The Best of 2011

Today is a special milestone: the 300th article posted in The Daily Hat Trick!!! YAY!!! Thank you all for your continued support!

The Daily Hat Trick does things a little differently than out media outlets. I personally think that it is better to run a piece reviewing the biggest stories of a year after the year is over. Often, the slowness of the sports news cycle in the final week of a calendar year can necessitate such pieces being run in late December. This year, however, I think there was plenty to talk about before the calendar went from 2011 to 2012.

The following are what I think were the biggest sports stories in each month of 2011. Enjoy your look back on the year that was!


January

Auburn wins the BCS National Championship

The Southeastern Conference won its fifth consecutive BCS National Championship as the Auburn Tigers outlasted the Oregon Ducks. Auburn shot to the top of the college football polls like a rocket on the strength of their Heisman Trophy winning quarterback, Cam Newton. In spite of a slough of controversy regarding Newton's eligibility due to an alleged play-for-pay scandal, Newton rose above the fray and guided his team to its first national championship since 1957.

Newton would be the first player chosen in the 2011 NFL Draft. 1

February

The Green Bay Packers win Super Bowl XLV

The Packers won their first Super Bowl in 14 years after a late regular season and playoff surge. Aaron Rodgers returned to the Packers' lineup from injury in December and the Cheeseheads never looked back. The Packers secured the final seed in the NFC playoffs then won three games on the road to advance to Super Bowl XLV to face the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers, in their third Super Bowl in six seasons, lost their first Super Bowl in 15 years as Ben Roethlisberger was unable to rally the Steelers all the way back from an early deficit. The Packers demonstrated that they would be a contender for the next several years, winning 15 regular season games and securing the top seed in the NFC in the following, 2011, season.

A star was born last February. 3

March

Virginia Commonwealth (11) stuns Kansas (1), 71-61, in the southwest Regional Final to advance to the Final Four.

VCU Head Coach Shaka Smart, then age 33, became a household name among college hoops fans in the month of March. The Rams had to play their way into the field of 64, playing one additional game than 60 other teams in the field in the First Four round of the tournament. The 11th seeded Rams continued to deliver upset after upset.

Virginia Commonwealth put themselves on the radar with a second round upset of Georgetown. Then they stunned Purdue, followed by a win over fellow upstart 10th seeded Florida State. Many teams become tournament Cinderellas only to fall in the Sweet 16 or Elite Eight Round. Facing Kansas in the Southwest Regional Final, all bets were that the clock would strike midnight against the #1 seeded Kansas Jayhawks. The Rams won by 10 and advanced to their first, ever, Final Four.

Shaka Smart and the Rams shocked the world last March. 2

April

Connecticut defeats Butler to win the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament

The Daily Hat Trick detailed this NCAA Tournament Final game back in April. In one of the ugliest performances in the history of the NCAA Tournament, the Connecticut Huskies defeated Butler, 53-41.

Connecticut shot 35% from the field. This would often be an omen of doom in a championship game. Fortunately for UConn Coach Jim Calhoun and the Huskies, Butler shot less than 20%.

Butler lost its second consecutive NCAA Tournament Championship Game, having lost to Duke in 2010. Their coach, 34 year old Brad Stevens, would lose several seniors, including his best player, forward Matt Howard. Howard, incidentally, shot 1 for 13 in the game. It was Calhoun's third National Championship at Connecticut (1999, 2004).

Connecticut's Kemba Walker, the Most Outstanding Player of the Tournament, cuts down the net. 4

May

Dan Wheldon (died, October 2011) nips J.R. Hildebrand as Hildebrand hit the wall in the final turn, to win the Indy 500.

In one of the most exciting and improbable finishes to the signature race of the IndyCar Series, the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 offered a finish for the ages. J.R. Hildebrand led by more than a a full car length in the final lap, only to crash into the wall on the final turn, just feet away from the finish line. Hilderbrand's car would slide across the finish line under its own power and he would finish second. But England's Dan Wheldon would pass Hildebrand after the crash and win the Indy 500, the final win of his career.

