I never got around to addressing this story from last week because I was just crazy busy. Once again, the New England Patriots are under investigation for cheating. This time, a film crew from the team was found to be filming the field during the Bengals’ December 7th game against the Browns. Needless to say that after Spygate a few years ago, the Patriots are likely to get little sympathy this time.
What did happen is that a film crew was granted access to the game even though neither the league nor the Bengals were notified officially that there would be any New England employees at the game other than the regular scouting staff. The team says that the crew was filming a story about the scouting staff, but when approached, the crew offered to just delete the tape, a weird suggestion if you have nothing to hide.
Also, why does a 10-3 team need to get extra footage of a 1-13 team? As expected, the Patriots soundly defeated Cincinnati 34-13 although the Bengals did lead 13-7 and 13-10 at times in the first half. I realize that it seems that Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft’s team will go lengths to win, even illegal ones. Perhaps the Patriots know that this is perhaps the weakest 11-3 team in the league? The defense has played very well, which is to be expected for a Belichick coached team. However, the offense, led by aging future Hall of Famer Tom Brady is not scary like it used to be. Perhaps the retirement of TE Ron Gronkowski had a greater influence on the offense than even football pundits could have guessed? Brady still gets the job done, but it no longer feels as though he is invulnerable anymore. Good teams have come up with schemes to beat the Patriots, and a lot of New England’s record this year is based on beating up on the AFC East. The Jets and Dolphins will be drafting very early in this year’s talent showcase. The Pats defeated the Bills in their first meeting, but the 10-4 Bills go into Foxboro this weekend with the division title at stake, a position the Patriots haven’t been in a over a decade.
One would think that after getting caught and being fined $250,000 and a draft choice the first time they were caught, they would have been much more careful to be open and aboveboard in the future. All the time in my line of work, we go out of our way to avoid even the appearance of conflicts of interest. One would think that everyone in the Patriots organization would have that posted everywhere in the teams’ buildings and offices.

A brief one while we’re talking about the Patriots. A few weeks ago, when the Patriots hosted the Chiefs, star QB Patrick Mahomes’ girlfriend and brother had to be moved to a different place in Gillette Stadium because of the taunting of the fans nearby. Brittany Matthews, Mahomes’ high school sweetheart tweeted her discomfort, including being heckled for standing up and cheering. It didn’t help that the Chiefs beat New England 23-16 and at times, fans were booing the home team. The pair were relocated to a different place during the game (although one has to wonder why they were in the stands anyway – they should have been in one of the suites).
This is one reason, besides the dynastic winning of New England, the cheating, Bob Kraft’s sex worker incidents, that people hate New England.

I don’t pretend to be a reporter here on Evilopinion; I don’t usually do interviews; however, I had an opportunity to speak with someone who intrigued me. I was at the Youngest Indignant Daughter’s Gymnastics class and there was a gentleman sitting in front of me with a Mitch Trubisky jersey. It was a couple of hours before the Bear/Packer game yesterday and I have never seen an adult wearing a Trubisky jersey. I’ve seen kids wearing them and there was a story earlier this year that a kid took abuse from other people when he wore the jersey (I think that’s lame).
There is no more divisive player on the Bears than the quarterback. When your all time best QB retired in 1950 (Sid Luckman), you know there’s been a draught at the position. Other than the Super Bowl Shuffle, Jim McMahon led Bears, the team has had more also rans and never-wases than any other team in football. Trubisky is the current holder of the position and his inconsistent play along with GM Ryan Pace trading up one spot to take him while overlooking Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson has left lots of fans on the “dump Mitch” bandwagon. (While I am also not happy that the Bears chose Trubisky over the two stars, I am skeptical that the franchise and the fan base would warm up to a quarterback of color – of course, wins make people much happier.)
Following in that spirit, the gentleman told me that, as one would expect, people’s reactions to his jersey are mixed. Some people ridicule the Bear QB; others still have hope. My interview subject had the same feeling with his Bears cap on his head and leather Bears jacket draped over the back of his seat. “I think he has potential and I like his arm strength.”
He was a nice man and as I left him, I admit that I still have cautious optimism for Trubisky too, but time is getting short, especially after losing to the Packers and being eliminated from the playoffs after going 12-4 last season. Hope springs eternal.

