Author: Dave Long

The Big Story – Is It Time For Drake Maye? It’s still a little too early to throw in the towel. But after dropping to 1-4 the Jerod Mayo era is off to a bad start. And with Cincinnati also 1-4, the opening day win over them ain’t looking as good as it did a month ago. Especially after losing 15-10 Sunday to a team playing their third-string QB while repeatedly shooting themselves in the foot with sloppy play like having too many men on the field for a fourth-and-one punt to hand Miami a free first down.

To paraphrase Dean Wormer in Animal House: Penalty-strewn, undisciplined and boring is no way to go through a football season, son.

Thus the fans want Drake Maye to play ready or not.

The brass says not yet. But you’ve got to wonder when they’ll give in. Because the only other thing to root for now is getting the first overall pick in the 2025 draft.

Sports 101: Name the players picked the four times the Patriots had the first overall pick in the draft since the 1966 merger.

News Item – Chaim is Back: Apparently the Cardinals overlooked the mess in Boston the Chaim Bloom regime was. Or they see the four guys he drafted now ranked among baseball’s Top 35 prospects and say this guy can judge young talent. Either way he’s back as a GM after being hired to take the reins in St. Louis.

News Item – Rhamondre Stevenson: Wow, that was quite a message the brass sent over his fumbling issues. They kept him out one whole series. And when his first series ended with his 33-yard TD run, it showed how silly that charade was. I know turnovers kill. But an offensively challenged team with just one playmaker can’t bench him for fumbling. Just work on it, ’cause he knows it’s bad.

News Item – Falcons and Bucs on Thursday Night Football: If you don’t get Amazon Prime you missed a good one last week when Atlanta beat Tampa Bay in OT 36-30. Three thoughts:

The Kirk Cousins investment looked pretty good as he threw for 508 and four TDs. Loved those expansion-era red helmet and black jersey throwbacks Atlanta wore. Great end-of-the-game call by the Atlanta radio team, which said “drive home safely” as all-name teamer KhaDarel Hodge crossed the goal line to complete his shocking 45-yard winning score 1:35 into OT.

The Numbers:

12 – penalties committed by the Patriots for 105 yards in Sunday’s loss to Miami.

66 – amount in millions the Bruins will pay goalie Jeremy Swayman over the eight-year deal they just agreed on.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Up – Dikembe Mutombo: The gigantic NBA star, who succumbed to brain cancer at 59, gets it for using his stature and money to become a worldwide ambassador for good, which included building/funding a 350-bed hospital in his native Democratic Republic of the Congo.

RIP – Greg Landry: The Nashua High alum passed away last week at 77. He was the best NFL player ever from the Granite State. After playing at UMass, he had his heyday in the early ’70s when he was a great running QB for the Lions.

Player of the Week – Jared Goff: He did something no QB ever has done, throwing no incomplete passes over an entire game, when he was 18 for 18 for 292 yards and two TDs in Detroit’s 42-29 win over Seattle. And he even had his first ever TD reception since he started playing football at 7 to boot.

Big Hit of the Week – Pete Alonso: Not willing to go as far as saying Alonso’s ninth-inning game-winning homer last week was the greatest hit in Mets history — after all, I saw “a little roller up along first” — but it did turn a 2-0 Mets deficit into a stunning 3-2 series-clinching win over Milwaukee, so it was big.

Random Thoughts:

Even after his spectacular season Chris Sale still got hurt when needed most and sat out as Atlanta got swept out of the playoffs.

With five catches for 64 yards Jonnu Smith did more in his first game against the Patriots Sunday than he did in his two mistake-filled years with them.

Sports 101 Answer: The four first overall Patriots picks were Jim Plunkett (1971), Kenneth Sims (1982), Irving Fryar (1984) and Drew Bledsoe (1993).

Final Thought – Pete Rose: He was a great playerwhose effort was unmatched by anyone I’ve seen in his sport, which his famous play to win in the 1970 All-Star game barreling over the Cleveland’s Ray Fosse epitomized. However, Rose, who died last week at 83, is rightfully kept out of the Hall because he knew betting on baseball as Reds manager was wrong — something he denied for 15 years until he needed to juice sales of his book. And his off-field behavior was even worse. So, sad to say, he got what he deserved.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

The Big Story – Sox Miss Playoffs Again: It took a 27-39 post-All Star-break collapse after a promising first half, but your Boston Red Sox finished exactly where they started, at an even .500, at 81-81. It left them four games out of the wild card to make it four times in the five years since Dave Dombrowski was fired by owner John Henry six months after winning a franchise-best 108 games.