Wheldon is as good an example as anyone of why we should seek and savor the good times of life. Wheldon would die in a crash five months later. 5

June

The Dallas Mavericks beat the Miami Heat in six games to win the NBA Finals

Former league MVP Dirk Nowitski shed the label that he was a great regular season player and a great scorer but couldn’t lead a team to a championship. Nowitski came through in the clutch repeatedly in the NBA Playoffs.

The signature moment of the Mavericks’ championship run was Game 2, in which Nowitski spearheaded a furious comeback, from 15 points down with less than seven minutes remaining, to avoid a deep 0-2 hole in the series and, instead, tie the series at one game apiece. The Mavericks would go on to win the series in six games.

Dirk delivered the dagger to the Heat in Game 2. 6

July

The United States Women's World Cup team advances to the Finals, losing to Japan

The Unites States Women’s World Cup soccer team had sports fans in the Unites States partying like it was 1999, the last time the women won the World Cup. The 1999 tournament was hosted in the United States and brought unprecedented attention to women’s soccer.

For a fortnight, American goalkeeper Hope Solo and clutch scorer Abby Wambach became household names among sports fans. The United States would advance to the Finals in dramatic fashion, scoring a last minute goal in extra time against Brazil to force, and win in, penalty kicks. The United States would lose to Japan in similar fashion in the Finals in the penalty kick frame.

Hope Solo: Beautiful young woman...too many corny Star Wars jokes elicited by her name. 7

August

NFL preseason football commences, after the end of the NFL lockout

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s “Back to football,” declaration became music to the ears of millions of American sports fans. After a lockout that lasted more than five months, depriving America of its favorite sport and football junkies of mini camp, training camp, free agency, and trade updates (and some preseason action), the lockout came to an end. Preseason games enjoyed strong ratings, with nationally televised games drawing better ratings than critical pennant race games in Major league Baseball. Twenty-first century America’s pastime was back!

Preseason football was never bigger. 8

September

St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays clinch improbable playoff berths on the final night of the regular season in dramatic fashion

The Hat Trick ran a piece following the final night of the MLB regular season. Four games decided the playoff fates of four teams. Adding to the drama, the Cardinals came back from a seemingly insurmountable 8.5 game September deficit to clinch the Wild Card. The Rays, who also were in a deep September hole, trailed the Yankees by seven runs in a must win season finale. Never in my lifetime could I recall so much being at stake on one single night, possibly the greatest night in the history of regular season baseball.

MLB on Wednesday, September 28, 2011: Last name, "Ever", first name, "Greatest" 9

October

St. Louis Cardinals win the World Series

The St. Louis Cardinals completed the most improbable run to a World Series Championship in decades. Not only were they hopelessly behind in the playoff race at the beginning of September, but twice, in Game 6 of the World Series, the Cardinals were down to their last strike. In one of the most memorable conclusions to a potential World Series closeout game (i.e. an elimination game), Cardinals third baseman David Freese delivered a pair of clutch, run scoring hits with the game hanging in the balance. Freese would deliver a walk-off homerun in the11th inning. The Cardinals would comfortably win Game 7 the following night and win the World Series.

If you never heard for David Freese before, you'd better recognize! 10

November

LSU 9 Alabama 6, OT

This game was billed the “Game of the Century”, likely to decide the winner of the SEC West Division and the representative of the SEC in the BCS National Championship Game. The winner did in fact win the division, the conference and a spot in the National Championship Game. The loser won a spot in the big game too.

The “Game of the Century” looked like a page from the middle of last century. The game was a bruising match of running attacks versus ferocious defenses. With the score tied after 60 minutes of play, the game was decided in the first overtime as Alabama failed to score in its possession and LSU’s Kenny Hilliard broke a long run inside the Alabama five yard line to set up a chip shot game winning field goal by LSU’s Drew Alleman.

No touchdowns were scored that night. The low score and the necessity of overtime to decide a winner prompted calls for a rematch in the National Championship Game should no conference winner have a stronger case. In spite of having one loss, like Alabama, and winning its BCS Automatic Qualifier conference (unlike Alabama), the Big XII, Oklahoma State was excluded from the National Championship Game and the Crimson Tide was handed a do-over for its November loss at home by the BCS system. Alabama would win the do-over match, 21-0, and, hence, was handed the BCS Championship trophy.

