Colts-Jaguars Preview and Predictions

Colts Preview by Matthew Wisnefsky

The Colts are traveling to London for the first time and facing the Jacksonville Jaguars this week. Last week the Colts were able to comeback in the 4th quarter for their first win vs the Chargers and I expect that momentum to continue this week vs the 0–3 Jaguars. Andrew Luck, Frank Gore, and TY Hilton played great last week and I expect more of the same from them against the underperforming Jaguars defense. For the Colts defense they were able to improve on some shaky defensive performances last week with the return of DE Henry Anderson and CB Vontae Davis, two players which are instrumental to their success. This week I expect more improvement with the return of CB Patrick Robinson. 

Fantasy Impact

Andrew Luck and TY Hilton are must starts after last weeks performance. Depending on what league you are in you may want to start Gore however he is facing the Jaguars stingy run defense. TE Jack Doyle is a solid starting play even for deeper leagues as he finished second in receptions last game. I’d still roster Dorsett for a week or two as he is the #2 receiver still and while the TE’s took some of his targets no receiver did enough to outseat him from starting outside.

Prediction Colts 31 Jaguars 17

12 Choices for Davis Love III's Final Pick

Davis Love III is making his final pick for the USA Ryder Cup team during halftime of tonight's Sunday Night Football. While making this pick he has many things he needs to consider, does he go with youth or experience? Momentum or historical greatness? Consistency solid or moments of elite flash? These are all things that need to be considered and with that said here are 12 solid choices that would be good for Love's final pick. Note these choices are in no particular order as the author will express his opinion for who deserves to be the final pick at the end of the article.

Current Team

Dustin Johnson
Jordan Spieth
Patrick Reed
Phil Mickelson
Brandt Snedeker
Brooks Koepka
Zach Johnson
Jimmy Walker
Rickie Fowler
J.B. Holmes
Matt Kuchar


1. Bubba Watson

Bubba Watson is the #7 player in the world, has won once already this year, along with a second place finish at Doral and has won 2 majors in the past 6 years. He is also playing in the Tour Championship this year. For most golfers that is a solid year but for Bubba it is a disappointment, as he does not have a top 10 since Doral. In addition there are concerns that he may not be a team player due to his individualistic style.

2. Kevin Chappell

Kevin Chappell is having the best season of his career, 7 top 10's and a 70 spot increase in the OWGR. He is even currently tied for the lead at the Tour Championship so he has momentum on his side. My only concern with him is I'm not sure how his closing ability when it matters most is, as he hasn't been able to turn any of those top 10's into wins.

3. Ryan Moore

Ryan Moore was having a pretty lackluster season up to his standards up until about mid August. Then he was able to win at the John Deere Classic, and he's been playing great since. He has 8 top 10's and is currently T3 at the Tour Championship. My concern with him is that he has not had much success in majors in his career with only 2 top 10's in 35 majors played.

4. Kevin Kisner

After a season in which he heartbreakingly lost in 3 playoffs in a 12 week stand, he was finally able to break through with his first career win at the RSM Classic, as well as getting 5 other top 10's this season. He is 3rd in putting for this PGA Tour season.  He was near top of the Fedex Cup for most of early 2016 but has fallen off a little bit since.

5. Justin Thomas

After a rookie season in which he had 7 Top 10's but finished 32nd in the Fedex Cup and just missed out on a Tour Championship and lost the ROY race to Daniel Berger, Thomas was able to come back and win in Malaysia to make his 1st career trip to East Lake. He has 5 other Top 10's and has built a great rapport with one of the members of the team Jordan Spieth whom he has been friends with since childhood.

6. Daniel Berger

Berger has backed up his ROY season with another return back to East Lake and his first career win at the Fedex St. Jude Classic, along with 5 other Top 10's including one at Augusta. In addition him, Bubba and Justin Thomas were invited with the other Ryder Cup members to practice at Hazeltine so it's possible he could be a choice.

7. Bill Haas

While Haas missed out on the Tour Championship for the first time in a few seasons, he still had a decent season with 6 top 10's including a playoff loss to Charl Schwartzel at the Valspar Championship. A President's cup veteran, having played in 3 Cup's he has never played at the Ryder Cup yet. However Haas has been able to come up in clutch situations throughout his career, as he's best known for his shot from the water on the first playoff hole which helped him defeat Hunter Mahan at the Tour Championship. He has struggled in majors though with only 1 top 10 in 29 starts, though that top 10 was at this years Open.