The glass-is-half-full side is that, with 14-game-winner Brayan Bello, dynamic Ceddanne Rafaela and Triston Casas here already and two of baseball’s Top 5 prospects and four of its Top 35 on the way, the future offers some real enthusiasm.

The half-empty side is since they were killed by brutal relief pitching and a thin starting staff, it won’t be realized unless owner John Henry opens the checkbook for the pitching help they desperately need.

Sports 101: Name the team that was in first place for an entire year only to lose the pennant by dropping to second in the season’s final game.

News Item – Ohtani’s Year for the Ages: Sorry, Aaron Judge, as great as your near triple crown year has been, with 411 total bases, 38 doubles, seven triples and 54 homers, 130 RBI, 59 steals and an even closer triple crown miss (by four points) the Japanese star was even more dynamic. An astonishing season.

News Item – Five Big 2024 Baseball Team Stories:

1. Yanks win AL East while trying to win first WS in 15 years. 2. Houston roars back from 10 games back to win AL West. 3. Dodgers win their 11th NL West Crown in 12 years. 4. Choke of the year goes to Minnesota, who were a wild card lock before finishing 2-8 and four games out. 5. Going into Monday’s delayed doubleheader between the Mets and Braves with a possibility of a three-way tie for the final NL wild card spot between those two and the D-Backs.

The Numbers:

34 – majors-leading homers given up by Kutter Crawford after surrendering one while taking his MLB-worst 16th loss in Saturday’s 7-2 loss to Tampa Bay.

58 & 144 – homers and RBI for MVP-to-be Aaron Judge.

… Of the Week Awards

Player of the Week – Jaden Daniels: My friend Dick Lombardi the insurance magnate/college football savant was right that the rookie from LSU was the must-take guy on draft day. Exhibit A came in Week 3 when he set a rookie completion record (91.3) going 21-23 for 254 yards with 39 rushing yards as he accounted for 3 TDs in Washington’s 38-33 win over Cincy. Exhibit B came via his 26-30 for 233 and one-TD day in Sunday’s rout of Arizona while tacking on 47 more rushing yards and another TD.

Play of the Week – SD Padres: Wonder what the Vegas odds were the Padres would keep a 4-2 lead when faced with two on, no outs in the bottom of the ninth, Ohtani on deck and the playoffs on the line.

Well, Ohtani never even got up! Dastardly Manny Machado turned a hard grounder into a wild-card-clinching 5-4-3 triple play that ended the game.

Anti-Ted Williams Award – Luis Arraez: For, unlike in TW’s final day quest to hit .400 in 1941, weaseling his way to the batting crown (.314 to .310) by leaving the final game after doubling to create a gap Ohtani couldn’t make up without a couple of outs by the San Diego chicken.

That’s All She Wrote Award – Oakland A’s: After 54 years the A’s played their last game in Oakland. They’re headed for a temporary stay in Sacramento before joining Oakland’s football team in Vegas.

Random Thoughts

Good riddance to Kenley Jansen, a $34 million waste of money.

Interesting that Cleveland and Houston lost soon-to-be-Hall of Fame managers in Terry Francona and Dusty Baker and still won their divisions, with Cleveland improving by a whopping 15 wins, reminding everyone: it’s the players, stupid.

Sports 101 Answer: In what’s known as “The Phold,” the 1964 Philadelphia Phillies lost their season-long first-place perch by blowing a 6½-game lead with 12 to play to let the Cardinals win the NL pennant on the final day.

Final Thought – Thumbs Down – Tommy John: The ex-Dodger and Yankees lefty is the latest nitwit to claim his support of Donald Trump has kept him out of the Hall of Fame. Earth to Tommy, you retired in 1989 and have been eligible since 1994. That means in the 22 years before you had a chance to support him you didn’t make it. With 281 career wins you have a legit argument for inclusion. But voters probably think that was helped by lasting until you were 46. Thus you’re not in ’cause they don’t think the body of work was quite good enough and DT has nothing to do with that.End of story.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

The Big Story – Sox Hang to the End: While it’ll probably be over by the time you see this, you’ve got to give the Sox props for not quitting on the season when it looked most bleak. That would be sweeping a doubleheader from Minnesota, who was then the leader for the final wild card spot, on Sunday when a double loss would have ended the season. With the added bonus being Triston Casas finally doing something to give The Nation a bit of anticipation for 2025 with a three-homer, seven-RBI game in Sunday’s opener.

