Category: News

NFL stretch run preview

With December here and four games left to play, let’s take a look at where things stand for the Patriots and the rest of the NFL as they jockey for playoff position.   

After Monday Night’s, um, unique 14-10 win over the Bills in very windy Buffalo, the Patriots go into their bye week as the Top Seed in the AFC thanks to a best in the conference 9-4 record. Now they’ll sit by and wait for the outcomes of a bunch of games with implications for the AFC playoff picture this week that could help or hurt the Pats’ place in the scrum. They are Baltimore at Cleveland, SF at Cincy, LV at KC, and the biggie, Buffalo at Tampa Bay, that will have Patriot Nation hoping TB delivers one more solid for the Foxboro faithful with a win.     

Who’s hot: While not blowing anyone away like past seasons, it’s KC with five straight wins to regain control in the AFC West. Miami’s also won five straight, and while they’re just 6 and 7, they could be a problem for Pats if they’re still red hot when they meet in Miami in Week 17.

Who’s not: After losing on a failed two-point conversion on Sunday’s final play vs. Pittsburgh it’s the Ravens. Still have the AFC North lead, but after losing three of six amid three skin-of-their-teeth wins their seeming lock on top seed in the AFC is gone. Especially with five tough closing games ahead.

In my season preview I had Buffalo and TB in the SB. Now, since I’m still not convinced on Arizona, I’ll recalibrate to a KC-TB rematch. Though having said that, the Pats can beat anyone and I won’t be surprised if they get there.  

However, with the Rams and Cardinals playing on Monday night I’ll get a chance to re-evaluate Arizona. And in a matter related to Zona having the best record in the league, a lot has to do with QB Kyler Murray and his league-leading 110.2 in QB rating. All of which makes it obvious the former first-round pick of the Oakland A’s made the right call choosing the NFL over MLB.

Murray is not the only former first overall pick who’s thriving in 2021. Joe Burrow is having a nice year too. With the Bengals in the playoff hunt, he’s thrown for 2,835 yards and 22 TD passes to put him on pace for 34 and 4,400. Not a bad second season.

Not so much for the first overall before Murray and Burrow, however, as there are major grumbles all over Cleveland about Baker Mayfield as he comes up for his first big contract. A big decision for the Browns and it will be interesting to see if they punt on Mayfield to start their QB hunt again. I bet they sign him, but for nowhere near the $40 million people were throwing around last summer.

Speaking of big money decisions, Coach B has a big one coming up at the end of the year as it’s no secret JC Jackson will get a boatload after another great season. The options: if it gets too expensive let him walk, extend him for big money (which he should have done last winter) or franchise him for north of $17 million per. One side of history says after seeing Ty Law, the still bitter Asante Samuel, Darrelle Revis, Malcolm Butler and Stephon Gilmore walk out that door Coach B will let JC do that as well. But my history says he should not let that happen, because the Pats went 10 years without winning the SB from when Law left after 2004 to when Revis arrived in 2014. They’ve also never won it without a top-flight CB in the secondary — Law (2001, ’03, ’04), Revis (2014), Butler (2016) and Gilmore (2018). In other words, Bill, don’t screw this up. 

The latest evidence is in for just how idiotic stat geek analysis is. It comes from Pro Football Focus, which gave Mac Jones his worst graded game so far after the 36-13 win over Tennessee when all he did was complete 73 percent of his passes while throwing for a career-best 310 yards, two TD passes and no interceptions. The 122.3 QB rating was, oh by the way, the best in the entire NFL for Week 12.  Guess they didn’t see the New Orleans or L.A. Chargers games when the QB ratings were 70.8 and 55.2 respectively. You have to see the marking categories, but suffice it to say they are nitpicking nonsense.  

The most remarkable Patriots stat of the season has been them going into the Buffalo game with the largest (+186) point differential in the entire NFL. Who saw that coming with a rookie QB?

