I didn't like it. But then, I didn't expect to like it.
Like most people, I was intrigued when it was announced in 2012 that Disney was acquiring Lucasfilm and would be producing a sequel trilogy. Not long afterwards, I watched the J.J. Abrams film Super 8. Suddenly I felt concerned. Super 8 was tantalizing before ultimately collapsing into an incoherent mess.
Having just forked over a wad of money to endure the ninth installment of the Skywalker Saga, I can now say that my concerns were not without merit. I was done with this one long before the closing credits rolled.
Here are my gripes with The Rise of Skywalker in no particular order:
First off, dumb title. What does it even mean? Rey's not really a Skywalker, and Luke is dead. What exactly is rising? Of course, none of the titles of the sequel trilogy have really been clever. It would have made more sense for Episode IX to be called The Last Jedi and call Episode XIII something else. I guess it's proof that they didn't really have a plan for any of this - just throwing crap against a wall and figuring out what sticks. Maybe J.J. will fix that in 20 years when we get the special edition re-edits.
Not a single memorable line of dialogue. Nothing clever. Nothing that even made you at least chuckle a little bit. No witty banter. A few solemn words spoken about the universe and how they're all going to show up and help if they just go fight the evil.
Poe and Finn are soooo boring. I know Poe is supposed to be the new version of Han Solo, the reckless nonconformist with amazing piloting skills, but let's be honest: no little kid is running around the house pretending to be Poe. And isn't that the name of the guy in Kung Fu Panda? As for Finn, in The Force Awakens, Finn seemed like he was going to have an important purpose in this new trilogy, but it turned out to be his ability to find equally pointless female characters to run around with. His was an interesting character idea but ultimately the idea went nowhere. I don't think there's much of a market for novelizations of the adventures of Poe and Finn post-Episode 9.
The undead Emperor Palpatine being all creepy down in the Sith cave was kind of cool. And the way they used him to tie up some loose ends worked fine. But it also seemed like they were admitting, "You know what? We tried creating some new characters, and they all suck." Did we need to see Han Solo again? (Nope) Did Lando really need to be in this to make it work? (Nothing against Lando, but the answer is no) If we think BB-8 is cool, why are C-3PO and R2-D2 still prominent? Threepio had way too many lines and was cringeworthy throughout. And when Luke showed up, I was fit to be tied. I'm so done with crusty old man Luke. I did not need to see him again.
Not much of a story. Just rushing from one video game sequence to another. It reminded me of a Marvel movie. And I don't like those either. Whatever story they try to tell is borrowed from the earlier movies.
I know it's science "fiction" but it doesn't even seem like they're trying to get you to suspend your disbelief anymore. I'm not a physicist, but fighting a battle on the surface of a Star Destroyer? Is that a thing that could happen, even in a galaxy far, far away?
Maybe they were using the force, because what can't the force do? Apparently it can pass physical objects
through some dimension of space. And do video chats. And blow up ships. And heal. And suck the life force from
people. Are Jedis in fact mutants from X-men? I've had this opinion for
awhile but I think the Jedi have been weighing down the movies for too long. Rogue One and Solo were better films because
they didn't have to be preoccupied so much with the force.
If Rey is the ultimate powerful Jedi, why did she need ghost Luke to pull
his crappy X-wing out of the water with the force? Rey was blowing
ships to smithereens using the force just an hour earlier. You know she had to use the force to get that forty year old piece of junk running. How many years
had it been submerged like that? And she didn't even have a droid to help her
fly it.
The Death Star ruins were also kind of cool. But it introduced a bunch of recycled ideas from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi: the Death Star throne room, Luke going into the cave and seeing his image in Vader's mask, Vader's deathbed repentance. Really? Nothing original?
I've always wondered about passage of time in these movies. And this is a gripe with all of them and not just the latest. It bugs me that they send out a signal and the entire fleet is on the scene in like 15 seconds but yet they're always losing maps and can't figure out where some of the worlds are. Rey never changed clothes once the entire film even though she'd been training and crawling around in an old Death Star and fighting lightsaber battles out in the rain. She probably really needed a shower.
No romance at all in this trilogy. We had Han and Leia in the original trilogy and Padme and Anakin in the prequels. Young Han and Qi'ra in Solo. But this trilogy? Nothing. They waved at it a few times, like with Finn and Rose in the last one and Poe and the Keri Russell character this time around, but nothing interesting or ongoing. I guess they would say Kylo and Rey, but that's still super weird. Did anyone really want to see them kiss? Not me.