8. Kevin Na

Yes, if you look at the leaderboard at the Tour Championship you'll see Kevin Na in last by a lot but he has had a very solid season with 8 top 10's including a few second place finishes. He was able to qualify for the Tour Championship even with missing a playoff event for the birth of his daughter. The concerning thing for me with him is his driving as he averages less than 280 yards off the tee which is 173rd on tour.

9. Jim Furyk

Jim Furyk was injured until May with a wrist injury so he was only able to play 14 events, which contributed to the fact that the wasn't even able to make the BMW Championship. He was only able to get 3 top 10's as well. Though one of those Top 10's was a T2 at the US Open, and another one was at the Travelers where he set the PGA Tour record for shooting the lowest round ever a 58. He has a lot of Ryder Cup experience as well.

10. Steve Stricker

It seems the less golf that Steve Stricker plays the better golfer he is. Unlike Furyk he chose to play a limited amount events on purpose and only had 3 top 10's in 15 starts. But he lead the PGA Tour in scrambling, and one of those top 10's was a T4 at The Open.

11. Bryson DeChambeau

Even with his limited success as a PGA Tour player with decent finishings at the Masters and US Open and a top 10. DeChambeau was unable to get his PGA Tour card so he had to play the Web.com tour finals, so what did the former #1 amateur do? He won his first event and got his full PGA Tour Card.

12. Tiger Woods

While Tiger hasn't played any event this season, no one can deny the success he's had on Tour and the Ryder Cup. He is on the road back and is scheduled to play in the first event of the season in Mid-October which means he must be close to 100%. The fact is that no player drives as many fans as Tiger does even if he isn't what he once was, and the crowd is greatly important during Ryder Cups.

Recommendation: Love should pick Bubba only if Chappell or Moore don't win. If Chappell or Moore win then he should pick the winner. If neither of them win, and Bubba does really bad today, then he should go with Furyk.

Colts-Chargers Preview and Prediction

Due to the fact that I am now writing for an additional blog I will now be offering a preview and fantasy impact on every Colts game. 

Colts Preview 

It’s the Pagano Bowl this week as Colts head coach Chuck Pagano faces his brother John who is the defensive coordinator for the Chargers. The Colts started off their season 0–2 and are looking for a win to jump start their season. Last game was a difficult one all around as Von Miller almost single handedly destroyed the Colts offense. Andrew Luck could not improve upon his spectacular Week 1 performance vs the Lions as he threw for less than 200 yards vs the vaunted Broncos defense. Luckily he faces an easier matchup against the Chargers who unlike the Broncos do not have an all time great defense at their disposal. The problem the Colts are facing this week is that they are suffering from a myriad of injuries. About every single significant DB except for Safety Mike Adams has missed time due to injuries which has contributed to their slow start. Luckily it looks like DE Henry Anderson may be healthy enough to make his season debut this week. He was tremendous at stopping the run last season, and the defense has really regressed since he suffered a season ending injury in the middle of last season. It was also announced recently that WR Donte Moncrief will miss about a month due to a shoulder injury and this will propel former 1st round pick Phillip Dorsett into a starting spot. 

Fantasy Impact

Due to Donte Moncrief’s injury Phillip Dorsett now rises to probably a WR3 so he may be a good flex play in deeper leagues. Look for WR TY Hilton, TE’s Dwayne Allen and Jack Doyle, and possibly even WR Quan Bray to receive targets in Moncrief’s absence. Andrew Luck is still a solid QB1 this week and should definitely be startable in all leagues. RB Frank Gore once again keeps on defying age and while he may not be a RB1 or RB2 anymore he’s still a great flex play. He’s looked great so far this season and I could see him possibly being the Colts first 100 yard rusher since 2012. At this point the Colts D S/T shouldn’t even be considered even as a sneaky waiver wire pick until further notice, there is just too many injuries in the secondary for them to provide significant fantasy points. 

Prediction Colts 29 Chargers 23

2016-2017 NFL Season Predictions

The 2016-2017 NFL season is starting soon and here are my predictions for this upcoming season.

