Fitting Christmas Gifts for All 32 NFL Teams

The holiday season is finally here, and everyone is in the spirit of giving. In honor of that Christmas spirit, we're looking to deliver a perfect Christmas gift to every team in the NFL this year. What's on the Patriots' Christmas list? What isn't on the Cardinals' Christmas list? How much coal will be in Ben Roethlisberger's stocking this year?

I'm playing Santa Claus for the next few minutes, and I'm breaking down what everyone's getting this year on Christmas morning.

Breaking Down the NHL Lockout

As you most likely know all too well, the NHL has been locked out for nearly three months now.  On September 15th, the league's previous Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA) expired, locking out the players until a new deal could be reached.  Some fans have followed the details scrupulously, and others have just been tweeting and complaining about the lack of their favorite sport.  If you aren't aware of the situation at hand, I'll do my best to break it down in the most understandable terms.

When you kept hearing about the 50-50 split that was desired, it was in reference to the way money is divided between the players and the owners in terms of hockey-related revenue.  What exactly hockey-related revenue is classified as, I cannot be sure.  But the important thing is, according to sources, the two sides have agreed on what HRR is defined as.  In the league's last working CBA that expired in September, the players earned a 57-43 share of HRR.  Owners wanted to bring the players' share down from 57 percent to 46 percent in the new CBA, but it seems that the sides have agreed in principle on a 50-50 split, after all.  That agreement finally came last week during a three-day negotiating session that ended abruptly when the NHL turned down a counter-proposal from the NHLPA.

The "Make Whole" Provision was another topic that was agreed on in principle, according to reporters who were at the hotel in New York City last week where the owners and players were negotiating.  In a nutshell, the "Make Whole" provision is the piece of the agreement that ensures existing player salaries are "made whole" despite the reduction of the percentage of revenue that goes to player salaries.  Originally, the NHL said they would pay $211 million over the course of the new CBA for the Make Whole provision.  The players originally demanded that the league pay $389 million.  It was a huge sticking point for a while, but in the league's most recent offer last week, they moved significantly — exactly half way, in fact — toward the players' demands with an offer to pay $300 million of the Make Whole provision.  The NHLPA accepted that particular part of the proposal.

So, to recap... last week's offer from the NHL included a 50-50 split in revenue (which the NHLPA agrees to) and a $300 million commitment from the league on the Make Whole provision (which the NHLPA also agrees to).  So what are the remaining sticking points here? After all, to reiterate the message of the previous two paragraphs, the two sides have essentially agreed on the money numbers in this deal.

One of the remaining issues is the length of the new CBA term. The NHL is demanding a 10-year Collective Bargaining Agreement with a mutual option between the two sides to opt out of that agreement after the first eight years.  The players, on the other hand, insist on an eight-year agreement with an option to opt out after the first six years.  Even if you're challenged with numbers, you can see that the different here is only two years.  Sources say that most players don't care all that much about this matter, and that they would accept the league's offer if they had to.  Donald Fehr, however — the NHLPA's leader, in the same role as Bill Daly plays for the owners — seems to care more than the players do.  He is one of the reasons that the sides haven't agreed on this issue yet.  The primary reason why the owners want 10 years is because of their willingness to pay $300 million in Make Whole money.  If the CBA is shorter than that, then the owners will not really achieve a true 50-50 split of HRR — the $300 million would significantly skew that percentage.

Another huge sticking point is maximum player contract lengths, which Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly refers to as "the hill [the NHL is] willing to die on."  The league proposes a five-year maximum for new player contracts, with seven years being the maximum if the player is re-signing with his current team.  The owners want to do away with ridiculously long contract situations (see: Ilya Kovalchuk, Rick Dipietro) that, ironically enough, they brought upon themselves.  Ultimately, they want to institute a policy to prevent those few owners who give the huge contracts from ruining the system.  The players, however, feel just as strongly as the league does in the opposite direction.  They believe that five years is too short a limit, and their counter was an eight-year minimum.  If one side or the other doesn't move at all, this thing could go up in flames from an issue that isn't even money-related.