In the winter, my harbinger of spring is the pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training. When it’s coldest, I think of the number of days to this marker. However, I probably should think about the Baseball Hall of Fame announcements. They come a couple of weeks before the camps open.
For 2020, the announcement comes on January 21st, and lots of people should be excited with the potential of being added to the Hall. The only true “lock” is Derek Jeter; others expected to make a real run in the balloting include racist idiot Curt Schilling and the “Steroid Boys,” Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds. I was not ready for the announcement from the veterans’ committee, which happened over the weekend. As surprised as I was by the fact there was an announcement so early in the cycle, the biggest shock was to come.
Marvin Miller, the union leader who revolutionized baseball by heading the end of the dreaded “reserve Clause” that allowed teams to keep player forever and thereby empowering players to become free agents, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame along with former St. Louis Cardinals catcher Ted Simmons (who is also deserving showing that the BBWA is often wrong).
By permitting free agency, Miller’s work permitted players to negotiate better contracts including many for millions of dollars and to play for teams of their own choosing. Miller, who died at age 95 in 2012, led the Major League Baseball Players Association from 1966 to 1982, a time when players gained the right to free agency after six seasons of big-league service, to salary arbitration and to grievance arbitration. He led the union through five work stoppages and was an adviser during three more after he retired. Next to Curt Flood who sued and failed to end the Reserve Clause, I would argue that Miller is the most influential man in baseball of the second half of the 20th Century. Miller was certainly not a favorite of the owners of the teams, which is why I thought his election would never happen. He fell short in his seven times on veterans committee ballots, and after some of those losses, Miller had asked not to be considered for the Hall, calling the process “a farce.” This year, Miller received 12 of 16 votes from this year’s 16-man modern committee, exactly the 75% required. Simmons was on 13 ballots, and former Boston outfielder Dwight Evans was third with eight.
Now, I wonder what will happen on enshrinement weekend. Miller asked his children not to participate, but every player who played after the 1975 Seitz Decision in arbitration should thank Marvin Miller. This summer, with some owners PO’d and many rolling in their graves, Miller will be enshrined.

With all of the impeachment talk and the headlines of the past three years concerning Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election (and surety that they will do it again next year), one must wonder what is on Vladimir Putin’s mind? The collapse of the Soviet Union wasn’t because some country interfered, it collapsed under the weight of the continually spiraling Cold War weapons spending and the inherent problems with the system.
However, Putin continues with the old game plan, especially concerning sports. With a “win at all costs” mentality to “prove” Russian superiority, it has been proven that a full-fledged doping plan has been in full force which got them banned from the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.
The World Anti-Doping Agency imposed a four-year ban on Russia using its flag, anthem and team names at Olympic and other major sports events. Like 2018, the ban means Russia will be unable to formally compete in next summer’s Olympics and Paralympics in Tokyo and the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. Other major events that fall during the four-year period include world championships and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
WADA’s executive committee voted in Lausanne, Switzerland and concluded that officials in a Moscow anti-doping laboratory had tampered with data. The tampering — before and while the data was being forensically copied by WADA — included planting fake evidence and deleting files linked to positive doping tests that could have helped identify drug cheats. System messages were also fabricated in an effort to hamper the work of WADA investigators. An agency spokesperson said that the executive committee’s vote to punish Russia with a ban was unanimous. Like Pyeongchang the ban permits clean Russian athletes to compete at major international sporting events without their flag or anthem.
Will leaders ever learn that when it comes to cheating, the truth does eventually come out?

