Tag: 210304

Options for QB needy Pats

The start of the new NFL year is two weeks away when free agent signings begin. With $65 million to spend, the Patriots are likely to be very active to retool to get back in the playoff hunt, a task made more difficult these days playing in the vastly improved AFC East, where Buffalo is now the top dog, Miami is a QB away from SB contention and even the Jets, who have their history of incompetence to overcome, are a concern since they have the second overall pick and $73 million in cap room.

Over the next two weeks we’ll look at what they need to do to recover from last year’s 7-9 debacle. First we’ll concern ourselves with the biggest question of the off season — who will the starting quarterback be in 2021? — and the obstacles they’ll face answering that question during an unprecedented off season of turbulence at the quarterback position.

The QB Derby: If Drew Brees retires as expected the new year had as many as 18 teams looking for an upgrade to make the competition for the right QB intense. Sensing that, the Rams struck first by sending their starter Jared Goff and two first-round picks and a third to get Matthew Stafford from Detroit. With Phillip Rivers retired, Indy then took the Carson Wentz headache off Philly’s hands for conditional second- and third-round picks, a big gamble for a talented but trending down hard-to-coach crybaby with a $145 million contract about to kick in. Both moves show how valved quarterbacks are and that desperate teams will vastly overpay to get one.

So with 16 teams left things could get wacky quickly. That sense of urgency will also leak into the draft, where five quarterbacks could be taken in the first 10 picks, worthy or not. In short, the off season will be a game of musical chairs for quarterbacks. Here are the options.

Draft a QB: This option brings the uncertainty of betting on a guy who’s never played in the league and at a very high cost if you trade up to get the right one along with the learning curve that goes with it. However, if you hit, you pay your starter $5 million per for five years instead of $30 million to $40 million, and that savings can be invested elsewhere.

Who to Draft: With the 15th pick, Alabama’s Mac Jones is the best probable for the Pats. I like three things about him. (1) He’s got a quick release. (2) His 77.4 percent completion rate for 41 TD passes says he’s accurate. (3) He makes good, quick decisions, evidenced by throwing just four picks. The X-factor: How much are his gaudy numbers due to the spectacular first-round talent around him? Though I’m confident saying this: Jones is a lot better than his Bama predecessor Tua Tagovailoa.

Likely Out of Their Reach: The top two on the market are Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson, who want out of Houston and Seattle. Both are better than Stafford and make big money, so they’ll wipe out the Patriots’ next three drafts and a large chunk of their salary cap space to prevent the haul most are hoping for. Since he’s 26 I might do it for Watson, but no one else.

Aaron Rodgers: Doesn’t seem likely he’ll move for a million reasons. But with GB drafting a QB last year, stranger things have happened. But even if he leaves it’ll likely be west for a team ready to win, like SF, which would put Jimmy Garoppolo in play.

Jimmy G: The consensus pick in the cheap seats. Pros: He knows the system, Bill knows what he can do and he took the Niners to the Super Bowl just two years ago. Con: He’s injury prone, a big negative.

Dak Prescott: I’m not a Dak guy. First because everything from their QB’s to the dance team is overrated in Dallas. Second, he’s a game manager who wants $40 million per. Are you kidding me? Finally, it would break my friend George Copadis’ heart to see his beloved Cowboys let their latest vastly overrated star leave Jerry’s house.

Matt Ryan:At best he’s a short-term solution, so they’d still have to draft a QB. Plus salary cap implications in Atlanta will probably prevent him from leaving. So forget about him.

Marcus Mariota:Pro: He flourished in Chip Kelly’s system at Oregon. So maybe that’s what he is, a system QB in search of the right system. Con: He flunked out in Tennessee, who got immediately better after he was replaced by Dolphins flunk-out Ryan Tannehill.

Sam Darnold: Tannehill got better once he got away from Adam Gase in Miami. Could that be the same for Darnold? Nope. He’s just the latest — Matt Leinart, Mark Sanchez, Matt Barkley — overrated QB to come out of USC.

Jameis Winston: He’s got talent, but he threw 30 picks with Tampa Bay in 2019 and we know how much Coach B hates turnovers. But he also threw for 5,000 yards and 31 TD passes that year. He’s a long shot, but turning him into the productively efficient QB he wasn’t under Bruce Arians in Tampa Bay would give a new apples-and-apples dynamic to the “Was it Tom or Bill?” debate.