The last major sticking point is the matter of player contract buyouts, which the NHLPA is trying to allow in the early stages of a new CBA.  The catch, though, is that the NHLPA wants those contracts to be eligible for buyout without that payment counting against the salary cap.  For obvious reasons, the league is against this notion as well.  The owners claim that, since they are already shelling out $300 million for the proposed Make Whole provision, they cannot have more money being exchanged outside of the system (i.e. the system = the salary cap).  Ultimately, this seems to be another issue that Donald Fehr is creating unjustly.  The Make Whole provision is entirely designed to help the players transition, financially, from one CBA to the next to cope with a reduction in their share of the money.  There really isn't a need for another transitional remedy like this when it comes to getting the players more money.

So what's the summary? Ultimately, if I can put this in the simplest terms possible, the NHL and the NHLPA are absurdly close to an agreement on the core issues.  It's rather aggravating that it hasn't been settled yet.  Here are a few concluding bullet points through which I will try to summarize my thoughts:

       • If the players themselves put the NHL's most recent proposal to a vote, it is more than likely that the players would accept the offer.  They want to get back on the ice.
       • Donald Fehr, the skipper of the NHLPA, is trying to get the best deal possible for his players. Kudos for that, but there comes a time when you must realize that you've haggled as much as you'll be able to.
       • Even though the league made a decent offer, I still find myself questioning whether or not they are truly committed to fixing things.  Did you know that the league (the owners) still make money from their TV contracts even when the league is locked out?
        • It's time for both sides to push hard for an agreement, and the reality is that the players will get screwed.  The owners hold the cards.  Donald Fehr, Steve Fehr and the rest of the NHLPA need to realize that and accept the NHL's most recent offer (which the league has attached a "take it or leave it" label to).  It's manageable, at worst.

The only thing I'm certain of at this point is that I miss hockey... a lot.  It is a shame that such rich men are unable to divide such huge sums of money in a satisfiable way.  And further, it is a shame that the two sides still cannot reach an agreement even after they've agreed on those core money splits.

Remember who brings the money in.  Remember who brought this sport back to prominence.  Remember your fans when you see your product spiral into destruction on the heels of another lost season.
    

More Potential BC Uniforms

If I Were Boston College's Next Athletic Director...

Boston College football is a sputtering program with such promising potential. Everyone knows what football could become in Chestnut Hill, but most have resigned to the understanding that it simply isn't happening any time soon. The culture calls for sending good people through the program, doing things the right way, and having class. All great things, but winning is supposed to be the fourth part of that equation. It hasn't been in a few years.

If I was the new athletic director succeeding Gene DeFilippo, I'd introduce these uniforms. Look at schools like Oregon. How do they build their football programs? They look fresh. They sparkle. They have what the younger generations would call swag. Players envision themselves in that jersey, that helmet, those complete uniforms, and they want to be a part of it. Everything is about the image. Just my two cents, but if I was the AD, I'd put these into action and watch my Eagles soar once again.

Boston College Football — Predicting the Rest of 2012

When Friday morning rolls around, I'll be boarding the Boston College Eagles' charter that takes off from Logan Airport and lands in Chicago. The following morning, BC will square off with Northwestern for the third game of their football season.

My attendance is rather unimportant — I'll be doing the play-by-play commentary for Boston College's student radio station, WZBC 90.3 FM — but the game is of massive importance for the Eagles.

Boston College (1-1) is coming off of a blowout 34-3 victory over the Maine Black Bears, an FCS opponent whom the Eagles dominated for their first win. On Saturday, BC will look to notch their first win against an FBS opponent on the young season and prove that they are once again contenders in college football.

Ten games remain on their schedule. Here are my optimistic predictions for how this thing will unfold.

