We're not journalists, we're fans

 Last week was brutal. I was really close to having a great lineup. Had Landry Jones not had 4 turnovers or not been injured on the last drive I likely would have come out ahead. I went 2 WR in flex and that was probably a mistake.  The great thing about DFS is there is always next week. So here we go. Quarterback - Taylor Cornelius - Tampa Bay   Cornelius has been consistently good over the last 2 weeks. At least for fantasy purposes. He offers a fairly high floor due to his rushing upside. He has rushed for 30+ the last two weeks with a rushing TD in both games as well.  LA looks like a tough defense on paper. But they got manhandled by Houston and Dallas had a good day against them as well. So I'm not that worried. If there is one thing they don't do well it's defend the run.  Getting a QB at $8500 with a safe floor is a no brainer here. Running Back - James Butler - Houston   Houston doesn't run the rock much. But when they do...

 As fun as it would be if Astros players were being beaned on purpose, it just isn't true. So far this spring 10 players have been hit by a pitch more than once. None of those ten players wear an Astros jersey. In fact 85 players have been hit by a pitch so far. 7 of those were Astros. As of this morning there were 4 teams who had more HBP than the Astros and 3 more tied with them.  The only 2 Astros batters involved in the 2017 scandal to be plunked are Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman. They were both hit with off speed pitches. I can assure you if a pitcher were trying to enact some sort of justice it would be done with the fastest 4 seam they could muster.  The reality of the situation is that it's spring training. Not only are we seeing a lot of young pitchers with control issue, they are rusty. We are talking the first week of competition here. It shouldn't be a surprise pitches are getting away from some of these guys.  There is a lot of talk that it will ram...

 Week 4 of XFL football is upon us. Which means so is week 4 of XFL DFS. I am going to give you 5 core players to build around this week.  I play mostly cash games. So these will be cash game plays. But this week it seems that the decisions to play a lot of players will be the best bet for any type of contest. Quarterback - Landry Jones - Dallas   It's no surprise that the Houston-Dallas game has the highest over under. Currently sitting at 50.5 points. The spread is only 2.5 so Vegas thinks this will be a shootout and I agree.  Jones has tossed for 305 and 274 yards in his two starts this season with 4 tds in those games. Houston is giving up the most through the air and the third most points through 3 weeks. Jones should feast and his $9800 price tag on Draft Kings is reasonable.   Wide Receiver - Kahlil Lewis - Houston   In a game like this you want a piece of both sides. Conventional wisdom would say to go with Cam Phillips. But Phillips sim...

 If you have ever been interested in playing daily fantasy football the XFL provides a unique opportunity to test yourself and develop a process. With only 4 games a week and 8 total teams it's a great way to sharpen your skills without having to dedicate the time it would take for the NFL. I play on Draft Kings almost exclusively (not being paid for this) so all examples will be based on DK scoring and prices.  I'm going to give you the basics to get you going playing XFL DFS. What to expect, what to know, how to build a winning roster. Again these are the basics, a very high level overview. But you can win with these steps. I know because I do it all the time in both XFL and NFL. I plan to dive deeper into most of these points in the future. 1. You're not going to become a millionaire playing DFS.  I know you will see people who say they have won X amount of thousands of dollars. What they won't tell you is how many thousands of dollars they put into play every ...

#5 Transparency As football fans, we love the game and its intensity. However, the NFL has long been a league that keeps the fans at arms length when anything controversial happens. We are given a prepared statement that gives little insight into how they arrived at their decision. Thus far, the XFL has been very transparent. They allow you to hear the play calls, the review communications and the locker room pep talks. They even go as far as in game interviews with players being asked about a mistake they just made on the field! What is not to love about hearing a player be asked about a fumble on the goal line? #4 Rules There are several rule differences between the XFL and NFL. Here are just a few: kickoffs, punts, and point after attempts. Kickoffs are done with the players lined up 5 yards apart with the kicker back as usual. This is done with player safety in mind- taking away the high risk of the play, but allowing the play to still be a fun part of the game. Punts ar...

Yesterday, Saturday February 22nd 2020, was a wild day in sports. It's a perfect example of the chaos of sports. A reminder that anything can happen. The Great Eight does it!   Alexander Ovechkin  finally scored his 700th career goal early in the 3rd period in Saturdays game against the New Jersey Devils. The accomplishment was marred a little by the fact that the Washington Capitals would go on to lose the game. That isn't reason not to celebrate however. Ovechkin is just the 8th player in NHL history to reach this milestone. He is also the second youngest and second quickest to reach the mark (34 years old, 1144 games). The only man to do it faster was The Great One, Wayne Gretzky  (29 years old, 886 games) Big names go down in the NCAA  Things got crazy at the top of the College Basketball rankings yesterday. The top four teams in the nation all played yesterday. #1 Baylor and #3 Kansas squared off in Waco Texas. Baylor came in on a 23 game winning str...