Sports 101: My friend Mark Ferdinando says Sports 101 should be tougher. So, of the eight original NFL teams from the year the league started having playoffs in 1932, name the six who remain.

News Item – Red Sox Bright Side: While not quite white hot, young right-handerBrayan Bello finished strong after his rough month of June ended. The Sox went 14-4 in his 18 starts since July 1, as his ERA dropped from 5.55 to 4.48 with a team-best 14 wins against eight losses.

That makes him the year’s top Red Sox story, because an organization devoid of pitching and with an embarrassing record of developing their own likely has their pitcher of the future.

News Item – Shohei Ohtani: You want to talk about setting a record in style? Few have done it like the Dodgers star in joining the unprecedented 50-50 club when he went six for six with four runs scored, three homers, two steals and 10 RBI in a 20-4 win over Florida. It left him with 51 bombs and 51 steals. Amazing.

And he may pitch in the playoffs too! He really is the Babe.

News Item – Barf Inducing Broadcast: If I were in the locker room with the guys I’d use, ah, more colorful language, to talk about Kirk Herbstreit’s endless butt-kissing of Aaron Rodgers during the Thursday Night game between the Jets and the Pats. An embarrassing display for a guy doing a national broadcast regularly turning simple five-yard completions into miracles on ice. The only thing missing was partner Al Michaels saying Do You Believe In Miracles. The miracle I wished for was for him to give it a rest.

The Numbers:

7.2 & 6.14 – astronomical runs allowed per nine innings and ERA by the Sox bullpen since the All-Star break as reported by Alex Speier in the Boston Globe.

13.94 – ERA for ex-Red Sox closer Craig Kimbrel in his last 11 appearances before being DFA’d by Baltimore last week.

125 – million dollars paid by the owners of the WNBA’s new Portland expansion franchise.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Down – Lions Fans: The people forcing Lions Coach Dan Campbell to sell his house for a more private location after they harassed his family following a tough Week 2 loss. That’s the same Dan Campbell who turned the Lions from a mostly 50-year joke into an exciting playoff team. What is wrong with these people?

Best Sports Marketing Name of the Week – The Sports Bra: Name of what’s claimed to be the nation’s first sports bar for women, which calls Portland, Oregon, home.

Random Thoughts:

I’m a no on Eli Manning getting into the Hall of Fame. Sorry, two great games in the biggest moment doesn’t make a career. But don’t bet against him getting in in February.

No surprise on Kimbrel. Anyone who saw him with Boston knows he was awful in the clutch and terrible from September on. A stat boy if there ever was one.

After posting a 6.23 ERA in Arizona how many of you folks calling the Red Sox stupid for not giving Jordan Montgomery the huge multi-year deal he wanted still think they were?

Sports 101 Answer: The three easiest originals are the Bears, Giants and Packers, who remain in their original city. Then there’s the Cardinals who started in Chicago and moved to St. Louis before settling in Arizona. The Boston Braves, who became the Redskins before moving to Washington, where they eventually became the Commanders. Finally the Detroit Lions, who started as the Portsmouth Spartans.

Final Thought – News Item – Earth to Bob Nightengale: Yes, with soon to be NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale climbing to 18-3, with a 2.38 ERA this week his trade looks worse by the day. But Earth to the USA Today baseball writer, it was not the worst by the Red Sox since Babe Ruth got sent to the Yanks. Guess he missed sending an in-his-prime Mookie Betts to L.A., where he’s been great, for three stiffs in 2020. And second, while it’s a bad look, they had little choice to move on from Sale after what he gave them for the first $120 million of his $150 million five-year contract — which was nothing. We should drop the finger-pointing over him and just be happy that a guy who always cared but had simple bad luck finally got healthy.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

The Big Story: So much for hopes of an undefeated season as the Patriots went down in a 23-20 OT loss to surprising Seattle on Sunday. The Pats’ limitations (the wide receivers had three catches for 19 yards) and strengths (defense) were on display for most of the day. Though when they needed stops at the end of regulation and OT Geno Smith drove the Seahawks downfield for the tying and winning FGs.