The lesbian kiss wasn't that subtle. They might as well have zoomed in for the close-up. But if you're going to be woke, J.J., let's be woke! Don't waste the big moment on a couple of throwaway characters! I'm sure they could have figured out a way for Rey to kiss a CGI Leia or something. It wouldn't have been any more uncomfortable than her kissing Kylo and no one cares about any of these characters anymore anyways.
The ending was interesting. Return of the Jedi brought up questions of incest in a galaxy far, far, away when Leia and Luke were revealed to be twins. The last scene in The Rise of Skywalker could have been interpreted a little differently if they hadn't already spelled out Rey's parentage earlier in the movie...
Maybe I'm just too old and grumpy. I had to be the guy afterwards who didn't like it when everyone else did. Maybe if I go see it again I'll appreciate it a little more and I'll be like, yeah, it's so great. It doesn't matter because none of this is of any significant consequence to my life. And I'll be back in a couple of years when Disney releases the next one. Because I don't like the comic book movies and I have to have at least one movie event in my life that I can go participate in. So the joke's on me.
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Denver Broncos 2019 Recap
I'm reposting my Broncos preseason outlook here with my postseason comments. I think I was pretty spot-on, if I do say so myself.
The two biggest changes in 2019 are new head coach Vic Fangio and new quarterback Joe Flacco. Fangio has received good reviews thus far, but he's still unproven as a head coach. Flacco has a nice resume, but he's also 34 years old. There were reasons to be concerned about the F&F Connection heading into this year, and certainly Fangio had some rough patches although the strong finish ended talk of a one-and-done season. Flacco's Bronco career ended halfway through his first season due to injury and mediocre performance.
Otherwise, this is more or less the same team that went 6-10 last year. They've added some veteran help in the secondary, so the defense figures to continue to be solid. They succeeded in keeping the Broncos in most games, but often failed to protect late leads. Most of the question marks are on the offensive side. Will the offensive line perform any better? Mmmmm... Will any tight ends be able to stay on the field? Actually, yes. Is Emmanuel Sanders healthy? Yes, but wanted out as soon as it was apparent this bunch was not headed to the playoffs. How will RB Phillip Lindsay perform coming off a Pro Bowl rookie season? Followed up with a second consecutive 1,000 yard season. Will any of their young talent, such as Royce Freeman, Noah Fant, or Courtland Sutton, break through to stardom? Clearly, Sutton was the breakout star this year (72 catches for 1,112 yards) and Fant had some big plays which hinted of great things yet to come.
My guess is that we'll be disappointed in the answers to some of those questions. I will say the answers were more positive than negative. However, if Fangio's leadership and Flacco's experience make a difference, we could be in for a nice surprise. It's not out of the question that we could see their record flip to 10-6 in 2019. And it wasn't - this was a 7-9 team which failed to hold fourth quarter leads in four different games. We could be prepping for a wildcard round trip to Foxborough this weekend if they had held on to a couple of those.
And really, who are the insurmountable threats in the AFC, beyond the Chiefs and the Patriots? As it turns out, the Ravens. Are you really terrified of anyone else? The Ravens. The new-look Jets? Nope. The Titans or Texans? Both made the playoffs this year, but the Broncos shut out the Titans and blew the doors off the Texans in their own building. The Luck-less Colts? Not really, although this was one of those games the Broncos gave away. The Steelers and old man Roethlisberger? Nah. TheSan Diego Los Angeles Trash Cans? Broncos swept them this year. Some are expecting the Browns to make a leap forward, but are you sure about that? I was pretty sure they were nothing to worry about, and I was correct. Another losing season in the books for Cleveland!
Sure, a couple of really good teams will emerge as the season goes along, but we don't know who those are just yet. The Ravens. So why wouldn't you give the Broncos a shot at a wildcard spot? If not for the slow start, they would have been in the mix until the final weekend.
If they can get to Thanksgiving at 6-5, they're definitely in the mix with three home dates in December. They were 3-8 at Thanksgiving and that's why they weren't in the mix. But if Flacco gets off to a rough start, people are going to get impatient really quick and the Broncos could be drafting in the top 10 next year. Yup - folks were ready for Drew Lock before we even made it to Halloween.
