NFL Noise:

• Practiced liar Tom Brady says he never had a “deteriorating relationship” with Josh McDaniels.
  • And he posted what amounts to a ransom note on his Instagram page to make his point:

The Beerguyrob Open Thread “Deep Dive”

I’m going to admit that, some days, the topics I find on the various sports websites are banal. But once in a while something shows up that requires some analysis or deeper digging. Rather than make it a separate article, I will present it as a focused discussion topic for the evening. People can choose to follow that direction if they want, but it satisfies my need to do more research & not feel like I’m wasting my time every day.

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It appears Mike Florio has moved on from shit-stirring to dick-sucking, as he expounds today on how COVID could lead to a “boon” in on-field advertising.

• His premise comes from the real possibility that with no fans attending games, owners will need to supplement lost revenue.
  • And based on reports that the NFL will allow teams to raise their debt limit from $350 million to $500 million, they are already contemplating huge losses for this season.
• He’s talking about a report from CBS Sports that mentions how deep the losses could be.
  • “Games without fans would cost $70 million in gate receipts per team — as a conservative estimate. Count the 10 games (two exhibitions) at a stadium and multiply by $7 million, which several sources indicated would be a fair average across the league.”
    • They will save thousands on expenses like event staffing, but lose out on millions in concession sales and parking.
• The CBS author, Jonathan Jones, uses the Packers publicly available numbers as a guide to estimating league-wide numbers.
  • One benefit to them being a publicly-owned corporation, and likely a thorn in the NFL’s side, is that this status means they have to publish all their numbers, which reporters can report on & the NFLPA can use to extrapolate bargaining points.

• The numbers show that the Packers “profit from operation” was only $724,000 in 2019, which factors in Aaron Rodgers’ new contract, the free agent signing of the Smiths’, and having to hire Lafleur & company to run the show.
  • That will be heavily offset by the huge losses in national & local revenue as a result of steep declines in advertising revenue.
• Both Florio & Jones speculate at where new sources of revenue will come from.
  • On the walls surrounding the field;  
  • Using a tarp across empty seats in the lower bowls;
  • On the goal-post net, a very visible placement for field goals;
  • In-stadium virtual advertising that could be rotated throughout a game; and – borrowing from Europe & the CFL,
  • Ads on jerseys.

• Both of them then come to the same cynical conclusion:
  • “And then, once fans are back and the bridge has been crossed, the new approach to advertising will simply continue, ostensibly to help further replace the revenue lost during the 2020 season. Then, after a few years of getting everyone used to it, the ads will just stay put.”

Profit!

Tonight’s … entertainment?:

• Korea Baseball Organization:
  • KT Wiz at NC Dinos – 2:30 AM | ESPN2
• Classic WWE:
  • WrestleMania 3: From 1987 in Pontiac, Mich. – 8:00 PM | FS1

• Battlebots:
  • 5 straight episodes – 7:00PM | TSN2
• Asian Americans – 8:00PM | PBS
  • How Asian Americans were targeted as perpetual foreigners during the Cold War.
    • An apt comparison to today.
  • Odds on George Takei talking about his WWII internment? 20-1
• The Happy Day of Garry Marshall – 8:00PM | ABC
  • Family and friends share their favorite memories of Hollywood legend Garry Marshall in a one-of-a-kind, heartfelt tribute celebrating his work in TV and Film.
• Ridiculousness – 10:00PM | MTV
  • Wrestling legend Chris Jericho joins Rob, Chanel and Steelo to hit the ring with “Paintakers”; get wild with “Literal Lions”; and get betrayed in “Modern Day Judas.”

What’s hilarious with Canadian broadcasting is that they are showing old hockey games but enforcing regional broadcast rights. So, for example, if TSN is showing Winnipeg vs. Dallas for some reason, I can’t watch it because it’s I don’t live in the right part of the country. So I will get dead air on that channel.  Canadian broadcasting, everyone!