AFC East

Patriots: 12-4
Jets: 9-7
Bills: 7-9
Dolphins: 6-10

AFC North

Ravens: 10-6
Bengals: 10-6
Steelers: 9-7
Browns: 2-14

AFC South

Jaguars: 11-5
Colts: 9-7
Texans: 8-8
Titans: 4-12

AFC West

Raiders: 10-6
Chiefs: 9-7
Broncos: 6-10
Chargers: 4-12


NFC East

Giants: 10-6
Eagles: 7-9
Redskins: 6-10
Cowboys: 4-12

NFC North

Packers: 13-3
Bears: 7-9
Lions: 7-9
Vikings: 5-11

NFC South

Panthers: 12-4
Bucs: 9-7
Falcons: 7-9
Saints: 6-10

NFC West

Cardinals: 14-2
Seahawks: 12-4
Rams: 5-11
49ers: 1-15


AFC Seeds

1. Patriots
2. Jaguars
3. Raiders
4. Ravens
5. Bengals
6. Colts

NFC Seeds

1. Cardinals
2. Packers
3. Panthers
4. Giants
5. Seahawks
6. Bucs


Wild Card Weekend

Colts 27 Raiders 24

Ravens 21 Bengals 10

Panthers 35 Bucs 17

Seahawks 27 Giants 3

Divisional Round

Colts 24 Jaguars 20

Ravens 45 Patriots 42

Seahawks 21 Cardinals 17

Packers 34 Panthers 21

Conference Championships

Ravens 30 Colts 14

Packers 42 Seahawks 30

Super Bowl Sunday

Ravens 21 Packers 17

Super Bowl Champions: Ravens

MVP: Aaron Rodgers-Packers

OPOY-Aaron Rodgers Packers

DPOY-Tyrann Mathieu-Cardinals

OROY-Breshad Perriman-Ravens

DROY-Vernon Hargreaves-Bucs

Coach of the Year-Ben McAdoo-Giants

NFL Man of the Year-Eli Manning-Giants

Comeback Player of the Year-Andrew Luck-Colts

2016-2017 PGA Tour Season Preview and Predictions

The 2015-2016 PGA Tour Season is winding down and it's about time to review my predictions from last year and make some new ones for this year

Successes from last years predictions

I was able to pick correctly 2 correct winners for the tournaments. I had Brandt Snedeker winning the Farmers Insurance Open and Jason Day winning the WGC Match Play

I correctly was able to pick 13 winners this year even though I did not pick the correct tournament Danny Lee, Jimmy Walker, Tony Finau, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Bubba Watson, Adam Scott, Jason Dufner, Hideki Matsuyama, Kevin Kisner, Charlie Hoffman, Ryan Moore.

Even though they do not have the Comeback Player of the Year Award and I was unaware of that I correctly predicted KJ Choi to have a bounceback year even though he hasn't won a tournament.

Failures from last year

I had Steven Bowditch winning a tournament. You can basically pencil Steven Bowditch in for last or close to it every tournament he plays in

I had Tiger Woods winning two tournaments including at Augusta. Tiger hasn't played all year

I had Oliver Schneiderjans winning a tournament, he did not have PGA Tour Status this year

I had Tim Clark winning a tournament this year he finished this year 205th in the Fedex Cup

I had Eddie Pepperell winning The Open, he was not even close to qualifying for The Open.