Honestly, I think it seems like this year will be a modest improvement to 8-8. It was a modest improvement to 7-9. They'll look really good at times but will also lose some that they shouldn't, and will likely fall short of the playoffs in what looks to be a tough AFC West. Times when they looked really good: when they led playoff teams Minnesota and Houston at halftime by scores of 20-0 and 31-3. Times when they lost those they shouldn't: losing that same game to Minny, and losing games in the final minute to the Bears, Jaguars, and Colts. The AFC West turned out to be underwhelming outside of the Chiefs. The Broncos finished second.
Overall, it's encouraging to head into the offseason having gone 4-1 in December and not having head coach or quarterback at the top of your priorities. After two consecutive solid drafts, they need to keep bringing in good players regardless of position. Although I think the offensive line should be among their draft priorities - the free agency route hasn't worked out so well...
The two biggest changes in 2019 are new head coach Vic Fangio and new quarterback Joe Flacco. Fangio has received good reviews thus far, but he's still unproven as a head coach. Flacco has a nice resume, but he's also 34 years old. There were reasons to be concerned about the F&F Connection heading into this year, and certainly Fangio had some rough patches although the strong finish ended talk of a one-and-done season. Flacco's Bronco career ended halfway through his first season due to injury and mediocre performance.
Otherwise, this is more or less the same team that went 6-10 last year. They've added some veteran help in the secondary, so the defense figures to continue to be solid. They succeeded in keeping the Broncos in most games, but often failed to protect late leads. Most of the question marks are on the offensive side. Will the offensive line perform any better? Mmmmm... Will any tight ends be able to stay on the field? Actually, yes. Is Emmanuel Sanders healthy? Yes, but wanted out as soon as it was apparent this bunch was not headed to the playoffs. How will RB Phillip Lindsay perform coming off a Pro Bowl rookie season? Followed up with a second consecutive 1,000 yard season. Will any of their young talent, such as Royce Freeman, Noah Fant, or Courtland Sutton, break through to stardom? Clearly, Sutton was the breakout star this year (72 catches for 1,112 yards) and Fant had some big plays which hinted of great things yet to come.
My guess is that we'll be disappointed in the answers to some of those questions. I will say the answers were more positive than negative. However, if Fangio's leadership and Flacco's experience make a difference, we could be in for a nice surprise. It's not out of the question that we could see their record flip to 10-6 in 2019. And it wasn't - this was a 7-9 team which failed to hold fourth quarter leads in four different games. We could be prepping for a wildcard round trip to Foxborough this weekend if they had held on to a couple of those.
And really, who are the insurmountable threats in the AFC, beyond the Chiefs and the Patriots? As it turns out, the Ravens. Are you really terrified of anyone else? The Ravens. The new-look Jets? Nope. The Titans or Texans? Both made the playoffs this year, but the Broncos shut out the Titans and blew the doors off the Texans in their own building. The Luck-less Colts? Not really, although this was one of those games the Broncos gave away. The Steelers and old man Roethlisberger? Nah. The
Sure, a couple of really good teams will emerge as the season goes along, but we don't know who those are just yet. The Ravens. So why wouldn't you give the Broncos a shot at a wildcard spot? If not for the slow start, they would have been in the mix until the final weekend.
If they can get to Thanksgiving at 6-5, they're definitely in the mix with three home dates in December. They were 3-8 at Thanksgiving and that's why they weren't in the mix. But if Flacco gets off to a rough start, people are going to get impatient really quick and the Broncos could be drafting in the top 10 next year. Yup - folks were ready for Drew Lock before we even made it to Halloween.
Honestly, I think it seems like this year will be a modest improvement to 8-8. It was a modest improvement to 7-9. They'll look really good at times but will also lose some that they shouldn't, and will likely fall short of the playoffs in what looks to be a tough AFC West. Times when they looked really good: when they led playoff teams Minnesota and Houston at halftime by scores of 20-0 and 31-3. Times when they lost those they shouldn't: losing that same game to Minny, and losing games in the final minute to the Bears, Jaguars, and Colts. The AFC West turned out to be underwhelming outside of the Chiefs. The Broncos finished second.
Overall, it's encouraging to head into the offseason having gone 4-1 in December and not having head coach or quarterback at the top of your priorities. After two consecutive solid drafts, they need to keep bringing in good players regardless of position. Although I think the offensive line should be among their draft priorities - the free agency route hasn't worked out so well...
