BBTV

The Yankees lost the benefit of the doubt years ago when they gave in to the "special event" cap nonsense, then the uniform advertiser. They used to be a team I envied because of how much they cared about and protected their brand, but now they're no different than anyone else.

Not sure if I should be flattered, or get my lawyer on line 1. My lawyer:

I don't understand this. The SB is the final game of the season. Why would they use that game to debut a new (untested) package? Very few people watching the game care or will even notice, and I'd think they'd want to run it through a few preseason or regular season games just to iron out any kinks. The people that will notice are probably used to the current package, and a new one could just be a visual distraction from the biggest game of the season.

There was an article recently about how they're looking for an advertiser. I may have posted it - can't remember - but here it is again. The organization has been in talks with several different local, national, and international brands, said Jackie Cuddeback, the Phillies’ senior vice president for partnership sales and corporate marketing. Some of the potential sponsors are new names; others are existing marketing partners. The patch talks were first reported Wednesday by the Philadelphia Business Journal. https://www.inquirer.com/business/philadelphia-phillies-jerseys-sponsorship-patch-20230120.html

Seems like a waste, since the whole point of having an ex QB in the booth is to do what Tony Romo used to be able to do, and let you know why teams were doing what they were doing - in real time. You really don't need anyone with any actual intelligence on a studio show - just people with personalities that are goofy and pretend that they know what they're talking about when talking about teams they've probably never watched.

Nope. And based on that pic, there was no reason to think they were.

Can we stop with the phrase "maker's mark"? Nike didn't actually make the uniforms for the past few years, and in both baseball and NFL, the uniform advertiser (Reebok, Puma, Russell, etc) didn't "make" the uniform. It's an advertisement. There's absolutely no other way to look at the swoosh other than as an advertisement. And it sucks - just like these ads do. I'll never understand anyone defending ads on uniforms.

Eagles linebackers are average at best. Philosophically, they don’t believe in investing in the position. Their defense is based on giving teams whatever they want between the 20s - and that generally means tight ends - then pressing more if they get closer to red zone. I don’t totally get it, but I’m not a defensive coordinator. As a casual fan, the eagles defense looks weak, yet every other play they’re sacking the QB or getting a pick, and finishing #1 or 2 in every meaningful category. So yeah - Travis Kelce is absolutely going to have a big game - and likely find the end zone at least once. But the game will hinge on how long the KC line can hold off Hassan Reddick, Brandon Graham, and the rest of the old guys on the Eagles front line. If they can block them then they probably win, because mahomes can beat every other player on the field. If they can’t block them, then Mahomes could end up like Purdy. it’s really a good overall matchup - one of the best we’ve seen in quite a while. Could easily go either way. Should be a fun game.

you’re going to need facts to back up nearly everything you said here. For one, regarding their schedule, the eagles are tied for most wins against winning teams in a season in nfl history. They didn’t play the 70s Steelers every week, but the notion that their schedule was “easy” is kinda silly. They got the AFC south, but so did the rest of the NFC East. Also I’m not sure which of their defensive rankings support the notion that they “struggled mightily” against anyone, with the only exception being the second Dallas game which was a first time DB who will never see the field again. Statistically and rankings wise, their defense is among the best ever (again, just based on metrics - I personally wouldn’t consider them among the best ever, but it’s hard to argue with 70 sacks from your front 4 without even blitzing.)

Not that anything is for sure, but is it expected that he's starting his FOX job next season? I'm not sure if starting immediately after retirement was part of the deal, or if it was simply that it was there for him when he wanted it. If he's in the booth, then he's not coming back. The deal is supposedly for both broadcasting and being an "ambassador" (whatever TF that means) and I imagine will be keeping him a little too busy to stay in football shape (but he'll be perfectly qualified to coach the Colts!)

Not a good look. Powder-blue pants should only be worn with matching tops.

That's kinda the point of the forum.

I know the front office is a bit of a mess, but don’t they have a ton of draft picks with which to build due to the Watson trade? I’d think the Denver job is pretty bad since they still owe what - at least another 1 and 2, plus whatever they give to NO (who’s going to try to extract as much as possible since they foolishly gave the Eagles their #1).

and with one of them, couldn’t you actually listen in on the review discussions? I didn’t watch it myself, but that sounds like a good way to add some transparency to the process

And when a team invests as heavily in their DL as the eagles do, they’re going to hit the QB and get sacks, and while nobody wants to see anyone get injured (yeah… I know), that’s something that happens when one team’s DL leads the league in sacks and QB hits. I don’t think it’s as much of “well the qb got hurt so we were screwed” as it is “the 49ers OL couldn’t stop the Eagles DL” - and line play on both sides decided the game, and the eagles easily won both sides of it (just look at how many times Bosa was pancaked 1v1 by both the LT and RT).

Yeah the red is stupid - it's a glorified spring training top. I hate it. So if it takes this new rule to get rid of it? Then I happily bow to my Nike masters. If they were to drop gray and go throwbac ont he road full time, then you've got the problem of having not only completely different home/road looks, but they're from totally different eras too. I kinda think once you go that route, there's no going back, and you have to commit to eventually going throwback full time - which is 1,000,000% not happening (not that it was ever a thought in their minds, but they're investing so much in new signage to go along with the new football-field-sized scoreboard that there's simply no way they're changing for another decade - if even then.)

I'm looking for my fur hat and viking horns as we speak.

I don't think anyone thinks that their job is easy. For all the reasons you mentioned and more, it's incredibly difficult. But... ... this is my problem. We can have Gene Steratore or Mike Pererra figure it out in near real-time on the broadcast, but can't buzz down to fix things quickly? I know they do that "assisted replay" thing (or whatever it's called when a call is reviewed from out of nowhere) but they could still do better, and should be able to fix game-changing 15-yard or auto-first-down penalties too. I know it's more complicated than that, since the on-field referee has more context and may have seen something that's not obvious to people watching video, so it's not a perfect solution - but they could do better. I just don't think the league wants to. So yeah - at the end of the day, it's the league.

I forget what the lighting situation is like in that stadium when the roof is closed, but if the roof is open and the Chiefs wear red pants, this could be one of the better looking SBs ever. But if it's closed and the Eagles look really dark, or if the Chiefs are solid white from the neck down, it'll be a little disappointing.

There's been several concepts that have been posted over the years that were great modernizations of this set, but in current colors. They would be a great team to experiment with a custom shade of blue/green/gray for their road uniforms - kinda like how the Padres have that custom gray/brown shade. The Mariners could do like the Cowboys "sea foam green" or maybe even something slightly greener. Don't the Kraken have a seafoamish color? Maybe borrow from them. The trident look was really good before they mucked it up by throwing a star behind it. They could easily turn it back into an iconic modern look that could last for decades.

it does make you wonder if SF had won, would CIN v SF have been the preferred SB matchup. (I only saw the 4th q of the AFCCG so didn’t see enough to suggest that anything was unlevel, but in general I firmly believe that they tilt the field.)

Eagles fans don’t mock native Americans by wearing headdresses and other garb, or do an insulting “chop” during games.

If that's the case, it hasn't always been the case. We're going back a ways here, but IIRC the '80s Cubs wore white pants with their road blue tops (didn't even have gray tops.)

Oops - that's embarrassing. All I can say is it's been a long couple of days. Carry on.

I think a Chicago script - sorta like the late-80s White Sox and early-80s Bulls - would look really good, whether solid blue or blue with a red stroke. Front number optional. With all its curvy letters, Chicago is a name that looks flat-out beautiful in a script. Someone should use it.