LSU's Eric Reid wrestles the ball away for a critical interception in "the Game of the Century". 11

December

NBA returns after the end of the lockout

“Back to basketball” did not quite have the same ring as “Back to football” for many sports fans, in the peak of the NFL season, but hoops fans, nonetheless, were relieved to learn that there would be a 2011-2012 season. The NBA would play its first regular season games on Christmas day, always traditionally a day with marquis basketball matchups. The Lakers, Bulls, Heat, Mavericks and other teams with high profile players would play on December 25th.

Reigning NBA MVP Derrick Rose picks up where he left off last season with a last second, game winning, basket, a hook shot floated over Pau Gasol of the Lakers. 12

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Are You Ready for Some Football…FINALLY?

By all indications, the NFL lockout will be over today. American sports fans can breathe a collective, “It’s about time,” sigh of relief. Now that it is over, what happens next?

Alright! The lockout is OVER! Now what?? 1

SPEED AGENCY

As soon as I hopped in my car and tuned my radio in to the sports talk station, I knew the lockout was over, before actually hearing those words. How? I heard about the possibilities of Kevin Kolb going to Arizona and Donovan McNabb to Minnesota and Vince Young or Kyle Orton to Miami. I could not have cared less whether there was any substance to those rumors or not. The fact that the airwaves were dominated with possible impact transactions as opposed to union protocol, labor laws, and negotiating tactics told me that the latter was not the top story. The only way it could NOT be the top story is if it was over!!!

I think the first thing that the public will observe, upon the lifting of the lockout, is a rapid fire of completed player transactions. The first wave that many will see is the signing of undrafted rookie free agents, followed almost immediately by the resigning of free agents by their current teams. Very soon after, we will see free agents looking for a new home inking deals with new teams. We will likely see a record number of signings within a 24/48/72/etc hour period after the beginning of free agency signings.

The sports media have done a great job of selling the public on the excitement and madness that the public can expect to witness in the coming week. Of course, the intent is to keep fans at the edge of their seats, tuning in and logging on frequently to see who goes where. It sounds like a lot of chaos for organizations, which may seem fun for fans. However, I think the media sold the myth of frenzied, rapid fire free agency madness to the public in doses far greater than the executives and coaches at the actual NFL clubs will experience.

It is absolutely true that free agency signings will probably occur at the most rapid rate we have ever witnessed. And it is true that many members of the press and the public will feel a sense of chaos and struggling to keep up with and anticipate the moves that are made. The teams? Not so much….

While teams and players were forbidden from communicating during the lockout, player agents were free to do as they pleased. Everyone actually involved in the process has been fully aware of this since the lockout began. Like in free agency periods in the past, teams were acutely aware of their needs and had a short list of target players to fill those needs, rookies, veterans, current players, or otherwise. What the public could not observe, during the lockout, is the gamesmanship, appealing to the public through the media, and the step-by-step developments, particularly with high profile free agents, which we have been able to observe with greater transparency in previous years. In short, I do not believe that the end result of free agent negotiations and signings will be dramatically different than it would have been in the absence of the lockout.

NFL free agency negotiations in 2011 are going to make speed dating look like long term relationships. 2

TRAINING CAMP – NO TRAINING WHEELS

Where we will be able to observe significant differences between this year and other years is the process and structure of NFL training camps. Every year, rookies are drafted and signed to compete for one of the 53 coveted final roster spots. Every year, some of the rookies are kept and some of the veterans are displaced because of the rookie acquisitions.

What is different about 2011 is that there have been no offseason voluntary organized teams activities (OTAs) between the beginning of the offseason and the beginning of training camp. This will give veteran players a tremendous advantage over their rookie counterparts. Veterans will be in training camp, next week, already having had the advantage of NFL game experience and, in most cases, having executed the strategic coaching schemes, and knowing the playbook.