In a quick turnaround the Jets are up next for the 1-1 Pats tonight on Thursday Night Football.

Sports 101: Aaron Judge has reached the 50 home run mark for a third season. Name the four others in MLB history to do that.

News Item – Looking Bleak for the Red Sox: After losing three of four to the Yanks over the weekend the end is in sight. At 75-75, they trailed three teams for the final wild card spot as the week started, 4.5 games back with 12 to play.

The weekend’s lowlight was Alex Cora doing something even Grady Little wouldn’t do. That is loading the bases by intentionally walking Juan Soto on Friday to bring major league home run leader Aaron Judge to the plate to face a lefty in a one-run game. I know — WHAT??

Predictably Judge deposited one in the left field bleachers for a grand slam to give the Yanks a 5-4 lead and the game.

News Item – Historic Stat Watch Update: That slam by Judge was No. 52, and 53 came on Sunday. That gave him a 10+ lead in the home run race, and with an even wider lead in RBI he’s going to win 2/3 of the triple crown for sure. And the whole TC is possible too, but he needs to make up 10 points in the batting average, at .322, to reach leader Bobby Witt at .332, which is a big gap at this time of year.

Shohei Ohtani started the week needing just two steals and three homers to reach the 50-50 club.

And finally, gulp, at 17-3 with 219 K’s and a 2.35 ERA Chris Sale leads in all three categories for the NL pitching triple crown.

The Numbers:

4.78 – ERAfor Tanner Houck in his nine starts since the All-Star game as he’s lost all four of his decisions.

5 – first downs made by Pats tight end Hunter Henry on all five balls thrown to him in the first quarter Sunday.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Up – Joe Castiglione: The Red Sox radio voice announced on Sunday he’ll hang it up at year’s end after 42 years on the job and 6,500 broadcasts. Congrats on a job well done, young fella.

Clutch Moment of the Week – Francisco Lindor: The Mets shortstop enhanced his MVP candidacy by breaking up Bowdon Francis’ no-hit bid in the ninth inning to spark a comeback rally that gave the rampaging Mets a shocking 6-2 win over Toronto to keep their wild card playoff hopes alive.

A Little History – No-Hitter Break-ups: Incidentally, Francis is the first guy to lose two no-hitters in the ninth inning in the same season since — who else? — Nolan Ryan in 1989. Everyone knows about Ryan’s amazing seven no-no’s, but he narrowly missed 12 more by throwing that many one-hitters.

Random Thoughts:

It was way too early for analyst Jonathan Vilma to say just four plays into Seattle’s second possession, “so far Christian Gonzalez is getting the better of DK Metcalf,” and two plays later Metcalf caught a 56-yard TD pass with CG 15 yards behind him as the ball arrived. And by game’s end it was 10 catches for 129 yards overall.

Nice of the Lakers to honor the late Jerry West this coming year with a uniform patch with his number 44 on it. Though given the irreparable broken relationship between the team and West in recent years when his season tickets were rescinded, it must seem a little hollow to those in the know.

Sports 101 Answer: Babe Ruth, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa hit 50-plus homers in four seasons while Alex Rodriguez did it three times.

Final Thought – Whiny America Strikes Again:

Now that the Chiefs are football’s best team they’re getting the same whining over their wins that the Brady-Belichick Pats did in theirs during the good old days. I understand the frustration that comes from losing to a team that always pulls it out at the end. But the receiver’s foot was on the end line for the negated Ravens TD that saved KC in Week 1 and it was definitely interference on the fourth-and-forever play that set up the winning FG vs. the Bengals on Sunday.

I don’t know if all the whining in today’s lunatic political climate over imagined biases migrated to sports, or if sports whining sent politics that way. I just know I’m sick of both. As sometimes your guy/team loses because they just didn’t do enough to win.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

The Big Story – Mayo Era Begins: Well, I didn’t see that coming, especially from the maligned offensive line. The Jerod Mayo era began on an unexpected high note Sunday when his Patriots pretty much stunned everyone with a 16-10 win over the Bengals — on the road, no less — to put early check marks in the boxes of the O-line, GM Eliot Wolf, owner Bob Kraft and Mayo.