Game #3 — September 15th at Northwestern
As I've just mentioned, this is a statement game for the Eagles. Chase Rettig has led an impressive offensive attack thus far, and the defense — albeit against an FCS offense — looked stellar last weekend. The Eagles hung around with the Wildcats in last year's opener. I see them doing better than that this year. With their three-pronged running attack and revamped passing attack (Might Bobby Swigert be returning soon?), they get a big win against a good opponent. Boston College 27, Northwestern 20.

Game #4 — September 29th vs Clemson
BC's bye week comes after the Northwestern game, so they'll have two full weeks to prepare for Clemson. Sadly enough, that isn't going to matter. All the optimism in the world cannot logically bring me to suggest the Eagles will beat the Tigers. Clemson is absolutely loaded, and if you ask me, they could be competing for a national title come January. No harm, no foul — not a soul expects us to win, anyway. Clemson 42, Boston College 20.

Game #5 — October 6th at Army
This will be a pretty cool game for anyone lucky enough to attend it. Army is a good venue for obvious reasons, and it will surely be a hard-fought game. I suspect they may be too one-dimensional to hang with an Eagles team that brings their A-game. If they do bring that A-game, Boston College rolls. Boston College 34, Army 14.

Game #6 — October 13th at Florida State
Not quite as easy as last week. This will be Boston College's most difficult road game of the season, without question. FSU is always talented, they're an ACC opponent, and midway through the season it will be a critical game. I've said many times that I feel like the Eagles will beat one of the three big powerhouses on their schedule (Clemson, FSU, Notre Dame). It isn't Clemson, and it's not Florida State. Florida State 28, Boston College 14.

Game #7 — October 20th at Georgia Tech
Rounding out a three-game roadie, BC heads to Georgia Tech for another ACC matchup. Even though GT was impressive against VT, I think that is partially because VT is overrated. Like usual, it will be a dog fight. But let optimism prevail. Boston College 20, Georgia Tech 17.

Game #8 — October 27th vs Maryland
Maryland is God awful. We even beat them last year. Boston College 31, Maryland 12.

Game #9 — November 3rd at Wake Forest
It would be outrageous to assume that the Eagles will win all of their winnable games, just like it would be outrageous to say they're beating Clemson on the basis that they could... possibly do it. This is one of those games that the Eagles will drop. An easy win against Maryland behind you and a huge match-up with ND ahead of you — BC lets their guard down and drops a game they could have had. Wake Forest 30, Boston College 17.

Game #10 — November 10th vs Notre Dame
The game of the year for BC and their fans. It will almost surely be under the lights at Alumni Stadium. By my count, BC will enter the game with a record of 5-4. That means they're competing for bowls. And this place will be jacked up. Notre Dame — already an overrated squad — will struggle. BC gets a huge win by executing in the passing game and protecting the football. Boston College 24, Notre Dame 21.

Game #11 — November 17th vs Virginia Tech
I'm telling you, VT is an overrated football team. Logan Thomas is good and all, but they always seem to have problems putting the whole package together. BC is a good team with some flaws. They're still not at the point where they're a true contender in the ACC yet. But they're damn close, and they'll get a signature win after their biggest win the week prior. Boston College 38, Virginia Tech 35.

Game #12 — November 24th at NC State
I could group this game into the same category as Wake Forest, but the difference is that it's the last game of the season. There's an outside shot — albeit unlikely — that this game could still give BC a shot in the ACC. They may be playing for entry into a bowl game. There's a lot on the line. For those reasons — and because BC has a tendency to finish the season on a high note — I think the Eagles close out their campaign on a very impressive three-game winning streak. Boston College 28, NC State 17.

FINAL RECORD: 8-4 (4-4)
Most fans around here would be thrilled with an 8-4 season from the Eagles. I think that their opening loss to Miami will end up being very costly as they compete for the ACC title. As I said, they're still a few pieces away from competing for that conference championship. But this is a good group of players. You'll see it this year. I'm telling you that much. You'll see these players start to win ballgames. When Bobby Swigert and Chris Pantale come back to add two huge weapons to the passing game, Chase Rettig will be that much more impressive. And when Al Louis-Jean comes back as the team's top cornerback, you'll see a defensive unit with more stability and skill.