Patrick Mahomes just does not look fast or especially athletic to me, but when he runs out of the pocket he still somehow always seems to get to the sticks for a first down or just squeezes into the corner of the end zone as he did on his 12-yard scramble for the first TD in KC’s Sunday night win vs. Denver.

While Cooper Kupp sounds more like a sporting goods company specializing in protective equipment for baseball catchers, he actually is the Rams wideout who’s having a hellacious season. He’s on pace for 142 catches and 1,929 receiving yards, which has him in range of the all-time record in both categories of 149 and 1,964.   

I must admit I had barely ever heard of Colts RB Jonathan Taylor until I saw him gash the Bills for 185 rushing yards and five TD’s as Indy carved them up in their 41-15 Week 11 demolition of Buffalo. He’s worth the price of admission.  

But, with him on a collision course with the Patriots defense on Saturday night — be careful what you wish for.   

What’s in store

Shop local this holiday season

Nancy Kyle, president and CEO of the New Hampshire Retail Association, talked about the current state of New Hampshire’s retail industry and how shopping locally benefits consumers, businesses and communities.

How are small businesses doing right now?

Retailers are actually doing fairly well. There’s been a real shift over the last five or 10 years to a trend of shopping locally … and people’s overall mindset of wanting to buy items that were grown or made in their own community. Interestingly enough, a lot of millennials actually prefer to shop in stores rather than online. … On Cyber Monday, which is supposed to be the biggest online shopping day of the year, the [sales] numbers this year were less than they were last year. The Thanksgiving holiday weekend had very good numbers of people out in the community and shopping.

Why do you think that is?

I think people just want to start going back out and shopping in stores. … Because of the times we’ve been in and the restrictions in place because of Covid, a lot of people haven’t been traveling as much; they haven’t been going to as many concerts; they haven’t been eating out as often; so they haven’t been spending as much money. I think there’s a pent-up demand, now, to go shopping, and to spend their money on the people in their lives who are important to them.

What changes and new business models born out of the pandemic are here to stay?

A big thing stores are doing now is having more outreach with their customers using Zoom. Local bookstores are a perfect example; they’re doing Zoom calls with authors who have new books coming out [as a way to] get people to come in [to the store] and buy the books. I know of some clothing stores that are having fashion shows on Zoom and social media to sell items. These are all new things; they weren’t happening before Covid. … Delivery, curbside pickup — all of that is here to stay, too. We’re all really busy, and it’s just really convenient when we can order something online and have it brought out to our car. That has only helped [local businesses’] cause and encouraged more people to want to shop local.

What are the perks of shopping locally for the consumer?

When you buy from a local business rather than ordering from [a seller] halfway across the country, you’re not going to have to deal with the shipping problems that a lot of us are seeing right now; you’ll get your things in a timely manner. … You’re getting very unique gifts that you probably wouldn’t be able to get anywhere else … and the quality of the goods is oftentimes better. … A lot of times you’re dealing directly with the owner of a store, so it’s a more personal experience. If you go into a store downtown looking for a specific item and they don’t have it, they’ll recommend somewhere else [locally] that you can get it.

How does shopping locally benefit the communities?

Because of our lack of a sales tax, retail is a cornerstone of the state’s economy and a really strong and vibrant part of our state. One out of every four people in the state is employed in some type of retail industry. … When you shop local, you’re putting your dollars into your community. You’re investing in people who are invested in your community. These small, local businesses are there for us — they’re the ones supporting your little league teams, supporting your kids in school when they’re selling candy bars — so it’s time for us to be there for them. … Last year was a challenging time for them, and with Covid numbers surging again, it will be challenging again … so let’s try to get out there and support them as much as we can.

How can consumers discover local businesses to support?

Look in your community. Search for [local businesses] on Facebook and social media. Walk around your downtown. A lot of towns also have special [event] weekends before Christmas with carolers and activities for kids and things to bring people downtown. Those community events are a great opportunity for people to walk in the doors of local businesses and support them.

Featured photo: Nancy Kyle. Courtesy photo.