Veteran players have never had a greater buffer between themselves and a pink slip due to an excelling rookie than they will in this coming training camp and preseason. Players with limited game experience who do not make the 53-man roster could earn one of eight practice squad spots. The competition will likely be more intense than ever for those due to the inability of rookies to prepare to compete for 53-man active roster spots.

The veteran advantage extends to the management and coaches of the teams themselves. Teams with greater veteran composition and greater continuity of composition from the 2010 season will be able to hit the ground running more readily that a team with more new players and more players with less experience. I fully expect the teams that both experienced success in 2010 and kept more of their key players to dominate in September and to have an advantage over other teams in playoff positioning.

Sorry, rookies! No training wheels for you! 3

IMPACT OF THE LOCKOUT

In the short term, I think we are going to witness a bigger gap between the haves and have-nots in the NFL than we usually see. The rich will stay rich, so to speak. I think that we are going to see more dominating performances (i.e. blowouts) in the 2011 season, particularly in the earlier weeks of the season. I think we will also be “treated” to a lot of bad, sloppy football, with great potential for the comedic folly highlight reels among the lower tiered teams in the NFL due to the compromised ability to prepare for the season and build team chemistry in the offseason.

In the long run, due to the 10 year length of this collective bargaining agreement, I think that fans will be able to enjoy uninterrupted football without the shadow of a labor stoppage looming over America’s pastime. Remember, the prior agreement under which the owners an players were operating, itself, was an 11th hour deal, cut in 2006, to avoid the chain of events that lead to the 2011 lockout. Owners opted out of the deal in 2008 and, for the last three years, the possibilities and eventual realities of an uncapped 2010 season and a labor stoppage came to fruition. This current agreement is a 10 year agreement, running through the 2020 season, and does not include an opt-out clause. So ends the seemingly continuous band-aid upon band-aid approach to the labor agreement in which the NFL engaged for the last five years.

Let's hope that the incompetence we may see this season won't extend to the refs. 4

AND NOW, WITHOUT FURTHER ADIEU…FOOTBALL!!!!

At the end of the day, all that the fans truly care about is watching football. While the nearly 5 month work stoppage, the longest in league history, took many fans and media members through more of the finer points of labor law and labor negotiations than most cared to ever digest, the payoff to the fan will be worth the cost of anxiety over whether there would be an entire 2011 NFL season. It is all over and we will all be much older and at different stages in life before this current agreement expires. Goodbye collective bargaining and hello FOOTBALL!!!



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To advertise with The Daily Hat Trick or to submit a guest column, please contact the editor at eric@thedailyhattrick.info.

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Word On the Tweet – July 15, 2011

With the second half of the Major League Baseball season underway and the NFL lockout appearing to be close to an end, social media is abuzz with all sorts of news, announcements, and rumors. The Daily Hat Trick, once again, has flexed its all access pass to the top secret Tweets that players and coaches won’t let everyone see.


Every NFL fan, everywhere, upon the announcement of the rookie wage scale, the last major point of negotiations in the NFL lockout:

YESSSSSSSS!

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, the first pick in the 2011 NFL Draft:

NOOOOOOO!

St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford, the first pick in the 2010 NFL Draft:

WHEW!

Tennessee Titans quarterback Jake Locker, who likely would have been a first round pick in 2010, but waited until 2011 to enter the draft:

@docbrown If I give you my entire signing bonus, can you make me one of those special DeLoreans? #BackToTheFuture #IEffedUp

Unfortunately, Doc Brown did NOT invent the time machine for financial gain! 1

Texas Rangers Owner and President, Nolan Ryan, after a fan at the Home Run Derby came dangerously close to falling over a railing reaching for a ball, just days after a Rangers fan died from a fall reaching for a ball thrown to him by Josh Hamilton:

@DrugFreeJosh See, Josh. It wasn’t your fault. He was just stupid. #Darwinism

AGAIN?!? REALLY!!?? I'll bet this guy burned his hand on the proverbial hot stove more than once as a child. 2

Anyone with a sophomoric sense of humor, after USA soccer player Abby Wambach’s last second goal on a header shot against Brazil in the World Cup quarterfinals, followed by a second half goal against France in the semifinals:

Abby Wambach gives the best head on the team! #rimshot #zing #GOAL

Goalkeeper Hope Solo, if she were to play along:

True. But there could be no happy ending without the job I do with my hands. RT @sophomoricSoccerFan Abby Wambach gives the best head on the team.