Tuesday, November 26, 2019
Temple and Priesthood Preparation Meeting
I was recently tasked with planning the annual temple and priesthood preparation meeting for our ward. The internet wasn't terribly helpful for my situation. The church's official description didn't really answer my specific questions such as, "what exactly should the program look like" and the blogosphere was offering me mostly ideas on printables and coordinated decorations and refreshments. Which makes sense as this is a meeting typically planned by primary leaders. But I'm a young men leader. My situation was a little unique as we have five boys advancing to deacons quorum next year but no girls advancing to young women's. So it wound up a little more boy-oriented. Here's an outline of my program which might be helpful if you ever find yourself in a pinch.
Conducting: Bishopric Member
Opening Song: I Am a Child of God
Opening Prayer: Deacons Quorum Member
Talk: Young Men's Leader on the priesthood. I gave the talk and used this video
Talk: Deacons Quorum Presidency Member on "The Duties of a Deacon"
Intermission: With some adult supervision, Deacons Quorum President takes deacons and 11-year-old boys to chapel and teaches about passing the sacrament. Parents and other leaders stay behind for questions on their children becoming part of the youth programs and activities.
Video (to bring the reverence back after sending a pack of boys out of the room)
Talk: Bishopric Member on entering the temple and receiving a temple recommend
Closing Song: I Love to See The Temple
Closing Prayer: Deacons Quorum Member
Refreshments (This is a church meeting after all)
It worked pretty well for something put together in less than 48 hours. You would probably need to adapt it somewhat if girls were invited to attend.
Conducting: Bishopric Member
Opening Song: I Am a Child of God
Opening Prayer: Deacons Quorum Member
Talk: Young Men's Leader on the priesthood. I gave the talk and used this video
Talk: Deacons Quorum Presidency Member on "The Duties of a Deacon"
Intermission: With some adult supervision, Deacons Quorum President takes deacons and 11-year-old boys to chapel and teaches about passing the sacrament. Parents and other leaders stay behind for questions on their children becoming part of the youth programs and activities.
Video (to bring the reverence back after sending a pack of boys out of the room)
Talk: Bishopric Member on entering the temple and receiving a temple recommend
Closing Song: I Love to See The Temple
Closing Prayer: Deacons Quorum Member
Refreshments (This is a church meeting after all)
It worked pretty well for something put together in less than 48 hours. You would probably need to adapt it somewhat if girls were invited to attend.
The Book of James
James is an amazing book of scripture. I first really gained an appreciation for it about three years ago, but as it was the gospel study lesson in Come, Follow Me this past week, I enjoyed going back through it again. James is kind of underrated in my opinion.
Among Latter-day Saints, James is famed for giving us the fifth verse of the first chapter: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. And with good reason: that single verse unlocked a flood of revelation in the latter days.
But what about some of the other gems?
For instance, verses 22 through 28 of chapter 1, which teach of us the importance of living our religion daily. I especially like 23 and 24: For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. Our practice of religion has to be more than an occasional glance in the mirror. We need to be monitoring our progress on a regular basis - daily is ideal.
Chapter 2, verse 10 seems a little harsh: For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. But what about being imperfect, and occasionally stumbling? Does this mean our weaknesses wipe away the good things that we do? I had to think about it a little, and I don't think that's what it means. Think of it in terms of qualifying for a temple recommend. There's no allowance for being out of line on one or two questions in the interview. You're either compliant with all of the Lord's standards, or you don't get the recommend. I think it's a matter of being "all in" as we've heard in some recent conference talks, and avoiding the pitfalls of selective obedience.
We don't have to lay a finger on another person in order to hurt them. Just as physical injuries may have a lifelong affect, emotional and spiritual wounds may stay with us for years. And in modern times, it's even easier to hurt people with words - and we don't even need to open our mouths. We just need a keyboard and an internet connection. Spend a few minutes on social media or message boards and see what I mean. Try reading those verses again and replace "tongue" with "fingers" and see how well the counsel still applies.
Chapter 4, verse 14. Our life here on this earth is only temporary: For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
I was reading chapter 5 a couple of years ago and verses 14 and 15 really stood out to me. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
It was a passage that stopped me in my tracks. Did that just say what I think it said? That if we receive a priesthood blessing with faith to be healed physically, that our sins are forgiven? It does indeed give that promise. The same faith in Christ that allows for our bodies to be healed is the same faith in Christ that allows us to become clean spiritually.
Among Latter-day Saints, James is famed for giving us the fifth verse of the first chapter: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. And with good reason: that single verse unlocked a flood of revelation in the latter days.