News & Notes 21/12/09

Covid-19 update As of Nov 29 As of Dec 6
Total cases statewide 160,287 169,219
Total current infections statewide 7,078 9,671
Total deaths statewide 1,694 1,744
New cases 9,474 (Nov. 20 to Nov. 29) 8,932 (Nov. 30 to Dec. 6
Current infections: Hillsborough County 2,124 2,436 (as of Dec. 3)
Current infections: Merrimack County 751 923 (as of Dec. 3)
Current infections: Rockingham County 1,251 1,580 (as of Dec. 3)
Information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services.

Covid-19 news

During the state’s weekly public health update on Nov. 30, Gov. Chris Sununu reported that New Hampshire saw a 43 percent increase in hospitalizations due to Covid-19 just in the last two weeks. A total of 433 active hospitalizations were reported on Dec. 6, a new all-time high.

State epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan also gave brief remarks during the press conference about the emergence of the Omicron variant, which was first reported to the World Health Organization from South Africa on Nov. 24. Although the strain has not yet been identified in New Hampshire as of Dec. 6, it has been detected in at least 15 U.S. states, according to the CDC, including in both Massachusetts and Connecticut. “Because of the number and the types of mutations that are seen with this new strain, it’s predicted that this new variant … will be more infectious and possibly evade a person’s immune defense system,” Chan said. “It highlights the importance for everybody who is eligible to be vaccinated and to continue to take precautions.”

About 10,000 Granite Staters are scheduled to receive their booster doses of the Covid-19 vaccine on Dec. 11, across more than 20 pop-up community sites statewide. As of Dec. 6, appointments are full at every site except for the Brown Elementary School in Berlin, but booster doses can still be scheduled at participating local pharmacies or doctor’s offices in the coming weeks. Go to vaccines.nh.gov to make an appointment and check availability.

NH HWCA

NH Healthcare Workers for Climate Action, which is open to all clinical and non-clinical health care workers, officially launched with an event on Dec. 4, promoting its mission to increase awareness and knowledge of the impact of climate on health among health care workers. According to a press release, the members of this grassroots nonprofit organization will get support and tools to “educate and activate colleagues, patients and family members, community members and policy makers in support of climate solutions to improve the health of all, particularly the most vulnerable among us.” The group’s first direct action was sending a letter — signed by 19 health care associations and almost 600 New Hampshire health care workers — to the state’s elected officials about the science behind the impact of climate on physical and mental health and stressing the need for urgent action.

Roadside parking

The New Hampshire Department of Transportation is reminding hikers, skiers, snowmobilers and other backcountry users that anyone who leaves a vehicle on the side of the road unattended may be risking having their vehicle towed. According to a press release, the DOT and contract plow drivers often work in low-visibility conditions, making it hard to see vehicles on the side of the road. This puts people in the vehicles at risk and delays snow removal operations due to needed repairs or replacement of the plow equipment. When a vehicle impacts snow removal, police will be called to check on it and determine what action is taken, which may include a ticket or the vehicle being towed, the release said.

Free ride

For the rest of December, all stops along Manchester Transit Authority’s Route 8 will be offered free of charge. According to a press release, this tradition began during the holiday season in 2018. The Route 8 service starts at 5:30 a.m., and the last return to downtown Manchester is 6:25 p.m. It offers 30-minute frequency, eight times a day on the hour from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., the release. It makes 13 regular loop stops: the Downtown Manchester Doubletree Hotel, Michaels/Burlington Coat Factory Plaza on South Willow Street, Walmart on Gold Street, the Mall of New Hampshire, South Willow Street and downtown Manchester. MTA is encouraging people to use its app, RouteShout 2.0, to get bus arrival time and bus location in real time.