Best head in soccer! 3

Chicago White Sox Designated Hitter Adam Dunn ($12 million salary, batting .160):

So I walked into a casino and asked the blackjack dealer, “Can I get a hit?” He says, “Not if the day ends in ‘y’!” #VeryFunny #ImStillRich

Bankrupt Los Angeles Dodgers Owner Frank McCourt:

Are they hiring? RT @99ProblemsAndAHitAintOne So I walked into a casino and asked the blackjack dealer, “Can I get a hit?” He says, “Not if the day ends in ‘y’!”

It would be a start to restore balance in the baseball world. 4

OJ Simpson, after reading that Georgia Tech had to vacate its 2009 ACC title due to NCAA rules violations:

@GTAthletics So how does this “vacating” work? If I vacate the stabbings, can I get some of my money back from the Goldmans?

USC President Max Nikias:

@TheJuiceSlicer Could we vacate your transcript?



Former USC QB Carson Palmer (left) and O.J. Simpson (right). OJ: "If the Brown family won't give you that trade you're demanding, I might be able to help you cut around and slice through the red tape. It may require some yellow tape, though." 5

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The NFL Real World

The NFL lockout is affecting everyone. Some of the rookie free agents and younger players, either without a contract or earning far less money than established veterans, have had to take on real, 9 to 5 jobs to get by until the lockout is lifted.

Today, we are going to take a look at three NFL players who had to bite the bullet and put on white collars instead of white jerseys. Let’s drop in on a few of them and see how they’re doing.

I hope (first pick in the 2011 NFL draft) Cam Newton still has that nice suit. At the rate negotiations are going, he may need it for work soon. 1

Our first player is managing a Foot Locker at a local shopping mall. They are getting ready to open their doors this morning.

Player: Alright! Some of you know me; I play in the NFL. Well today, you’re ALL players! We're all reaching for a championship! Foot Action? They ain’t gettin’ no action on us! Athlete’s Foot? That’s a disease! Champs? That’s CHUMPS! Alright let’s get it started, just how we practiced. ... ONE!

Crew of salespeople: ONE!

Player: TWO!

Crew: TWO!

Player: SELL!

Crew: SHOES!

Player: THREE!

Crew: THREE!

Player: FOUR!

Crew: FOUR!

Player: SELL!

Crew: MORE!



Dwight Howard could be joining his NFL brethren if the NBA keeps following the NFL's path. 2


Our second player is working as an insurance agent. The owner thought the discipline and work ethic of NFL players would go over well in the office.

Office worker: Damnit! The fax machine is out of paper. I think I’ll just slip a little paper out of the copier here….

(sudden, loud collision in the office as the player tackles the worker)

Player: Acme Insurance is a TEAM! When the fax is outta paper, we’re ALL outta paper! We don’t steal paper from the Xerox machine! Do we?

Worker: (confused) No?

Player: I can’t hear you!!!

Worker: NO SIR!

Player: That’s RIGHT! What do we do?

Worker: Refill the fax with a new ream of paper.

Player: With WHAT?

Worker: (louder but nervous) A new ream of pa-per!!

Player: That’s right!

How much less waste would we have in the office if someone like Terry Tate - Office Linebacker were in the building? 3

Our third player got a job in construction. Physical work outdoors, he thought, would be a good fit and help keep him in shape.

Foreman: Wow! This football player was a great hire. Look at him. Here at 5 am. In shape. He’s carrying twice the materials around that the other guys do. And he keeps working till after dark. You know, with this guy around, we really don’t need Frank anymore. Call Frank in. Tell him to bring his hard hat.

Secretary: (on the phone) Frank? The foreman would like to see you.

Frank: You wanted to see me?

Foreman: Frank we appreciate all of your hard work for National Construction, but with the new guy around doing twice the work, we have to let ya go.