Cam Newton: Most don’t want this to happen. But Coach B may not be one of them. The question is, how much did joining the team late amid the Covid-hampered training environment play into his issues and did he suffer from lack of weapons as Brady did in 2019? I think it’s 50-50 he’s back,

Preferences: (1) Keep Newton and draft a QB, where Cam eventually evolves into a wildcat, short yardage and goal line scoring option. (2) If you go new, take the system guy, Mariota. Though if Coach B finds a way to somehow make a Jimmy G deal to include soon to be free agent tight end George Kittle, do it.

Following their latest loss, where they blew a 20-plus-point lead again, the 15-15 Celtics are straddling a line between their season becoming a huge disappointment and a total catastrophe. A wild overstatement? Maybe, but we’re now five weeks into a stretch of 11 losses in 19 games and it’s not like it’s been an incredibly rough stretch in the schedule. It started with a horrid mail-it-in 105-75 loss to the Knicks, which was followed by losses to bottom-dwellers Detroit, Washington, Sacramento, Atlanta and New Orleans on Sunday. So it’s beyond being just a funk. Shockingly it leaves them just a half game ahead of the surprising Knicks, and I’m pretty sure “catastrophe”would be the No. 1 answer if this were an episode of Family Feud and a family of green-teamers were asked what one word would best sum up finishing behind the Knickerbockers this year.

Now I’m more into fixing things than second guessing, so here’s a look at the issues and some suggestions for fixing the problem.

The Team Is Playing Dead: They have no emotion. Especially with Marcus Smart out. All teams need a guy who gets in people’s faces when they don’t play hard, they make dumb mistakes or they just don’t care enough about winning and losing. Some do it by scaring guys like MJ or KG, some with a stern leadership demeanor like LBJ. Others are just a pain in the butt like Draymond Green. But however it’s done every team needs it and they don’t have a guy like that.

Brad Stevens: I’m not a blame-the-coach-for-everything kind of guy. But I admit I have Brad fatigue for two reasons.

They Reflect His Placid Demeanor: Some coaches are suited for one kind of situation and not for others, like Bill Fitch with the Celtics in the ’80s. His drill sergeant approach was perfect for the young team Larry Bird joined as a rookie, which needed to learn how to win. But his shrill, never satisfied voice was eventually tuned out when those lessons were learned. In came the “treat them like they know what they’re doing” KC Jones and the guys responded by winning two titles. That may be the case here in reverse. This passive group needs a guy to drive them because they’re too comfortable with losses.

He’s Too In Love With The 3-Ball:It’s why they blow so many big leads. Once the 3’s stop falling, they have few other options to look for help as the big leads melt away, as happened on Sunday.

Jayson Tatum: I know how talented he is and he’s a good kid who puts in the work to improve. But I want more. I know it’s not his way, but the best player has got to develop a what-the-blank-are-you-doing way when needed, and until he does he’s not a Top 10 player or the leader they need.

The 3-Ball Doesn’t Always Fall: I know it’s a 3-ball league and what the math says about taking 3’s over 2’s. But sorry, anyone who has ever played knows that sometimes long-distance shots hit dry spells. Thus teams also need scoring down low, where the percentage is higher and you get foul shots. You rarely get the latter on 3-balls unless you have a dope covering you. Case in point was Sunday, when after being down 21, instead of the Pelicans chucking up more 3’s, they posted up 280-pound Zion Williamson or gave it to him at the foul line for drives, where he just overpowered everyone, leading to easy buckets and trips to the line for old-time three-point plays. That and the sudden appearance of defense was why they turned that game around. Having a really dependable block scorer, like, I don’t know, Joel Embiid also forces weakside defenders to double team them, which gives shooters more time/room to launch.

C’s Needs Restructuring:I don’t know what Brian Scalabrine is smoking, but the biggest need is not another scoring wing like Harrison Barnes. It’s changing the formula from wing scoring dominance to one that complements the 3-ball with reliable scoring from the block.As much as I love the grit of Daniel Theis, that’s not him. So a trade is needed. But if they want to wait a bit, give Robert Williams 30 minutes a game to see if he can do some of that.

The General Manager: Earth to Danny, what are you waiting for? Stop trying to get a steal every time you make a trade like in the Gordon Hayward-for-Myles Turner fiasco. I’m not in love with Turner, but taking only him in that deal instead of holding out for more would have filled the need to get bigger up front and provided a stretch four who blocks shots too. He also could have been flipped later for a better fit. Rome is burning. Stop fiddling (and diddling) and get what is needed.

