Your “HOT DAMN! IT’S FRIDAY!” Friday Open Thread

NFL Friday Afternoon News Dump:

• Andre Johnson signed a two-year deal with the Titans. As CBS jokingly put it, he’s “one shy of the AFC South cycle”.
  • I’m going to suppose he catches fewer passes than Dwayne Bowe.
• Jake Long feels he’s too good to sign an injury waiver, so he won’t be joining the Ravens.
• Dolphins defensive player Dion Jordan has been conditionally reinstated by the League following a one-year suspension for multiple violations of drug policy.
• Sorry Chargers fans – Joey Bosa didn’t show up today. According to PFT, it’s a number of “small, fundamental differences”, which sounds like the “Jumbo Shrimp” of football oxymorons. Because when you think “moron”, you think the Spanos family.
• TMZ and PFT had an abortion that reports Aldon Smith has checked into rehab.
• Tom Coughlin has apparently been hired by the League as a “senior advisor” to league operations. Looking at all the things he’ll be expected to advise on, it also comes across as a glorified Wal-Mart greeter type of position.
• I guess Nick Foles hasn’t been bad enough as a human being for the Cowboys to consider him for their roster.
• Texas A&M – not as rapey as Baylor (at least since Johnny Football left), but just as sexist.

Finally, check out Jim McMahon going full truther about links between the NFL and Big Pharma. Something you don’t normally expect from a BYU grad. The player won’t embed for me, so check out the video here.

Well, it’s now down to the 100 days of the campaign. The first debate is scheduled for Monday, Sept. 26, 2016, at Hofstra University. But did you think it wasn’t going to affect your football viewing enjoyment? They’ll be going up against the Falcons @ the Saints. It seems too early in the season for the election to challenge the NFL for viewers, especially a division rivalry game.

Worse for fans, the second debate is Sunday, Oct. 9, 2016, at Washington University in St. Louis. Way to remind fans they lost their team, jerk stores. Pouring salt on the wound is that the game is Seattle @ Arizona, an NFC West contest ex-Ram aficionados might have once cared about. The only winner is likely NBC, which won’t have to show the staged yelling.

The third debate is Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2016 at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. I look forward to someone trying to bring up the Raiders relocation possibility.

I’m not going to lie – I really need these three days. The English 10 class I’ve been teaching this summer was a little more than I could handle. Because it had been almost a decade since I taught the course, I’ve been playing catch-up to the material all summer. Luckily, the varying abilities of the students has allowed me to have moments where I could carry lessons over and extend periods to allow for marking submitted work. I’ll be better for it on the other side, but right now it’s draining.

Tonight’s beverage of choice – when I get home from selling beer at Nat Bailey – will be Dead Frog Brewing’s Big Stump Spruce Golden Ale, “a perfectly balanced golden ale brewed to celebrate nature on the West Coast. Fresh picked Simcoe hops provide a tropical pine aroma that’s followed by a crisp malt profile.” I’ve been staring at that sixer in my fridge since last Sunday, and now I can finally have at it. The only challenge will be not shotgunning the first two.

Here’s a link to their site. They have a Commander IPA that certain Commentists might find especially sexy.

Tonight’s sports:

• On Now:
  • Tennis: Rogers Cup – end of day action – ESPN2, TSN
    • women from Montreal; Men from Toronto
• Later tonight:
  • Premier Boxing Champions: Stevenson-Williams (light heavyweights) – 9:00 (Spike)
  • CFL:
    • Saskatchewan @ Montreal – 7:00 (TSN)
    • BC @ Calgary – 10:00 (ESPN2, TSN)

HAVE A NICE WEEKEND!