Frank: WHAT?

Foreman: Now, there will still be opportunities for you to lay bricks. I have some contacts across town at United Construction I can reach out to. I’ll need your hard hat.

Poor Frank is competing with the big boys, now. 4 

So, as you can see, the lockout is turning everyone's world upside down. Let’s hope Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith can iron out their wrinkles soon, or the NFL and, in fact, the world as we know it may change, and not for the better!





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3) Image from thewallofbadass.com; Terry Tate - Office Lineback is a ficttuous character and is a trademark and intellectual property of Reebok.
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Lockout? What Lockout?

I am sure two or three of you may have noticed that The Daily Hat Trick has been dormant for the last week. I was on a little vacation. Relax. Unlike Jim Rome, I cannot "take so much vacation because I get so much vacation". I only get so much vacation!

Today I would like to discuss the NFL and NBA lockouts. Sports? It’s just a game! Right? At the moment, we have no NFL and no NBA. The major football and basketball leagues of the world have no players because the owners have locked the players out. Today, we are going to hop into the DeLorean from Back to the Future, travel a few months ahead, and see what the world will be like if the NFL and NBA lockouts continue.

To the fall...! 1

August, 2011 – At an average American sports bar

Man: "Okay guys. Thanks for showing up. It’s that time of year again. Time for another fantasy draft. Okay so here’s how we’re gonna do it. Since there’s no football, we’re gonna draft players and earn points based on what they did in the same week last year."

Wow. Brett Favre still isn’t completely retired! Let’s drift a little further ahead into the fall.

I know it isn't very PC to compare Brett Favre to herpes, but neither seems to ever go away. 2

October 2011 - At a house gathering anywhere in America
Man: "I’ve gotta say, fellas, this is a much better crowd than I expected for our big championship game party. Hey. Turn up the TV a little."

TV Announcer: "It’s a perfect October evening for the biggest night in professional football in America in the 2011 season. The UFL Championship game, with league MVP Daunte Culpepper, will be underway shortly."

Daunte Culpepper's 15 minutes can last a little longer thanks to the lockout. 3

Ordinarily, all would not be lost for the American sports fan, with basketball season starting up in late October. Alas, that may not be the case this year.


Dallas, Texas - Halloween Weekend, 2011

PA Announcer: "Ladies and gentlemen, please turn your attention to the northwest corner of the American Airlines Center , as we unveil the 2011 championship banner of YOUR…DALLAS MAVERICKS!!!" (crowd noise & jock jam music kicks in)

PA announcer: (music continues) "And now, the tip off…of Game 6 of last year’s NBA finals on the Jumbotron!!!"

It wouldn't be the first time this year that the best sports action in Dallas is above the floor instead of on it. 4

And what will we do in June if the NBA players are still locked out?


June 2012

TV Announcer: (crowd noise in the background) "Folks, the atmosphere is electric. Fans have been waiting for this series for quite some time. Miami is back, trying to claim the elusive championship series win and, of course, they will face Houston . There’s the first pitch…( PING !) and the 2012 College World Series is underway!"

Not really what I think of when I think of Miami pursuing a chamionship in June. 5

So never fear, sports fans. Remember that in America , we know how to improvise. And hey, if the Mrs. is nagging you on a Sunday afternoon, just tell her that the “honey do” list will have to wait until after PBA Bowling is over!

Does ANYONE actually watch this stuff on Sunday afternoons in the fall???

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Oatmeal Is Better Than No Meal

Labor negotiations need to maintain a degree of confidentiality, even one as public as the ongoing collective bargaining agreement between the National Football League owners and players. Still, key nuggets are going to be divulged to the public, intentionally or unintentionally. If one reads between the lines of what is revealed to the public, one can draw some broad conclusions with a relative degree of certainty and accuracy.


Labor Negotiations: As pleasant as going to the dentist for a root canal. 1

 NUTS AND BOLTS

ESPN, yesterday, released some details of the agreement being proposed to the owners in the latest talks. Just looking at the bullet points, I think the players can breathe a collective sigh of relief. The owners were determined to roll back some of what the players had and ask for more out of the players. That was done, but players did not get hammered, more like an inconvenient pinch.