Michelle Xiggoros of Concord and Catherine McArthur of Pelham won $5,000 during the Dec. 2 Double Diamond Spectacular second-chance drawing at the Filotimo Casino & Restaurant in Manchester, according to a press release. The big prize — $1 million — went to Maine resident Beatrice Paisley, and the other two semifinalists each won $1,000. All players who claimed a $1,000 prize from the $20 Double Diamond Spectacular scratch ticket were eligible to enter the semifinalist drawing, the release said.

It seems Queen City residents really like their lights! On Dec. 6, the Manchester Transit Authority added four new times for its free holiday lights Trolley Tours — and as with the first announcement, those time slots were filled within hours. “We saw an overwhelming response,” Mayor Joyce Craig said in a press release. “I’m so grateful to everyone at MTA who worked to double the amount of tours families can take to see the holiday lights displays across Manchester.”

The United Way of Greater Nashua will be presenting gifts of gratitude to St. Joseph Hospital and Southern New Hampshire Health on Dec. 10, according to a press release. The gifts are tokens of appreciation for the work being done by community health care workers and will include gift cards, hand-written greeting cards and artwork designed by students from Nashua schools.

This Week 21/12/02

Big Events December 2, 2021 and beyond

Friday, Dec. 3

Need a little naughty mixed into your holiday celebrations? Join Fright Kingdom (12 Simon St., Nashua) for its Krampus-themed holiday event, “The Fright Before Christmas,” tonight through Sunday, Dec. 5, from 7 to 10 p.m. each night, featuring a costume contest, scary winter wonderland and more. Tickets are $29 and must be purchased in advance. Visit frightkingdom.com or call 809-1173.

Saturday, Dec. 4

There are several art gallery shopportunities today (find more details on these and other holiday events in Hippo’s Holiday Guide, starting on page 10 of the Nov. 25 issue; the e-edition is available at hippopress.com).

Studioverne Fine Art Fused Glass and Creative Framing Solutions (81 and 83R Hanover St., Manchester; facebook.com/verneorlosk) host a Holiday Open House from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Picker Collaborative Artists (3 Pine St., Nashua) host their Holiday Open House from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. See pickerartists.com.

The Concord Arts Market hosts a Mini Holiday Arts Market at the Kimball Jenkins Estate (266 N. Main St., Concord) from noon to 3 p.m. See concordartsmarket.net.

Art Gallery 46, at Remember This Antiques and Collectibles (46 Route 101A, Amherst) has its Holiday Open House from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; see facebook.com/ artgallery46.

Saturday, Dec. 4

More holiday fairs today!

Arlington Street United Methodist Church (63 Arlington St., Nashua; asumc.org, 882-4663) holds its Holly Town Fair from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. featuring vendors with handmade items, baked goods, to-go lunches from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and more.

The GFWC Hudson Women’s Club hosts its fair from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Hudson High School; in addition to crafts, the event features gift baskets, food, a penny raffle and more. See facebook.com/GFWCHWC.

The Amherst Lions Club holds its Craft Fair from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Amherst Middle School (14 Cross Road). See e-clubhouse.org/sites/amherstnh.

Christmas in Strafford, an event featuring 17 stops and pieces from more than 50 artists and craftspeople, runs today; see the map at christmasinstrafford.com.

A Holiday Craft Fair at Somersworth High School (11 Memorial Drive) runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; see nhfestivals.org.

Saturday, Dec. 4

Manchester’s Christmas parade returns! The Manchester Holiday Parade will take place today at 4 p.m. on Elm Street. The event follows the BASC Santa Claus Shuffle, a 3-mile road race presented by Millennium Running. The main race — which features samples of “Santa’s four major food groups,” milk & cookies, maple, chocolate and candy — starts at 3 p.m. A 100-yard Lil Elf run starts at 2:30 p.m. Register by Friday, Dec. 3, at millenniumrunning.com/santa.

Find more information on runs in December, including the Jingle Bell Run scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 5, at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium in Manchester in the Nov. 11 issue of the Hippo, where Meghan Siegler looks at charitable runs in a story that starts on page 10.