And with Seattle flying cross-country for the home opener, being 2-0 seems possible. Which would blow everyone’s pre-season predictions out of the water.

Sports 101: Name the four NFL teams who’ve never played in a Super Bowl.

News Item – Sox on Life Support: They’re not dead yet, but it ain’t looking good, as after stumbling through an awful three wins in 10 games they start the week with three teams ahead of them and four games out.

And while the hitting wasn’t great, the relief pitching was awful as (a) Kenley Jansen and Rich Hill issued three straight bases-loaded eighth-inning walks to turn a 3-1 lead into a 4-3 series-sweeping Mets win last Wednesday and (b)Zack Kelly gave up five runs in the ninth to the woeful White Sox in Sunday’s 7-2 loss.

News Item – 4 Pats Stars: (a) Kyle Dugger for saving TD’s on consecutive plays by first yanking the ball out of Mike Gesicki’s hands at the last second in the end zone, then stripping Tanner Hudson on the 1-foot line that was recovered and returned 17 yards by Marcus Jones; (b) Jonathan Jones for making a great tackle when it looked like Cincy was going to get a key first down on fourth and 2 from the 35 in the third quarter. (c) Keion White — as predicted by your not so humble scribe, Matthew Judon wasn’tmissed because KW filled that void with 2.5 sacks; (d) Rhamondre Stevenson (and the offensive line) for his 120 rushing yards and especially picking up three gigantic first downs on the final drive to run out the clock.

The Numbers:

46 & 46 – homers and stolen bases for Shohei Otani, asafter stealing numbers 44, 45 and 46 in one game alone last week and hitting two more homers, it’s looking likely he’ll become the first to enter the 50-50 club.

111 – losses for the White Sox to keep on pace to have the worst record in baseball history.

… Of the Week Awards

Thumbs Up – NFL Replay: They probably didn’t like it in Maryland, but a second look at the apparent TD that would have tied on the final play of the NFL opener between KC and Baltimore showed the value of the replay, as receiver Isaiah Likely’s toe actually was (barely) on the back line. So no TD.

It also correctly took away the Gesicki non-TD in the Patriots-Bengals game.

Thumbs Down – Injury of the Week: For seeing Washington Spirits rookie Croix Bethune somehow tearing her meniscus throwing out the first pitch at a Washington Nats game to honor her being part of U.S. Women’s Soccer winning gold at the Paris Olympics.

Barf Inducing Moment of the Week: Gonna sound like a get off my lawn grouch, but it was the first sight of the so-called “modernized” throwback uniforms worn by the New York Giants on Sunday. Yuck.

In Case You Missed It – Ceddanne Rafaela: The rookie’s versatility achieved a first in baseball history by playing 68 games at shortstop and 61 in center field. Which should be a big entry on the resume in voting for rookie of the year.

Random Thoughts:

By the way, after pointing out last week Andy Reid has a chance to surpass Bill Belichick in career wins I didn’t say it’s because he’s as good at designing offenses as Coach B is at D.

If you’re interested, it was five tackles and a ½ sack for Judon in his Atlanta debut.

After seeing his QB Will Levis average a microscopic 4.0 yards per attempt on Sunday, I wonder if Calvin Ridley was second guessing picking Tennessee over the Patriots in free agency.

Sports 101 Answer: Jacksonville, Houston, Cleveland and Detroit are the franchises who’ve never made it to the Super Bowl.

Final Thought – Garrett Crochet: Remember when everyone (including me) wanted the Red Sox to get the White Sox lefty at the trade deadline?

Well, Crochet has not gone more than four innings in any of his 11 starts since July 1. And while he’s not hurt, he’s only thrown 19.1 total since the deadline, including lasting just two innings against the Sox on Saturday when he gave up four earned runs.

Throw in his refusal to be dealt to a team unless it gave him an immediate multi-year deal. Meaning he took staying with the worst team in baseball history over going somewhere to win.

So while Craig Breslow didn’t get any help at the deadline, Crochet’s JD (blood and guts) Drew mindset tells us they dodged a bullet by passing on him.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].

