FOLIOby TOM WEPPEL
NFL HANGOVER…
Congrats to the New York Giants for their victory in SB46! It seems a majority of fans felt as if that was a slight upset, for all intents, feeling the Patriots were the predominant favorites heading into this one, despite the fact they had lost the two previous games they played against New York!
So the Giants prevailed, and now it should be interesting to see how people…teams, players, coaches, and fans…all respond and react! You would think there is now a solid degree of respect and appreciation given to this franchise, especially after winning two titles in the last five years!
But it will also be up to the Giants to hold up their reputation and level of play, and that means coming back next season and fielding a strongly competitive squad that can at least make the playoffs! I mention all this, considering how so many football fans were slightly disappointed in the performance of the Packers towards the end, after they had done quite well throughout the regular season.
It will also be interesting to see what the Patriots can and will do! Without question, it would be solid for them to figure out a way to bring their running game together! I’d like to see New England find a feature RB. We’ll see what shakes!
The Super Bowl had a televised audience of over 111 MILLION viewers! Each year, it is EASILY the most-watched TV event, as it continues to grow annually in popularity, no matter who participates!
One a side-note…the game was also webcast live online. Over two million people watched the contest over the internet as well. That statistic can mean a number of different things…anything from showing the growing of viewing online, to the overall growth, period, of the game! While two million seems miniscule compared to 111 million, it is also a solid number, considering the amount is quite high for airing live online programming!
And so, we shall see what other sports can and will do down the road in airing their events live online, whether it be the Final Four, the Major Golf and Tennis tournaments, the NBA and NHL playoffs, etc…
As I’m sure you are aware, millions of people wager (I.e.-BET!) on this game in some way, shape, or form, and they did on something from the score, to the winner, to whatever.
In Vegas, there was (as there always is) a legal handle on the outcome. A total of just under $94 million was legally wagered. Overall, the Vegas sports books netted a little over $5 million. Obviously, bookies will always set the deal so that the line is in their favor! Of course, bettors never realize that, thinking THEY know the real deal! They will usually find out after the fact…
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
The NBA has gone thru a furious pace and schedule, with all teams now having played over a third of the games of their 66-game season.
What we see is that a) the Bulls, the Thunder, and the Heat are the top of the heap, for all intents, with the Sixers, and the L.A. Clippers of all teams, playing surprisingly well. It seems Chicago and Miami will be the sexy teams people will be following, especially heading into the playoffs.
And the pressure will be on the Heat, considering their roster, led by Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh will be expected to win. We’ll see how they continue to perform…
In the meantime, we have also seen that b) the Bobcats, the Wizards, and the Hornets all suck! All three teams have played horribly so far. They have all been on long losing streaks, and none of them have won more than two game either at home OR on the road! You can and should expect to see some changes on the rosters of those squads…
Some teams will need and want to make moves, simply to get into the grind they are used to. The Celtics, Lakers, and Mavericks have all had subpar seasons so far, showing signs of inconsistency. I would think they will want to make adjustments to their line ups, especially before the trading deadline. It’ll be interesting to see what any of those three do…
Enjoy!
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