Save the Date! Saturday, Dec. 11

Save the date for delicious cookies: on Saturday, Dec. 11, you can find two cookie tours in New Hampshire. The Currier & Ives Cookie Tour will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and feature nearly a dozen businesses in the Monadnock region. Tickets cost $15 per person; see currierandivescookietour.com. On Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 12, the Inn to Inn Holiday Cookie and Candy Tour runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day at participating inns in the White Mountains region. Tickets cost $35; see countryinnsinthewhitemountains.com.

Featured photo: The BASC Santa Claus Shuffle. Photo courtesy of Millennium Running.

Quality of Life 21/12/02

Holly jolly trolley tours

The Queen City is encouraging residents to decorate their homes with its second annual Manchester Holiday Lights Contest! Register online at manchesternh.gov by 5 p.m. on Dec. 9 and your lights display will be included in the public Manchester Holiday Lights Map, according to a press release. The public will have a chance to vote for their favorites, and prizes will be awarded to the top vote-getting displays.

Score: +1

Comment: Manchester residents are really getting into the holiday spirit: Within a day of the Manchester Transit Authority announcing that it is hosting free Holiday Lights Trolley Tours for families on its Molly Trolley for two weekends in December, all the tickets were scooped up.

Winter weather already causing woes on the road

On Nov. 26 and Nov. 27, when most of the state got anywhere from a dusting to several inches of snow, multiple crashes and spin-outs were reported, according to a report from WMUR. State police were called to about 50 accidents across the state, the report said, prompting troopers to remind drivers to stay home if possible during winter storms, and to drive safely if you must go out. “You’re not going to get to where you’re going as fast as you would normally in the summer months and you’re going to go slower and you need to be prepared for that, so give yourself enough time,” State Police Staff Sgt. Daniel Baldassarre told WMUR.

Score: -2

Comment: According to the report, police also want to remind people about Jessica’s Law, which requires drivers to remove snow and ice from their roofs before driving or risk being fined anywhere from $250 to $1,000.

Easy access to at-home Covid tests

When QOL went to sayyescovidhometest.org to order free at-home Covid testing kits on the day the state announced they were available, it was so easy that it was almost unbelievable. The process took maybe a minute — far less time and hassle than ordering anything online on Cyber Monday. QOL’s order was confirmed, with a message saying the tests would arrive in about a week from Amazon. Of course, it is possible that something could go wrong and the tests might not arrive on time or at all — but for now, QOL is relieved that it was so simple.

Score: 0 (+1 for QOL, -1 for anyone who didn’t have the same experience)

Comment: Two of QOL’s coworkers tried to order the tests with mixed results; one got them just as easily as QOL, and one tried about 8 hours later and the tests were gone. Here’s hoping they’re restocked and available again soon.

High marks for low health insurance premiums

New Hampshire will have the country’s 2nd-lowest health insurance premiums in 2022, and those premiums will be less than they were in 2021, according to a new analysis from valuepenguin.com by Lending Tree. The report said that the average cost of an ACA health insurance plan in the Granite State in 2022 will be $4,320 a year, which is 33.41 percent below the national average and 1.37 percent less than last year.

Score: +1

Comment: Nationally, health insurance premiums will increase an average of 0.67 percent in 2022, according to the report.

QOL score: 77

Net change: 0

QOL this week: 77

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

‘Brady or Belichick’ nonsense

 If you are a football fan you know how the argument goes. Who was more responsible for the Patriots dynasty, Tom Brady or Bill Belichick? “Who’s better than whom” arguments are part of the fun of sports. You know how they go. In Indy, Peyton is better than Tom, while we correctly say, sorry, it’s Tom. But the truth is I’ve yet to see anyone frame the “Brady or Belichick” debate correctly. Many already say it’s Brady because he won the SB in Year 1 away. But there is more to this than just a one-year hot take.

Here’s how I frame the debate.

It’s Always the Player: That’s the way the adage correctly goes because coaches can only do so much, even in football, where they have the biggest impact. Here are three notable examples.