The Big Story – NFL Season Opener Dead Ahead: It all gets started tonight in KC when the two-time defending champs take on the Baltimore Ravens in a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship game. Three things about KC are relevant to fans in these parts.

First, with three already and Patrick Mahomes in just his seventh season, KC is halfway to matching the six won by the Patriots in the Brady-Belichick era. Second, depending on how long he plans to coach, with 284 wins and his QB just entering prime years, 66-year-old Andy Reid has a realistic shot to catch Bill Belichick (333) and move past Don Shula (347) for most wins ever. Finally, Mahomes is on pace to roll by every one of Tom Brady’s all-time passing records. Long way to go, but that puts him on a path to eclipse TB-12 as the GOAT. Enjoy.

Sports 101 – For Level-A History Folks: Who was the last QB to wear a number above 19 in the NFL?

News Item – Jarren Duran: It’s been quite a year for the Boston speedster. In addition to being the All-Star Game MVP, last week he became the first player in history to have 40 doubles, 10 triples, 20 homers and 30 stolen bases in the same season.

News Item – Pitching Effort of the Week: Brayan Bello continues to pitch well after finding his groove from that big dip starting in early June. Exhibit A was last week’s two-hit, eight-shutout-inning, nine-strikeout masterpiece in a 3-0 win over Toronto. It moved him to 12-6 and dropped the ERA to 4.66, its lowest point since June 8.

News Item – Patriots 2024 Kick-Off:

News and thoughts ahead of Sunday’s opener vs. the Bengals, when Jacoby Brissett will start at QB.

Notable Roster Moves – Cuts – QB Bailey Zappe and power back Kevin Harris. PUP List – G Cole Strange and WR Kendrick Bourne.

Most Improved on D – Keion White: Think he’s going to be a difference maker.

Most Improved on O – Demario Douglas: Showed flashes last year he could be their next go-to slot receiver.

Biggest Surprise – The D: Since they were better after he went down for the season I don’t think they’ll miss Matthew Judon that much. And while losing Christian Barmore is another story, I think White will pick up the slack and they’ll piece it together.

Worst Part of Team – Offensive Line: Its being so bad is the reason I thought drafting a QB with the third overall pick before fixing it was a big mistake.

The Numbers:

20 – consecutive years in the majors for 44-year-old Rich Hill after returning this week for his third stint with the Red Sox.

85 – most-in-the-majors unearned runs allowed (at press time) by the porous Red Sox defense, 21 ahead of second-worst Miami.

… Of the Week Awards:

Dumbest Rule of the Year – New NFL Onside Kicks: Amid a number of new rules for the on-side kick, including that you can only do it in the fourth quarter and you have to be losing, the dumbest is having to tell the other team you’re going to do it.

Alumni News – Mac Jones Update: If you’re interested, here’s what the exiled Patriots QB did under an offensive head coach and with real receivers to throw to during the exhibition season: 38 for 52, completion average 73.3 percent, 421 yards, 8.1 yards gained per attempt, three TD passes, no picks, long gain 31 yards and a QB rating of 115.3.

What A Stupid I Yam Award – Me: Yaz actually turned 85 on Aug. 22, not 84 as I said. Thanks to eagle-eyed SF Giants fan/reader Dick Lombardi for catching that.

Random Thoughts

My only complaint about trading Judon is the brass should have anticipated he’d whine in the final year of his contract and traded him before the draft so they’d have that third pick now instead of having to wait until 2025.

Sports 101 Answer: JohnHadlwas the last above-19-wearing QB when he wore 21 for four teams starting with San Diego in 1962 through 1978.

Final Thought – Big Patriots Questions and Predictions:

Biggest Question – Jerod Mayo: He’s a first-time HC so expect hiccups, especially as the lifetime defender tries to untangle the offensive malaise of the last two years.

Should They Tank? Sadly with their schedule they don’t have to. But, while I hate trying to lose, that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t play all their young guys to gain as much experience as possible. That includes Drake Maye and if they lose as a result that’s OK.

When Will Maye Take Over? Week 7 vs. the Jets at home on Oct. 27.

2024 Season Prediction – 3-14: It ain’t like the old days when the question was will they win 13 or 14. Instead, it’s for how many losses. And they don’t get their last two until December.

Email Dave Long at [email protected].