New ESPN BET Program Set to Debut Friday

data-mm-id=”_f78jzvpw7″>Michael Irvin went on the Dan Patrick Show today, and he called Packers head coach Matt LaFleur the luckiest man in the world for having Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback. Irvin analogized LaFleur to Rodgers' backpack, along for the ride on the back of a legend:Here's the thing: LaFleur inherited a Packers team that was in disarray at 6-9-1 and had missed the playoffs two straight years. Aaron Rodgers started all 16 games in 2018. This season, the Packers are 11-3. They will very likely win the NFC North, and are squarely in the mix for a first round playoff bye. With Rodgers as a constant between this season and last, the head coach has to get some credit as a variable in the turnaround.Now, it's not like a flip switched and LaFleur was the only c…

data-mm-id=”_unn66vpo7″>It was about 1:15 p.m. EST today on another gloomy afternoon in the new world order. The stock market was crashing again. The airline industry was/is considering a shutdown. New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut announced sweeping new rules to limit resident movement and exposure. Coronavirus talk and action ruled the day. Then DeAndre Hopkins was traded and everything changed. Suddenly, the NFL took center stage. After Hopkins was traded, rumors erupted about Tom Brady to the Bucs, Teddy Bridgewater to the Bears, Stefon Diggs wanting out of Minnesota, Odell Beckham Jr. possibly being traded again, Todd Gurley being dangled as a trade chip, and so many other pieces of news. Honestly, it was hard to keep up. Yet keep up we did because we were trying to avoid a pa…

data-mm-id=”_vzjqrun6t”>If it feels like the Atlanta Falcons are cursed, it's because they probably are. Ever since they blew a 28-3 lead in Super Bowl LI, the Falcons have remained under whatever magical spell Tom Brady conjured up late in the third quarter during that fateful evening in Houston. They couldn't close out the win then and they can't now. No matter how big the lead or how insurmountable the obstacles for the opponent, Atlanta always finds a way to blow it. At this point, it's clear that in order to move forward, to break whatever jinx hovers over them in the second half of games, the Falcons need to start fresh with a totally new core group. As today's last-second loss to the Detroit Lions proves (the Lions marched 75 yards in 1:04 and scored the…

data-mm-id=”_vvb0zwcbs”>John "Spider" Salley was a role player on the back-to-back world champion Bad Boy Pistons, playing in all 82 games in 1990-91 and providing valuable rim production and energy off the bench. The 6-foot-11 center caught on with the Chicago Bulls in 1995-96 and enjoyed a ride to another title, contributing 2.1 points in 11.2 minutes per game. Then, after 10 years in NBA, he took his talents to Greece before retiring. He made a return to the NBA after a three-year hiatus and was a member of the title-winning Los Angeles Lakers in 1999-00. It was a bizarre, fulfilling career buoyed by good fortune. Salley was a glue guy, an engaging and hilarious personality. The type of player every championship team wants around to provide that certain je ne sais quoi. Bu…

data-mm-id=”_v2fmlj4fy”>The Denver Nuggets have now come back from a 3-1 deficit twice in the 2020 NBA Playoffs. The latest comeback will rightfully be viewed as a choke job by the Los Angeles Clippers, but what the Nuggets did was still incredible. Denver is a legitimate title contender with two stars early in their primes who are simply built for the playoffs. After finishing with the third-best record in the Western Conference and sixth-best record overall, they looked like a young team that could compete for a title in a year or two. Instead, they're simply contenders in their second playoff run. And they've done it with two guys they drafted and smartly built around.Nikola Jokic may be young enough to still be on the upside of his career, but he's simply one of the …

data-mm-id=”_keol6d7ae”>This March will mark the 20th anniversary of what, in my opinion, is pound for pound, minute for minute, one of the funniest things to ever happen. In 2001, David Beckham and Victoria Beckham were interviewed by Ali G for Comic Relief on Red Nose Day. "Posh and Becks" were at the absolute height of their powers. Mid-twenties, reasonably attractive and incredibly famous. The captain of the English soccer team and a Spice Girl. And they submitted to a 9 minute roast by Sacha Baron Cohen as Ali G. They just sat there and took it and laughed the entire time. It involved a before unheard of amount of being a good sport as Ali G unloaded on what had to be the richest and most famous celebrity couple in the world at the time.David Beckham was quiet and the on…

data-mm-id=”_p9fd6kqjp”>The Chicago Bears are looking into trading wide receiver Anthony Miller. The team franchise-tagged Allen Robinson and is presumably unwilling to pay Miller his due as he comes up on the final year of his rookie deal. Adam Schefter has the report. Bears are having trade discussions with other teams regarding WR Anthony Miller, per sources. Miller is entering the final year of his rookie deal, and is a productive and talented slot receiver likely to be dealt.— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 16, 2021As the ESPN insider notes, Miller is both talented and productive. He recorded 49 catches for 485 yards and two touchdowns last season, which aren't eye-popping numbers, but are still very solid when considering the rollercoaster that was the Bears' qua…

data-mm-id=”_6m2t65bx2″>It's NFL mock draft season, which is delightful because it presents the opportunity for impressively creative people to find new ways to slice, dice, and parcel out content. A tried-and-true method is to put a surprise name at the very top of the speculative listing because it will get the people buzzing. So fair play to CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso, who yesterday looked into a crystal ball and saw the Indianapolis Colts making a trade with the Chicago Bears to move up to No. 1 and select … Anthony Richardson.Trapasso writes: "I think Richardson is going to emphatically remove the lid from Lucas Oil Stadium at the NFL combine. That will lead to the Colts taking a chance on him, given the hiring of former Eagles Shane Steichen as head coach. Richar…

data-mm-id=”_b68yuus6x”>Mike Greenberg unexpectedly became the target of an angry rant during Tuesday's edition of Toucher and Rich show on Boston sports radio. Greenberg ended up in the crosshairs thanks to an interview he did a month ago with Molly Fletcher as part of her Game Changers series on YouTube. In that interview Greenberg mentioned the importance of writing teasers in television before commercial breaks in order to keep the viewers hooked. This was apparently enough to set off Toucher, who called Greenberg a "talentless prick" before going on to slam the Get Up host for a few more minutes. It sparked off a roundtable discussion of all the bad things everyone on the show has heard about Greenberg. It was pretty wild! The conversation wandered to Greenberg than…

data-mm-id=”_69sd1cnt7″>Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's budding romance has been one of the most dominant and defining storylines of the 2023 NFL season. News of their every move has been closely monitored by both football fans and Swifties alike, no matter how little either group previously cared about the other. What's been most surprising to me, as an interested observer and chronicler of this entire circus, is how those those around the couple have ended up in the spotlight or under the microscope. If someone goes to a game with Swift or goes to her house to watch the Chiefs, it's a story. It seems obvious that Swift sitting next to Donna Kelce would become a thing or how she bonded with Brittany Mahomes would make for good tabloid fodder, but we've crossed over…