Paul Brown and Otto Graham This coach-QB duo went to 10 straight title games between 1946 and 1955 with the Cleveland Browns (winning seven times). But after Otto retired in 1955 the innovative Brown never even went to a title game again before retiring in 1975.

George Seifert He had the best winning percentage in NFL history after succeeding Bill Walsh while winning two SB’s in San Francisco with Joe Montana and Steve Young. But after leaving them behind he was 16-32 in Carolina before being fired.  

2011 Colts When Indy lost Peyton Manning for the entire 2011 season after neck surgery they lost their first 14 games of the year and finished 2-14.

But when the same thing happened to the Pats when Brady went down in the first quarter of Game 1 in 2008, they still won 11 games because they had Coach B wearing the headset instead of Jim Caldwell. Point goes to Coach B.

Which raises the point I dislike about this debate. It’s how disrespectful it is to all the guys Brady won his rings with because it makes it seem like he won them on his own. While he was the catalyst, if there are no blockers, there’s no Brady. No receivers, no Brady. No defense, especially for the SB wins in 2001, 2003, 2004, no Brady. No Adam V., noooooo Brady legend.  

That means it was a collaboration between a coach and QB who clearly helped each other turn out better than they likely would have been alone. Here are three examples for each.

What Brady Did For Coach B:(1) incredible clutch play, (2) extreme durability that let Coach B have his starter in every game but 2008 and the bogus four-game 2016 suspension, and (3) TB regularly took below-market contracts to allow GM Belichick to have more money to spend on the entire roster.   

What Coach B Did for Brady: (1) He kept Brady as his fourth QB when he saw something special in the not-NFL-ready TB; that hasn’t been done before or since. If he cut him who knows what would have happened — taxi squad, NFL Europe or pickup by another team not coached by Belichick, (2) The short drop and accurate, quick-release pass system played to his strengths and cut down on the big hits people like Manning regularly absorbed, and (3) Superior strategic thinking, game planning and ability to adapt for in-game adjustments made Brady better.    

Finally, it’s not a 20-year argument. The dynasty should really be broken into at least two parts with each having a different impact in each one:

2001-2006: Brady did not become a dominant passing force until 2007. The first three SB wins were built around exceptional defense while the O was built on the power running of Antowain Smith. Plus Brady had little to do with the two biggest non-SB playoff wins, when D intercepted Manning four times (three by Ty Law) as Adam V kicked five FG’s in the 24-14 win in ’03 over Indy and the D held Manning down in the 20-3 win the next year. So the D and Coach B earned the largest share of the credit for the first three titles.

2007–2019: The O took the lead for good in ’07 after BB realized they were going to have to outscore the Colts to beat them going forward. So in came Wes Welker and Randy Moss and away the O went to a record-breaking season. Gronk, Aaron Hernandez and Julian Edelman arrived soon after, as the offense led the way to SB-winning seasons in ’14, ’16 and ’18. So Brady was the leader of the last three.   

The final part of the debate is that it was decided in one year, which is bogus because:

Last year wasn’t apples and apples: The national media make it seem like TB transformed a 2-14 team into a Super Bowl winner. He did not. The Bucs were a 7-9 team that had just thrown for 5,000 yards with a QB who threw 30 interceptions, four being pick-sixes in the final five minutes of losses that provided the margin of victory. Brady wouldn’t do that if he played lefty. Take just those four plays away and they’re 11-5, which is what they were with Brady. So he really was the final piece for a team ready to win. Meanwhile the Patriots lost their best player with no cap room to replace him. So who would you expect to be better in that year? 

Which brings us to the present, where the Pats sit atop AFC East at 8-4 with the heir apparent at QB having a better first season than Brady did in 2001. Plus with Big Mac on a rookie contract the coach/GM has about $20 million more to spend for five years than he’d have with Brady at QB. So it’s now a fair fight, where the final verdict can’t really be rendered until both are retired.

Though given Brady’s amazing longevity that’s probably 10 or 20 years off.

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