The following are some of the details of the proposed agreement, reported by ESPN, which will likely be a part of the final agreement.

Players get 48 percent of “all revenue” – According to NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, players, after off-the-top expenses, were receiving about 53 percent of the revenue. Many of the reports I had read said that the players could have lived with a 50/50 split. I would call this, under the circumstances, a “win-win”.

Teams required spending close to 100% of the salary cap – That is a win for the players. I do not pretend to have any more knowledge of NFL labor conditions than the average football enthusiast. However, to my knowledge, I am unaware of any minimum salary expenditures that clubs faced in the past. This is a big win for the players, any way one slices it.

Rookie wage scale part of the deal – There are still details to be ironed out, but this is a “win-win” for everyone involved, except for rookies. Owners can save money spent on rookies and spend that money on proven veterans without succumbing to the pressure of an otherwise unencumbered free market for rookie players.

You probably would not like going to your office and seeing this! That is probably how veterans feel when a rookie comes in and gets $60 million guaranteed. 3

Four years needed for unrestricted free agent status – This is another “win-win”. In the absence of a collective bargaining agreement extension in 2010, players had to wait six years (instead of four), well beyond career expectancy, for unrestricted status and owners had no salary cap protection.

18-game regular season designated only as negotiable item and at no point is mandated in deal – Hallelujah! This is a “win-win-win”! The players, obviously win; they wanted no part of an extended schedule. Most fans, expressed through talk shows, Internet polls, scientific polls, and other media, expressed no interest in extending the season. And while the owners may have wanted an 18 game regular season schedule, this condition, should it be agreed upon, may help save the owners from themselves. The Daily Hat Trick has run multiple articles explaining why this was a bad idea. For the fans, this may be the biggest win.

I don't think this is the image the NFL would want after an 18 game regular season. 2

New 16-game Thursday night TV package beginning in 2012 – I have yet to read any details of the thinking and motivation from each side that went into this part of the deal. I am going to take an educated guess and say that this is a win for owners, TV Networks, and fans. This is probably not as much of a win for players (or coaches). Playing a game on Thursday night significantly reduces the rest and preparation time available before a game, 4 days instead of 7 or 8 days for a game played on a Sunday or Monday.

Retirees to benefit from improved health care, pension benefits as revenue projected to double to $18 million by 2016 – This is a win for the players and, besides that, I think it is morally right. Football is a brutal sport that brings fans a lot of entertainment and makes a lot of money for a lot of people. When a player’s career is over, the benefits continue for everyone else, so I think the players responsible for making the great game what it is should be taken care of.


ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?

Let us all keep our fingers crossed and hope that the recent goodwill and progress continues. Maybe, just maybe, training camp will start on time and the looming threat of lost activities will turn out to be little more than a scare. I am ready for some football! Are you?

Oh yeah. I'm ready! Good thing the NFL cheerleaders aren't locked out. 4

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Word on The Tweet - May 3, 2011

Yesterday, the day after the killing of terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden, felt, to me, like a day in which sports were so trivial that, barring a major story like a retirement, an arrest, or a death, I could not find the inspiration to write about a sports topic. Sports, ultimately, are entertainment, albeit often interwoven with social and societal elements. Anything I could offer on a day-to-day contrast pales in comparison to the milestone victory of the Unites States in the war on terror.

Regardless, the world moves forward and it is back to business at The Daily Hat Trick. There were a handful of notables and quotables the world of sports. As always, the Hat Trick has access to the top secret Tweets and is sharing them with you!

Former Patriots quarterback Drew Bledsoe, in response to Tom Brady’s claim that he intends to play for 10 more years with the Patriots (which was in reaction to the Pats’ drafting of QB Ryan Mallett):

@GQ_QB12 Did Coach give you that whole speech about “grooming a backup just in case”? Welcome to my world. #Karma #FatherTime

2

Los Angeles Dodgers Right Fielder Andre Either, who extended his hitting streak to 28 games, halfway to Joe DiMaggio’s 70 year old record 56 game hitting streak.

