Sports this 'n' that

Is there trouble in the Evil Empire?

ESPN, citing unnamed sources, seems to think there is. On Friday, stories came out suggesting that there was no cohesion between QB Tom Brady, coach Bill Belichick, and owner Robert Kraft of late, specifically when it came to the shocking decision to trade backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo, who will be a free agent after the Super Bowl, to San Francisco for a 2nd round draft pick. All Garoppolo did was go 5-0 as a starter to lift the 49ers back to respectability. Niners management would be crazy not to lock up Garoppolo long-term, but if ESPN's sources, mostly the voices in Stephen A. Smith's head, moving to other ESPN staffers, in this writer's opinion, are to be believed, Garoppolo was forced out, with the biggest finger of suspicion pointed at----who else?---Brady, who would be then accused by his critics of pulling the diva card to force the Pats to mortgage their future at QB. Apparently, those sources believe Crybaby Brady went over Belichick's head to Kraft to get rid of Garoppolo. I get that Brady, 40, would like to finish his career with the Patriots, as very few players actually can say they played for one team their entire career in this day and age, but why the haterizing for Garoppolo?

Seems that when Brady Wally-Pipp'd Drew Henson at Michigan, he didn't want to be put in the same position to have it done to him as a pro. Like, you reap what you sow, Crybaby, so if the Pats don't reach the Super Bowl, it'll be karmic justice for you and your over-stuffed ego.
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We have to give out a Dunce Cap to  Mets GM Sandy Alderson for avoiding arbitration with suspended pitcher Jenrry Meija. Meija, supposedly, is banned for life, but is eligible for reinstatement this year. He's been suspended three times while in a Mets uniform, and needs to find a drug rehab program that will wean him off PED's once and for all, and all Alderson is doing is thinking of what Meija can contribute to the team down the road. I get that Alderson is afraid a NL East rival might take a chance on Meija, but they too would be pound foolish and not even penny-wise.
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Like a Phoenix rising from the ashes, the Albany Patroons have returned, now playing in the fledgling North American Premier Basketball League. The home opener is tonight at the archaic Washington Avenue Armory against Rochester, the same team Albany beat in their first game on New Year's Eve. Original Patroon Derrick "Dr. D." Rowland is both head coach & general manager, and the roster includes former Siena star Edwin Ubiles, who will not be in uniform tonight due to injury.

Problem is, while the Albany Times-Union and local radio outlets are beating the drums for the Patroons, the Record, due to its financial & personnel constraints, hasn't had any hype leading to tonight's game, and didn't send anyone to Rochester for the opener last Sunday. Figure Spectrum News will have a camera crew at tonight's game, and, then, on Monday, when the Ohio Cardinals are in town. Rochester & Ohio will then return to the Armory January 15 & 16, respectively.

Part of the problem with the Record is that they have to go through a protracted process mandated by corporate parent Digital First Media before signing a new sports editor to replace Dave Johnson, who left last month to work for the Times-Union. Digital First, to be referred to going forward as El Cheapo Media, would prefer to pinch pennies than properly service the hometown.
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Anyone watching today's Kansas City-Tennessee playoff game on ESPN knows that this will be Jon Gruden's last game for the network, which is reporting that Gruden is being offered a megabucks contract to return to the Raiders for a 2nd stint as head coach. The question, then, is whether or not any lengthy discussion about the Raiders would distract from the game itself. There have been concerns about Gruden sitting in on pre-game interviews with Chiefs & Titans coaches for fear of gleaning information he could use as Raiders coach next season or beyond. Please. Let's stop thinking the worst. Let him call the game and say his good-byes on the air to ESPN viewers.

As it is, ESPN has two holes to fill on Sunday Night Baseball come spring with both game analyst Aaron Boone (Yankees) and play-by-play announcer Dan Schulman (Toronto) gone. Gruden's departure makes it three vacancies among their announcers. Stay tuned.
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WWE's latest project is the Mixed Match Challenge tournament, which launches on Facebook Watch on January 16. Half the teams have already been announced:

Raw:

Women's champion Alexa Bliss & Braun Strowman. The Brat & the Beast (with apologies to Universal champ Brock Lesnar, billed as the Beast Incarnate) make an imposing team, but it's just another excuse to give Bliss someone to hide behind. Speaking of which.......

Nia Jax & Apollo Crews. Crews replaces the ailing cruiserweight champion, Enzo Amore, who was pulled from the tournament on January 1, but now is cleared to return to the ring, so they could do an angle so that he does get to team with Jax, cousin of Intercontinental champion Roman Reigns.

Sasha Banks & Finn Balor. Most fans were hoping Ireland's Balor would be paired with Bayley, with whom he did some adorable skits at NXT live events, including at the Armory, in 2015-16. All this does is reinforce the fact that Raw's Uncreative team doesn't know or understand what to do with Bayley.

Smackdown:

Women's champion Charlotte Flair & Bobby Roode. The former NXT & TNA champion, paired with the "Queen", was another fan-favorite coupling. Matching robes, anyone?

The blue brand's two real-life couples, Rusev & Lana and Jimmy Uso & Naomi, were confirmed as in the tournament the last two days. What that says is that Smackdown's writers were looking at common sense in their pairings.

The rest of the field will be announced in the coming days.