I may be optimistic suggesting that the Eagles will win eight games this season, but I don't think I'm crazy. I've watched this team start the season, and saw most of them play last year. There's something to work with here. As Doug Martin settles into his new role as offensive coordinator and guides Rettig to multi-touchdown games every week, the limit will continue to rise for the BC Eagles.

And there is still the slightest bit of hope that this team can become relevant in college football once again.

UPDATE -- Optimism can be an embarrassing thing.
      

Bookie Tips — Saturday College Football Locks

As another beautiful Saturday full of college football heads our way, why don't we take a look at some ways to earn the extra dollar of beer money this weekend? If you're a gambling man, these picks should be right up your alley. You may not trust me yet, but I'm hoping you will after today's slate of games.

Kansas State (-7) over Miami

Being a Boston College superfan, I saw the Miami attack first-hand last weekend. Let me tell you this — it was nothing impressive. Yes, they put up 41 points in Chestnut Hill, but BC gift-wrapped the game for them. It was a very standard and predictable attack from the Hurricanes, and the Eagles just couldn't make tackles or protect the football. It was as simple as that. Against a much better KSU squad, the U finds itself back to .500. Book it.

Auburn (+3) over Mississippi State

Against one of the most talented teams in the nation last week, Auburn hung around and lost a tight game. Mississippi State is no Clemson. This game will be close, and SEC battles are always grinders. But Auburn doesn't drop to 0-2 today. Quarterback Kiehl Frazier had very shaky numbers in the opener against Clemson — 11-for-27 (40.7 percent) for 194 yards with a touchdown and a pick. Despite the poor performance, Auburn was in the game. The Tigers get their mojo back today.

Clemson (-28) over Ball State

I was just raving about how good this Clemson team is, and it wasn't just to justify the Auburn pick. This team is for real. They're headed for what I see as an easy road to the ACC Championship game, one which my money would already be on the Tigers to win. They're mega-talented and headed back to their home field for this game — a field they went 7-0 on last year before getting blown out in the Orange Bowl to West Virginia. Those talented physical specimens will go to work for Clemson in an absolute rout of Ball State.

There's the wrap for this Saturday's slate of games. Pick any of these three — or, if you're feeling lucky, parlay them together — and you just might find yourself with some extra money to spend on beer and wings tomorrow for NFL action.

Goodbye, Red Sox. Hello, Red Sox.

When Ray Allen left the Boston Celtics this offseason, fans realized that there would be a change in the culture of the team. And when Tim Thomas told everyone to suck one, we all realized that a new era was beginning with Tuukka Rask at the helm for the Bruins.

But when it comes to culture changes and transformations, the 2012 Boston Red Sox put everyone else to shame.

General manager Ben Cherington put the finishing touches on a blockbuster deal between the Red Sox and Dodgers Saturday afternoon that shipped Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett and Nick Punto to Los Angeles and returned five players to Beantown.

It is the first trade in the history of Major League Baseball that involved multiple players with more than $100 million remaining on their contracts.

The reaction coming from Red Sox fans has been mixed. Some love it. Some hate it. Some are too shocked to know whether they should love it or hate it. Some stopped caring months ago and are just counting the days until the Patriots kick off against the Titans.

There are positives and negatives to come out of it, but one thing is for certain. The Red Sox that you watched yesterday are gone. Say goodbye. They're never coming back. The beer, the chicken, the 2007 championship and everything else that has come with the Red Sox during this recent stretch is gone, never to return.

What you'll see from this point forward is a new brand of the Boston Red Sox. They might as well change their uniforms and retouch their logo art. Say hello to the Red Sox.

I can't sit here and deny the fact that the Sox are now a weaker team. Adrian Gonzalez was a key part of this offense. It's tough to lose him. But let's break down these three guys and look at the pros and cons of their departures.