@Associated_Press DiMaggio? SLOW DOWN! #GettingAheadOf Ourselves


Dodgers First Baseman James Loney, who is being fined $1 for every pop fly out to left field:

@FrankMcCourt Will this help you make payroll next week? #Bankruptcy

Dodgers Owner Frank McCourt 3

Referee Ed Malloy, who ejected Celtics Forward Paul “The Truth” Pierce for speaking to Dwayne Wade of the Heat after a foul involving a Pierce screen was called:

@TheTruth_34 You never heard? I’m Ed Malloy, baby! I throw people OUUUUT! #Martin


Former Auburn University running back Mario Fannin, who was the 46th player selected in the United Football League draft:

@Heisman_Cam I’ll let you know what to look out for in the pros! #Lockout

Newton:

@SuperMarioFannin Do you think you could give me a reference, bro? #NotGettingPaid

Maybe Cam would profit more from another season at Auburn. 4

Charlie Sheen:

@OsamaBinShotUp Wow! You know what I call Sunday night for us? DUH! WINNING! #bayonets

WINNING! 5

GOD BLESS AMERICA!


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Back To Life; Back To Reality

Injunction Granted

United States District Court Judge Susan Richard Nelson granted an injunction lifting the lockout of NFL players. Whoo hoo! ♪♪ Ding dong! The witch is dead! The lockout witch is DEAD! ♫

ALRIGHT! So now players can get back to practice. But there are no practices yet. Well at least free agency can start; time to see our teams make the moves to bring them to the next level. Unfortunately, I have not heard about anyone on the phones or being flown in. Certainly, teams can start strategizing draft day trades. Or not…most analysts are suggesting that it is very unlikely that teams will attempt any transactions involving active players.

I don’t get it. If I am a player, I would think that a victory in court is cause to prance around and shout, “WE WON! WE WON!” instead of, “What the HELL did we win?”

Even the NFL can't escape the long arm of the LAW! 1

So What?

Even under the rosiest, best case scenario, the injunction of the lockout leaves a ton of unanswered questions about how to proceed in the absence of a new collective bargaining agreement. The worst case scenario is that the owners do the absolute minimum, within the boundaries of the law, and there is a functional lockout instead of a physical one. Until the players and owners come to terms on a collective bargaining agreement for the 2011 season, there will be no useful, functional National Football League as we have known it.

Just because football operations are not back to “normal” does not mean that the players did not score a significant victory. By enjoining the lockout, the owners have lost a substantial bargaining chip: the ability to out-wait and out-sweat the players. With a lockout in place, players were eventually going to miss paychecks.

As I have pointed out countless times, the average, typical NFL player makes more money than I do or you (likely) do in a year, but is not rich or set for life. Like you or me, they have bills and need to get paid in order to maintain their standards of living. The Tom Bradys and Drew Breeses of the league aren’t starving, but I would guess that about 40 of the other 52 guys on their teams need every paycheck in order to build their lives and their nest eggs. Owners know this and, until the injunction was granted yesterday, the owner’s worst case would have been to play the waiting game.

With the injunction lifted, players under contract, making good faith efforts to execute the terms of their contracts (like coming to the facility to work out even if the weight room is locked and the running track is closed) need to be paid according to their contracts. This puts the heat back on the owners to come to the table and iron out a deal, tipping the bargaining advantage more toward the players.

I didn't expect the players to be high rolling like Tron during the lockout. 2

Back to the Drawing Board

With all of the drama and maneuvers in court, the leverage and the playing field have shifted their balances between the two sides. Still, nobody is playing football. The owners are currently going through a process to appeal the injunction, so it may be several more weeks before the stage is completely set for the two sides to negotiate a final deal. Both sides can jockey for position, infinitely, in court. But if either side is serious about bringing this unpleasant situation to a close, it is time to put forth serious, agreeable proposals, come to an understanding, and then get back to work.

Until that day, all the players and owners are doing is lining up in the best possible formation, but the ball has still not yet been shifted.

Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith are on their way to killing the goose that lays the golden egg. 3

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