The Bench Needs Scoring:Short term, I’d swap Payton Pritchard and Kemba, to give the second unit a much-needed dynamic scorer. However, any major deal will likely need Kemba as the bait to make that happen, so it must give the C’s a proven bench scorer back, like Orlando’s Terrence Ross.

Top Trade Target: I wanted Orlando’s Nikola Vucevic as the free agent replacement the summer Al Horford and Kyrie Irving defected. The problem is that he’s blossomed into a 24 and 11 guy so he’ll cost a lot more. Why would Orlando move him? Maybe after falling out of it again they’ll want to build around their younger players and know his trade value will never be higher. He’ll cost future picks, recent top picks and likely the Time Lord, unless Kemba goes to a third team needing a veteran presence with a lot of draft capital to send their way like New Orleans.

Voices raised

Youth artwork highlights mental health issues

New Hampshire middle school and high school students are invited to submit original artwork centered around mental health for the Magnify Voices Expressive Arts Contest, which includes a showcase of the finalists’ pieces to be held during Children’s Mental Health Awareness Month in May. Michele Watson, New Hampshire Family Network Coordinator for the National Alliance on Mental Illness and one of the organizers of the contest, discussed children’s mental health in the state and how youth are using art to raise awareness of and destigmatize mental illness.

What are the biggest mental health issues affecting youth in New Hampshire right now?

Anxiety and depression are some of the biggest that we’re seeing right now. Anxiety is through the roof, especially during the pandemic this year. There are many children [having mental health issues] now who have never had them before. For some, it’s so bad that they won’t go to school. They don’t even want to come out of their room.

How is art useful for addressing those and other children’s mental health issues?

Art lets children express themselves in a way that they may not be able to do in a conversation. Instead of just talking about it, they can show it and demonstrate it. It’s good not only for them to be able to share their voice, but also because it gives [adults] a better understanding of what they are feeling.

What kinds of art pieces does the contest feature?

We’ve had a range of videos. … In one video, a group of students each wrote a diagnosis on their forehead, and at the end of the video, they erased the words from their forehead, and the message was, ‘I’m not my diagnosis.’ We had another video where a boy who has ADHD is sitting in a classroom, and the teacher is talking, and the video is showing everything else that he is aware of rather than paying attention to what the teacher is saying. … We also had a lot of poems both years. One poem that really stood out to me was a middle schooler talking about her anxiety being like a tornado that would wrap around her tighter and tighter. … One of the art pieces was a drawing, where the student drew her inner self and her outer self to show how they don’t match and how what people see from the outside is not what she is actually feeling on the inside.

Where does public awareness of and response to children’s mental health issues in New Hampshire stand as of now?

It’s so much better than it was in years past. We never used to talk about this stuff. No one wanted to say that something was wrong with their child. … If you want to look at the silver lining of the pandemic, [children’s mental health] has gotten so much more attention. … Schools are really learning a lot and educating their staff, and more people are starting to understand that kids can’t learn if they’re struggling emotionally and mentally. … The kids are also doing a much better job of sharing all of this.

How can it be improved within the school and home?

A big part of this is identifying if this [behavior] is ‘just a teenager thing’ or ‘just a kid thing’ or if it’s something that’s leading to a bigger crisis … because a lot of times, the parents or caregivers don’t know. They think [the child] is choosing [that behavior] versus [having a mental health issue], and they don’t take it as seriously as they should. There’s a lack of understanding, like, ‘Oh, it’s just a phase. They’ll get over it. Everybody has anxiety.’ We hear [statements] like that a lot. Well, yes, everybody does have anxiety, but not everybody has debilitating anxiety where they can’t even walk into a classroom without getting butterflies and feeling like they’re going to be sick. … We have an information and resource line, both through email and an 800 number, where families and schools or anybody can get help identifying those needs earlier on. We do a lot of training [programs] to help families … [where] we teach about brain science and about different diagnoses and how … they can better support their children and how to deal with these situations.

How can it be improved on a state level?

We need more mental health care providers. Families have a hard time getting in [to see one]. They might have a six-month wait to get their child an appointment. … If a child [has] to be taken to the emergency room, there can be a very long wait to actually get a bed in a mental health facility. We’ve had up to 48 kids around the state in emergency rooms waiting, and some of them had to wait up to two weeks. We need to do a better job of identifying [mental health crises] before they get to that point, and if they do, we need to be able to get [children] the help they need sooner than they’re getting it now.