But what about some of the other gems?
For instance, verses 22 through 28 of chapter 1, which teach of us the importance of living our religion daily. I especially like 23 and 24: For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass. For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. Our practice of religion has to be more than an occasional glance in the mirror. We need to be monitoring our progress on a regular basis - daily is ideal.
Chapter 2, verse 10 seems a little harsh: For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. But what about being imperfect, and occasionally stumbling? Does this mean our weaknesses wipe away the good things that we do? I had to think about it a little, and I don't think that's what it means. Think of it in terms of qualifying for a temple recommend. There's no allowance for being out of line on one or two questions in the interview. You're either compliant with all of the Lord's standards, or you don't get the recommend. I think it's a matter of being "all in" as we've heard in some recent conference talks, and avoiding the pitfalls of selective obedience.
Chapter 3 provides us great caution regarding our communications, in verses 5 through 8: Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
Chapter 4, verse 14. Our life here on this earth is only temporary: For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
I was reading chapter 5 a couple of years ago and verses 14 and 15 really stood out to me. Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
It was a passage that stopped me in my tracks. Did that just say what I think it said? That if we receive a priesthood blessing with faith to be healed physically, that our sins are forgiven? It does indeed give that promise. The same faith in Christ that allows for our bodies to be healed is the same faith in Christ that allows us to become clean spiritually.
Anyways, those are some of my favorite passages from James. I didn't even include them all! I have maybe a half-dozen others that I have marked but didn't comment on above.
To finish off the post, here's one last verse, which is also the last verse in the book of James. Another great promise of forgiveness: Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
Saturday, November 23, 2019
Better Lucky Than Good
Heading into this year's fantasy football season, I had neither the time or inclination to put much effort into my fantasy draft. I spent maybe 15 minutes skimming a couple of articles and made the decision to stick closely to the ESPN player rankings. It's usually hard for me to get excited about football in August, and the fact that I was coming off of a 4-9 season a year ago added to my indifference.
And my draft, despite the shift in strategy, wasn't much better than previous years. Devonta Freeman (2nd round), George Kittle (3rd round), T.Y. Hilton (4th round), and Alshon Jeffrey (5th round) have all been underwhelming considering their draft positions. A.J. Green (6th round) and David Njoku (8th round) have lost most of their seasons to injury.
However, two really good draft picks and two really good waiver pickups have made up the difference. I had the #2 overall pick in the draft and on a hunch took Christian McCaffrey (ranked #3) over Ezekiel Elliott. McCaffrey is the top scoring fantasy player to date, and has outscored Elliott by a wide margin. In the ninth round, I picked up Russell Wilson as my quarterback. He's produced the second most points for quarterbacks, and is ranked fifth among all players. Not bad value.
Back in September, I picked up undrafted receivers John Brown and D.J. Chark within a few days of each other. They've outpaced my drafted receivers. Chark has accumulated the sixth most points among wide receivers, and Brown is ranked #13.
The result? I'm 10-1 and riding a nine-game winning streak. The one game I lost was by a single point, when McCaffrey had his worst game of the season in week 2. I clinched the top overall seed in the playoffs and so now I have the next three weeks with nothing to play for. It's so bizarre. I expect that every week will be the one where it finally comes to an end, but I just keep winning.
Case-in-point: last week. In our league, we only have four bench spots. I had Wilson, my QB, on a bye, and three others out with injury (Kittle, Hilton, Freeman). Plus I had Emmanuel Sanders who was questionable, but playing in the Sunday afternoon time slot. I already had three WRs filling the active spots and playing in the early slate of games, so I couldn't wait to see if he was going to play. I I didn't want to drop any of these players, so I decided to just play the week with a depleted lineup and an empty TE slot. I figured I would lose and just sacrifice the game for the long-term good of my season.
Nope. I had my highest point total since week 1, racking up 153 points behind 34 from Brown, 30 from Chark, 30 from McCaffrey, and 18 from Jamison Crowder (a more recent free agent pickup), and winning comfortably.
I can't explain it. I've just been lucky all season. Even though I have the most points scored overall in the league, I also have the fewest points against, which is something I have absolutely no control over. For example: my worst week of the season was week 7 (McCaffrey was on a bye). I only managed 85 points. But the opponent had a bad week (59) so I got the win anyways.