When it comes to Gonzalez, you're losing a guy who hits for an incredible average and drives in over 100 runs a season. His power isn't mind-blowing, but he's still a phenomenal hitter in the middle of the lineup. He's a gold-glove caliber first baseman, too. So, yes — a lot of value just went out the window. But what about his character? He's very business-like and professional. He's a class act. But in his brief tenure in Boston, Gonzalez failed to produce in clutch situations. He struggled with the pressure at times. He didn't display any leadership qualities, and he irritated many fans by saying it was God's plan to see the Red Sox collapse in September last season. Gonzo is a huge asset for a baseball team to lose, but I can't help but wonder whether or not he is a fitting cornerstone for this franchise moving forward. After all, with $130 million still owed to him, he certainly would have been the cornerstone.

Crawford and Beckett are a lot easier to cope with. The Sox bit the bullet on Gonzalez simply to get these players off their hands. Let's start with Crawford, the much less loathed of the two. It just didn't work for Crawford in Boston. He, too, couldn't handle the pressure of this city. Injuries didn't help him, I know. But for Crawford and Gonzalez both, I see situations that just sucked all around. The expectations were too high for Crawford — he was never worth $20 million a year. If Theo Epstein had inked him for $12 million a year over 5 years instead of $20 million a year over 7, we wouldn't even be having these talks.

But Josh Beckett is what makes the Red Sox winners in this trade. Beckett is the piece that needed to go. He's the one who solidified the uncoachable, uncontrollable clubhouse culture that developed over the last few years in Boston. He's the one who inspired the mindset — assumed by many of the guys around him, of course — that, in turn, inspires the rant I'm about to make regarding the disgraces of the old Red Sox team.

Who are you, as an MLB player, to go behind your manager's back and tell ownership he needs to go? What happened to the culture in sports that saw a manager being the boss of his players? The culture that saw the players putting the team before themselves? The desire to win over everything else? The entire way of life has changed in professional sports, and the Red Sox took it to the next level. These players feel like they're above the rest of the organization. They feel like they have the final authority. They feel entitled to way too much. This trade is the first step in setting that law straight. As a player, you're just one of the pieces on the game board. As management, the message is clear — we will have the final say in all matters. Hopefully Ben Cherington will continue to lay down the law and make his players aware that the team comes before their own personal interest.

And Johnny Pesky's funeral? The one that only four players — David Ortiz, Clay Buchholz, Vicente Padilla and Jarrod Saltalamacchia — managed to attend? That wasn't so important to everyone else. The bigger event on that day was Josh Beckett's charity event, where most of them went to party, have a good time and raise some money for charity. Ownership had busses and shuttles ready to take Boston's players to the funeral that morning. Four of them went to pay their respects to the great Johnny Pesky. Four of them. Four.

The attendance sheet couldn't even reach Pesky's retired number six. Hell, it couldn't even reach Nomar Garciaparra's old number five, but Nomar himself was able to fly in from across the country to honor the Sox legend. Unfortunately our beloved team couldn't make the trip from within the state.

It has been a frustrating year, and we'll have a clearer outlook when the dust settles this offseason. It may be a tough road back to success for the Red Sox. But if you want the honest truth, I'm not even demanding a championship right away.

All I want is for Red Sox baseball to return. I want to be proud of being a Red Sox fan. I want a team full of players who realize how special the Cathedral of Boston is with its monstrous green wall. I want a group of guys who love the game and love their team. I want players who consider their manager to be the boss, a boss that they would lay everything on the line for. I want players who want to be legends. Players who want to write a page in the Red Sox history book, and not a page stained with disgrace and failure.

The 86 years of failure were hard-fought years. The Red Sox and Yankees had a sizzling rivalry. Our talent was homegrown, and that homegrown system eventually churned out a championship.

If the championship comes, I'll be thrilled. But until then say hello to the Red Sox — hopefully a team full of youthful, energetic players that would give anything to give Red Sox Nation the world.