Magnify Voices Expressive Arts Contest
The contest is open to youth in grades 5 through 12. Submissions must be related to mental health and may include a short film (under 2 minutes), an essay or poem (under 1,000 words), a song or a two- or three-dimensional art piece. The deadline is March 31. Visit tinyurl.com/magnifyvoices2021

Featured photo: Michele Watson

News & Notes 21/03/04

Covid-19 updateAs of February 22As of March 1
Total cases statewide73,66575,588
Total current infections statewide2,8832,363
Total deaths statewide1,1541,170
New cases2,648 (Feb. 16 – 22)1,923 (Feb. 23 to March 1)
Current infections: Hillsborough County807692
Current infections: Merrimack County232163
Current infections: Rockingham County650533
Information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services

Covid-19 news

During the state’s weekly public health update on Feb. 25, state epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan reported that 97 people statewide were hospitalized with Covid-19, the first time that number has dipped below 100 since mid-November. Test positivity rates of the virus also continue to be on the decline in recent months, as well as active infections and deaths.

State health officials expect to receive their first supply of the single-dose Johnson & Johnson Janssen Biotech vaccine this week, which received emergency use authorization by the Food & Drug Administration on Feb. 27. According to a report from WMUR, the Johnson & Johnson vaccine only requires one dose, and it can be stored at refrigerated temperatures as opposed to being kept in a freezer, which will make it easier to transport and distribute. About 288,000 doses of vaccine had been administered in New Hampshire as of Feb. 25, according to Dr. Beth Daly, Chief of the Bureau of Infectious Disease Control of the New Hampshire Department of Health & Human Services. This includes 197,000 people who have received their first dose and an additional 91,000 who have received their second dose. “This means that about 15 percent of New Hampshire’s population has received one dose of vaccine, and seven percent of the population has been fully vaccinated,” Daly said during the press conference.

On Tuesday, Gov. Chris Sununu announced in a press release that the state will host a mass vaccination event this weekend, on Friday, March 6, Saturday, March 7, and Sunday, March 8, at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon. However, the site is not open to walk-in appointments; instead people who have appointments scheduled for first-dose appointments in April will be contacted by the state and offered an appointment. The state hopes to vaccinate more than 10,000 people at the event, the release said.

Also last week, Gov. Chris Sununu joined 21 governors from across the country to send a message to Washington politicians that the $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill would bail out poorly managed states at the expense of taxpayers in better-managed states like New Hampshire, according to a press release. Unlike previous relief bills, the new federal funding package allocates aid based on a state’s unemployed population, rather than just its population, which would mean that New Hampshire would lose over $233 million using this formula, the release said.

Housing help

During the Feb. 25 press conference, Gov. Chris Sununu announced a new rental assistance program through the Governor’s Office for Emergency Relief and Recovery for Granite Staters who have experienced difficulty paying their rent and utilities due to the pandemic. The program is being administered by New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority, which will begin accepting and processing applications on March 15. “This assistance will be available retroactively, which means that it can help cover rent going all the way back from April 1 of last year through the date of application,” said Sununu, adding that the program is only eligible for renters and landlords, not for homeowners. “It really helps landlords and those that have to bear the brunt of the inability of those individuals to collect rent.”

Then on Monday, the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority announced that it has launched a new initiative to help essential frontline workers become homeowners. According to a press release, the Community Heroes Initiative provides a $3,000 closing-cost credit to eligible first-time homebuyers who finance through one of New Hampshire Housing’s Plus mortgage programs. The $3,000 grant goes directly to the lender, and the borrower does not need to repay it. Borrowers who are eligible for the program include health care, day care and elder care workers; law enforcement officers, firefighters and first responders; educators; and active members of the armed services, according to the release.

Bills wrapped up

The New Hampshire House of Representatives acted on more than 100 pieces of legislation over the course of two days last week, according to a press release. The House met indoors at NH Sportsplex in Bedford, and legislators were seated 10 feet apart from one another. “I’m pleased that the House was able to get its work done on time in the midst of a pandemic,” House Speaker Sherman Packard said in the release. “We can get our work done in a risk-mitigated manner.” The House will have to meet again before April deadlines, according to the release. According to a report from WMUR, 24 Democrats were absent from the sessions, “many of them suffering from health conditions that put them at high risk for Covid-19.” Though a lawsuit was filed against Packard claiming that in-person sessions would put people at risk and that remote sessions should be held instead, the U.S. District Court ruled that Packard did not have to use remote technology for the House sessions.