So here are my predictions for every tournament this season

Safeway Open: Jamie Lovemark

CIMB Classic: John Senden

Sanderson Farms Championship: Wesley Bryan

WGC HSBC Champions:  Bubba Watson

Shriner's Hospital For Children's Open: Bud Cauley

OHL Classic at Mayakoba: Tony Finau

The RSM Classic: Luke Donald

World Cup of Golf: Thailand Thongchai Jaidee and Kiradech Aphibarnrat

Hero World Challenge: Jason Day

Franklin Templeton Shootout: Zach Johnson and Patrick Rodgers

Tournament of Champions: Jimmy Walker

Sony Open in Hawaii: Patrick Reed

CareerBuilder Challenge: Charlie Hoffman

Farmers Insurance Open: Ryan Palmer

Waste Management Phoenix Open: Russell Knox

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am: Matt Kuchar

Genesis Open: Adam Scott

The Honda Classic: Russell Henley

WGC: Mexico Championship: Hideki Matsuyama

Valspar Championship: Dustin Johnson

Arnold Palmer Invitational: Jordan Spieth

WGC Match Play: Rory McIlroy

Puerto Rico Open: Oliver Schneiderjans

Shell Houston Open: Bill Haas

Masters Tournament: Bubba Watson

RBC Heritage: Matt Jones

Valero Texas Open: Jimmy Walker

Zurich Classic of New Orleans: Justin Rose

Wells Fargo Championship: Jim Furyk

The Players Championship: Danny Lee

AT&T Byron Nelson: Richy Werenski

Dean And DeLuca Invitational: Jordan Spieth

The Memorial Tournament: David Lingmerth

Fedex St. Jude Classic: Tiger Woods

U.S. Open: Louis Oosthuizen

Travelers Championship: Steve Stricker

Quicken Loans National: Dustin Johnson

The Greenbrier Classic: Daniel Berger

John Deere Classic: Jordan Spieth

Barbasol Championship: Seung Yul Noh

The Open Championship: Charl Schwartzel

RBC Canadian Open: Jon Rahm

Barracuda Championship: JJ Spaun

WGC Bridgestone Invitational: Sergio Garcia

PGA Championship: Matthew Fitzpatrick

Wyndham Championship: Scott Brown

Northern Trust Open: Scott Piercy

Deutsche Bank Championship: Rory McIlroy

BMW Championship: Jason Day

Tour Championship: Jason Day

Fedex Cup Champion: Jason Day

Presidents Cup Rosters

USA

1. Jordan Spieth
2. Dustin Johnson
3. Bubba Watson
4. Jimmy Walker
5. Patrick Reed
6. Zach Johnson
7. Phil Mickelson
8. Matt Kuchar
9. Tiger Woods
10. Rickie Fowler
11. Scott Piercy
12. Jim Furyk


International

1. Jason Day
2. Adam Scott
3. Louis Oosthuizen
4. Charl Schwartzel
5. Branden Grace
6. Hideki Matsuyama
7. Danny Lee
8. Byeong Hun An
9. Emiliano Grillo
10. Thongchai Jaidee
11. Kiradech Aphibarnrat
12. Vijay Singh

Prediction Winner USA 16-14

The Ideal Olympics

So with the Olympics ending today I thought it would be a good idea to come up with a list of sports that should be added to future Olympics

Baseball/Softball

While baseball and softball are America's pastime they also have great appeal over many countries across the world. The issue is that the Olympics usually fall in August which is in the middle of the MLB season so MLB players may not be able to participate. It may be a good idea for MLB to do what hockey does and have a break in the MLB season every Olympic year for the athletes to participate.

Match Play Golf

While this years Olympic golf has not been able to get the most high profile stars to participate and has had to settle for lesser known stars such as Espen Kofstad and Rodolfo Cazaubon instead, it should still be a great event. I think it would be even better to grow the game to do a match play competition as well, as match play is a great format that would attract a lot of fans.

1000m IM

Swimming is always a great sport to watch, and the quick races are always high drama and intensity. However, these swimmers are great athletes and I think a race like a 1000 IM would be a great test of athletes endurance and be very entertaining to watch

Ultramarathon

The long distance running events are always great to watch, however the fact that the runners are just running around on a track can get a little bit boring and can cause dizziness and headaches for some viewers, that's why I feel an event like the Ultramarathon which is a race that is longer than a marathon would be a great


Poker and Billiards

These two games I think would be great to add to the Olympics because they both require a lot of skill and precision and have some popularity around the world.

Racing

While there is biking in the Olympics I think a good addition would be some kind of car race, not necessarily Nascar as building a track would be an unnecessary expense but some kind of race around the countryside with all the best racers in the world, would definitely draw a huge fanbase

Football

While one kind of football is already in the Olympics, I believe another one deserves to be in it as well. The NFL wants to expand to London in the very near future and soon after that it will probably want teams all over Europe and all over the rest of the world. Many of these people have never seen nor understand the American version of football, so if it is added to the Olympics then these people may finally get a chance to see the sport and maybe grow to like it, and that could draw more talent from all around the world.

40 Yard Dash

The 40 yard dash is always one of the most exciting things to watch at the NFL Combine and I think it would be a great Olympic sport. No other sport would require you to start off sprinting your absolute fastest right away in order to win, and I think that would be great for the Olympics.

Trivia Question

What do Cesar Izturis, Roy Halladay, Cecil Fielder, Felix Hernandez, Jesse Barfield, Shawn Green, and Joc Pederson all have in common?