There is probably no more testosterone-fueled, Cro-magnon, somewhat racist group of people than “old-school” hockey coaches and fans. Like everything else in life, life is moving fast, too fast for those who thing that things should stay the same.
First of course was Don Cherry, who, after skirting the line of permissible speech on his “Coach’s Corner” broadcasts on Sportnet Canada’s “Hockey Night in Canada” was finally fired for making a statement about immigrants coming to Canada and not wearing poppies on Remembrance Day (U.S. Veteran’s Day). Viewers were outraged – Cherry was an institution, but his more radical views against non-Canadian hockey players, continued fighting in the sport, and immigrants in general became more and more out of touch with the current sensibility. Cherry had become the no longer amusing, grouchy old uncle that everyone has to endure at family functions. “Grapes” (Cherry) doesn’t care – he has moved on to a podcast, but he won’t get the same exposure or money as he did on television.
Then came the stories about Calgary Flames Head Coach Bill Peters. Peters had not been behind the bench for nearly a week when it was disclosed that he directed racist slurs at Akim Aliu, a Nigerian-born player in the minors a decade ago and kicked and punched players behind the bench during his recent time with Carolina. Last Friday Peters resigned as coach of the Flames. General manager Brad Treliving said he received a resignation letter from Peters on Friday that wraps up a weeklong investigation into the veteran coach’s behavior. Peters admitted to the incident in a letter of apology to Flames GM Brad Treliving, saying the comments were made in a “moment of frustration.” Assistant Geoff Ward took over as interim coach with the Flames 12-12-4 and in ninth place in the Western Conference.
The allegations continue. Here in Chicago, Blackhawks assistant coach Marc Crawford is under investigation in light of allegations made about the time that Crawford was Head Coach of the Los Angeles Kings. The New York Post published a story in which former NHL player Sean Avery alleged that Crawford kicked him during a game in the 2006-07 season. “He kicked me after a too many men on the ice call I took,” Avery said. “He didn’t have me serve it, we got scored on, and he let me have it. … You know how I stand at the end of the bench? He came down and gave me a kick [in the behind] that left a mark.” Avery told the Post that he was on Crawford’s bad side after an incident in practice a few days earlier. “This was right after I [messed] up a drill and dumped the puck into the wrong corner, and it landed on Crow’s head and cut him for six [stitches],” Avery said.
Fans are just as bad with African-American and African-Canadian players complaining about verbal abuse like the n-word and having bananas thrown at them. Even with successful players of color in the league like P.K. Subban and others making great strides in the game, there are still reports of players, coaches and fans becoming abusive. The days of players like Mike Milbury going into the stands at Madison Square Garden and beating a fan with his own shoe are over. (Admittedly, the fans were fighting the players.)
I am around junior hockey teams because of my girls’ figure skating and I have yet to see a coach go off on a kid, but if it were my child, there would be repercussions if it happened. Like the other sport of “testosterone” tough guys, football, coaches have had to adjust. Coaches cannot just do whatever they like to players anymore. Hockey parents have been warned and thrown out of games for being too abusive to players, referees and coaches.
It shouldn’t happen at any level. Finally, that “macho” attitude and abuse inflicted years ago by men still earning a living in hockey is coming back to haunt them. It’s about time.

I have mentioned here before a quote from a great, underappreciated B-movie from 1983 called “Blue thunder.” Roy Scheider plays a helicopter pilot for the LAPD when the powers that be want to bring in military gear (much as has already been done for real in many big cities). Anyway, Scheider is in trouble and his boss, played by the great Warren Oates in his last role before his death told him, “when you’re walking on eggs, don’t hop.”
To me, that is the story of the Chicago Cubs and Addison Russell. Russell, who was suspended for 40 games at the start of last season for spousal abuse, was retained by the club along with his multi-million dollar salary despite protests and generally poor PR. Russell then had a poor year on the field, hitting .237 with nine home runs and 23 RBIs before getting hit by a pitch in September which ended his season. With Javy Baez, David Bote and especially up and coming Nico Hoermer at the middle infield positions, Russell’s $5 million cap hit was just too much, and the Cubs released Russell yesterday.
I am not wise enough to decide whether Russell should never play baseball again, but I do know that with his issues, both Russell and the Cubs need a change or scenery. Russell’s issues hung over the team to a small extent last season, helping to poison the atmosphere enough to help the team finish out of the playoffs for the first time in five years. As for Russell, he needs to get away from this atmosphere where his ex-wife and kids are around and the fans know and won’t forget. Not that fans in other cities should forget, but when does a player do something so heinous that he is banned for life, formally or informally? Athletes like Colin Kaepernick are banished through collusion (“too much of a distraction”) or just banned outright (Pete Rose and others).
If we really believe in second chances, then Addison Russell should find another team to take a chance on him, especially if he has been a “model citizen” since the incidents came to light. If he can’t get his act together and he abuses another girlfriend/wife/kid, that’s another story entirely.