DCYF roadmap

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services Division for Children, Youth and Families has released its inaugural Procurement Forecast, according to a press release. The Procurement Forecast is a summary of the results of the Request for Information that was issued in 2019, and its purpose is to provide a roadmap for the expansion of evidence-based prevention services aimed at keeping kids safe and strengthening families. According to the release, DCYF will be working with other Health and Human Services divisions to introduce new service models that will focus on keeping children at home with their families. The first request for proposals is for multisystemic therapy, which provides support for youth with behavioral health needs that put them at risk of entering out-of-home care. Studies have shown that 91 percent of youth who take part in multisystemic therapy remain home upon completion of the program, and 86 percent remain in school and employed, the release said.

On Monday the Daniel Webster Council announced that New Hampshire has its first female Eagle Scout. According to a press release, Valerie Ann Johnston of Thornton is also one of the first female Eagle Scouts in the nation. Eagle Scout is the highest rank in Scouting, and only about 6 percent of Scouts earn the achievement, the release said.

Kumon Learning Center, with locations in Bedford, Nashua and Portsmouth, will be joining New Hampshire’s exclusive Learn Everywhere Program, according to a press release from the New Hampshire Department of Education. Learn Everywhere allows students to earn credit for learning outside of the classroom, and Kumon Learning Center is now authorized to offer an array of math classes.

The Nashua Public Library reopened with limited service on Monday. According to a press release, customers can now come inside to pick up reserved materials; browse and check out new materials; browse the adult stacks to select books, DVDs, CDs, audiobooks, videogames and magazines (by appointment); use computers and printers (by appointment); and use the tax PC in the lobby to print tax forms. The Children’s Room and Teen Room are still closed, but curbside pickup continues. The building will be open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Last summer’s Drive-In Live, held at the Cheshire Fairgrounds in Swanzey, will return for a second season under the new name of Northlands. According to a press release, artists in the first round of the series will be announced in mid-March, and performances are scheduled to start in May. This year all attendees will be in 10’ x 10’ “pods” that will hold up to six people, and all pods are spaced at least six feet apart. A new beer garden is also being planned, the release said.

Donor towns

In 1999 the Supreme Court declared New Hampshire’s system of taxation “unconstitutional” based on the Claremont education funding decision. The Supreme Court forced the legislature to make a hard choice. The Claremont decision was based on Part 2 Article 5 of our Constitution, which says taxes “must be proportional.” Like any other state tax, like the Tobacco Tax, Gas Tax, Rooms and Meals, one rate statewide. It became clear that the state’s education regulations were mandates and therefore needed to be funded with a uniform tax rate.

Studies were done to determine the cost of the education regulations. Most every analysis showed that the so-called “property rich” towns, largely on the seacoast, resort lakes, or ski mountains, had plenty of valuable property and could easily raise money while many communities, including Manchester, Londonderry and Derry, struggled. Tax concepts were brought forward including an income tax, sales tax and statewide property tax. The state property tax emerged.

Similar to how we would think of it today, the statewide property tax was born in 1919 at a tax rate of $3.50 per $1,000 of value. So studies were done to see what would happen if a state property tax were to be re-enacted. Spreadsheets showed that if every community were to pay the same rate to cover the cost of the education regulations, the result would be that 75 to 80 percent of the state’s population would see a reduction in property taxes while the remaining percentage (20 to 25 percent), those property-richer communities, would see a tax increase. Ironically, even if this were enacted, the property-richer communities would still have the lowest property tax rates in the state.

While the property-poorer communities would run bake sales to pay for their attorneys, the property-richer communities simply hired lawyers to make the case that they would be unfairly treated by a uniform statewide property tax. They called themselves “donor towns.”

But which are the real donor towns? If the state constitution says that everybody needs to pay the same rate tax rate, but somehow the property-rich towns’ lawyers have tricked lawmakers into ensuring that they don’t actually have to pay the tax, thus, forcing monies to be raised from other sources, especially from property-poorer towns, is that fair? In reality, the property-poorer towns are contributing higher property taxes in order to ensure that the property-richer towns don’t have to pay the uniform rate. So who’s donating to whom?

Fred Bramante is a past chairman and memtber of the New Hampshire State Board of Education. He speaks and consults on education redesign to regional, state and national organizations.

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