The Transfer Portal With the institution of the transfer portal, college sports have been infused with more controversy. There is already a hot debate to whether college athletes should be paid- with how much money they make for their respective university. The NCAA implemented the portal to help aid with a more streamlined transfer process for student-athletes. The NCAA didn't create the portal to be "free-agent signing", but to more easily assess a potential transfers eligibility. What it has become may be something different. Thus begins the debate. Student-Athlete Options Athletes are now able to have themselves listed on the transfer portal if they wish to attend a different university that may offer them more playing time. This has sparked a heated debate among coaches, players, and fans. Coaches hate to lose players, players want to play, and fans want to see loyalty. Is it wrong for a player, who has worked countless hours, to want to have more pl...

This weeks lead  We are still waiting on  Alex Ovechkin  to become the eighth player in NHL history to score 700 career goals. It's hard to imagine it will take very much longer. Ovechkin is one of, maybe the, best goal scorer the game has ever seen. His next opportunity is tonight, when the  Washington Capitals  visit the  New Jersey Devils . We will all have to endure at least one more games worth of holding our breath every time the puck touches Ovi's stick blade.  Tight races for division titles and wild card spots are the theme right now. Teams are approaching the 20 games to go mark. The trade deadline is Monday. With so many teams still solidly in the playoff race defining buyers and sellers is difficult. With the exception of Boston and Tampa Bay no one has separated themselves at the top end. With only a hand full of teams looking as if all hope is lost, it could be hard for GM's to sell assets if they believe they have a chance at a p...

 The year was 1954, the place was Marquette Branch Prison , the event was an exhibition hockey game.  During the previous summer Detroit Red Wings  general manager and former coach  Jack Adams , and star player Ted Lindsey , had visited the maximum security prison on a promotional tour for Stroh's beer . During the visit the warden asked Adams if he would bring his team up to the prison to play a group of inmates. Adams agreed, although there is doubt he thought it would ever happen.  The prison was dead serious though. They hired former University of Michigan hockey player Okie Brumm  to build a rink. Brumm was tasked with getting the rink built, preferably without inmates using the supplies to escape. Adams, realizing the game would happen, allegedly provided the prison with hockey equipment so inmates could practice ahead of the game.  The Red Wings had just won two of the previous four Stanley Cups  (1950 & 1952). They wou...

 I am trying to wrap my head around the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal. More specifically the punishment and the fallout.  The only thing I know for sure is everyone's actions are wrong, and all of our opinions are wrong. I'm wrong, you're wrong, radio and television personalities are wrong, everyone associated with MLB is wrong, Big Bob down the streat is definitely wrong.  I'm going to breaze over a lot in this middle section. For verification or context all you have to do is type "Astros" into any search engine. So what happened?  Just in case this is somehow the only form of media you ingest, let me set the stage.  The Houston Astros were accused of, and ultimately found guilty of, an elaborate sign stealing scheme.  Sign stealing has been a common occurrence in baseball for a very, very long time. Simply put, this would usually be accomplish by a batter reaching second base. He would then watch the signs the catcher was giving the p...

 The 2020 edition of the Daytona 500 ended in dramatic fashion yesterday. Denny Hamlin won by the second narrowist margin of victory in the races history. Unfortunately that wasn't the only drama unfolding in those moments.  While leading on the last lap, Ryan Newman was being pushed by Ryan Blaney. This is a common occurrence in restrictor plate racing. It happens hundreds, maybe even thousands of times, throughout a race of this nature. It is a delicate process however. The smallest error or minor unsettling of either car can lead to a wreck. This is what happened Monday night.   I want to extremely clear about something. This was NOT Blaneys fault. He was doing what every other driver would have been in that situation, Newman included. The wreck   I want to break this wreck down so I can drive home my ultimate point later.  Entering the trioval something went wrong with the "link" between Newman and Blaneys machines. Newman's car turned towards the outsi...

 The NFL and discontent fans go hand in hand. The product can be better, and the XFL may be the solution. Competition breeds excellence! Cooperation wouldn't hurt either.  We are only two weeks into the 2020 XFL season. Admittedly I have only watched three of the eight games so far. All three in week two. But I noticed during those broadcasts some things vastly different from the NFL that weren't just a gimmick. Something I feared may be a huge part of XFL just as it was in 2001. I also thought up an idea that could be benificial to both leagues. More football, fewer ads  The first thing I noticed is that I tuned into a football game and actually watched more football than advertisements. The joke that watching NFL, or even college football, is really just watching one big ad with some football sprinkled in is barely a joke anymore. The XFL and the networks involved have clearly made an agreement not to use every single break in play as a money making venture. I pe...