard Kerik, for defamation. Get 'em A-Rod! They have NO right to be tarnishing your name! <3 data-blogger-escaped-br="">
It was just earlier last week, I had read David Cone state in an interview, that Alex better not show up at Spring Training. This was after we interviewed David Cone a few weeks ago, as he said he was "sad" for A-Rod.

I am not FOR or AGAINST the use of PEDs. If that's something you feel you need as an athlete to better yourself as a ball player, that's okay in my book. I'm disappointed to see A-Rod give up this fight. I was proud to see him put his foot down, stand up for himself, and fight for what he once called his "innocence."

The Knicks ended a 3 game losing streak last week, by defeating the Denver Nuggets on Friday. Shumpert is back off the bench, and while Felton continues to be unproductive, JR Smith and Carmelo Anthony continue to progress through the first half, but can't seem to pull it through the 2nd half, lately.


(Best thing throughout the entire game.)

Well now that football is over, today was a great Sunday. We are just FIVE (5) DAYS AWAY from pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training! Opening Day for the Yankees is April 7th, and I cannot WAIT to be back home in the Bronx, to see the beginning of a very INTERESTING (to say the least) season, ahead of us.

No one could've predicted that huge blowout of a football game last Sunday. It was boring, and caused too much pollution in my state for no reason! I bet Sherman really does think he's better then everyone else, now that he has a Super Bowl ring to prove so....

Derek Jeter has reportedly dumped his girlfriend, model Hannah Davis, to focus on Spring Training and the upcoming 2014 season. Too bad he can't find himself a lucky charm, similar to Kate Hudson (A-Rod's former lucky girlfriend back in 2009.) 

By:: Dana P. (Blog Owner/Editor in Chief)

Knicks on FIRE After 5 Game Losing Streak. More on the Knicks; JR Smith partying in NYC, Melo, Shumpert, & more

Last night, Melo and the Knicks went onto win their third straight game, crushing the Celtics, 114-88.

Carmelo Anthony set a Knicks record on Friday night against the Bobcats, scoring 62 points, the most at the current Madison Square Garden. He broke Bernard King's team mark of 60 points and passed Kobe Bryant's building record of 61. He also passed Kevin Durant's 54 points for most in the NBA this season.

With Melo's contract ending this year, many are wondering where the Knicks forward will be heading to next season. His wife recently stated in an interview with Bravo TV, that she "definitely" thinks he will stay with the Knicks.

Knicks guard Iman Shumpert suffered a sprained right shoulder at last nights game against the Celtics. Head coach Mike Woodson said he wasn't sure how long Shumpert will be out for.

JR Smith was nice enough to pose a picture for me, while out partying with his brother Chris last night, at New York City's posh club Greenhouse. He was amongst other celebrity & athlete guests Amhad Bradshaw, Rico Love, ASAP MOB, and Busta Rhymes.

For about 45 minutes, we witnessed JR standing at the top of the staircase of the bathrooms, as he pulled a few women to the side, chatting it up, and exchanging phone numbers with them. Even more interesting, he kept reaching up (right next to me) to grab a girls ass a few times throughout the night. Playing "hide and seek" like a child, he "grabbed and ducked," trying to keep as low of a profile as he could, which he didn't do very well in succeeding. Smith was "thirsty" in more then one way, as he was drinking a bottle of Corona (while booty squeezing) for the last few minutes, before heading back to his table.

Let's just say, he didn't appear to be sober.

By:: Dana P. (Blog Owner/Editor in Chief)