In real football, when a team clinches early, the concern is that they will lose their momentum or edge. I don't know if that applies in fantasy football. For me, only two weeks matter for the rest of the season: week 15 and 16. What do I do? Continue to make roster moves? Go with the guys that got me here? Pray that no one suffers a season-ending injury? Don't write a blog post about my success prematurely?
Or maybe, I'll just enjoy it, because who knows when this will ever happen again?
And my draft, despite the shift in strategy, wasn't much better than previous years. Devonta Freeman (2nd round), George Kittle (3rd round), T.Y. Hilton (4th round), and Alshon Jeffrey (5th round) have all been underwhelming considering their draft positions. A.J. Green (6th round) and David Njoku (8th round) have lost most of their seasons to injury.
However, two really good draft picks and two really good waiver pickups have made up the difference. I had the #2 overall pick in the draft and on a hunch took Christian McCaffrey (ranked #3) over Ezekiel Elliott. McCaffrey is the top scoring fantasy player to date, and has outscored Elliott by a wide margin. In the ninth round, I picked up Russell Wilson as my quarterback. He's produced the second most points for quarterbacks, and is ranked fifth among all players. Not bad value.
Back in September, I picked up undrafted receivers John Brown and D.J. Chark within a few days of each other. They've outpaced my drafted receivers. Chark has accumulated the sixth most points among wide receivers, and Brown is ranked #13.
The result? I'm 10-1 and riding a nine-game winning streak. The one game I lost was by a single point, when McCaffrey had his worst game of the season in week 2. I clinched the top overall seed in the playoffs and so now I have the next three weeks with nothing to play for. It's so bizarre. I expect that every week will be the one where it finally comes to an end, but I just keep winning.
Case-in-point: last week. In our league, we only have four bench spots. I had Wilson, my QB, on a bye, and three others out with injury (Kittle, Hilton, Freeman). Plus I had Emmanuel Sanders who was questionable, but playing in the Sunday afternoon time slot. I already had three WRs filling the active spots and playing in the early slate of games, so I couldn't wait to see if he was going to play. I I didn't want to drop any of these players, so I decided to just play the week with a depleted lineup and an empty TE slot. I figured I would lose and just sacrifice the game for the long-term good of my season.
Nope. I had my highest point total since week 1, racking up 153 points behind 34 from Brown, 30 from Chark, 30 from McCaffrey, and 18 from Jamison Crowder (a more recent free agent pickup), and winning comfortably.
I can't explain it. I've just been lucky all season. Even though I have the most points scored overall in the league, I also have the fewest points against, which is something I have absolutely no control over. For example: my worst week of the season was week 7 (McCaffrey was on a bye). I only managed 85 points. But the opponent had a bad week (59) so I got the win anyways.
In real football, when a team clinches early, the concern is that they will lose their momentum or edge. I don't know if that applies in fantasy football. For me, only two weeks matter for the rest of the season: week 15 and 16. What do I do? Continue to make roster moves? Go with the guys that got me here? Pray that no one suffers a season-ending injury? Don't write a blog post about my success prematurely?
Or maybe, I'll just enjoy it, because who knows when this will ever happen again?
Sunday, November 17, 2019
Crockpot Pulled Pork
I enjoy this recipe, but rather than searching for it on the internet scrolling through all the pictures and ads to find it every time, I'm choosing to put it here.
2 - 2.5 lbs. boneless pork loin
1/2 onion chopped (or a variation such as minced dried onion)
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp black pepper
2 tsp salt
16 oz bottle BBQ sauce
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup water
liquid smoke if you have it
Put 1/2 cup of water in the crockpot
Drop in your pork loin
Add onion, paprika, pepper, salt, garlic on top
Squeeze out about 1/2 of the bottle of BBQ sauce over the top of the roast
Add a few drops of liquid smoke if you've got some
Cook on low for about 8 hours.
Use two forks to shred the cooked pork.
Serve with the remaining BBQ sauce on buns or with potatoes.
source: https://www.laurengreutman.com/crockpot-pulled-pork
Additional Items 5/15/22:
Before shredding: Remove byproduct and discard, drain and set aside the juice.
Add some of juice to pork after shredding.
The cut called Top Loin Roast worked really well
Friday, October 18, 2019
It's a Wrap - Season's Done
Well, my early-season optimism proved that once again, I tend to view things through orange-tinted glasses. Not that I was expecting all that much...I had them pegged for 8-8!
After last night's demoralizing 30-6 loss to the Chiefs, who played most of the game without Patrick Mahomes, it's obvious the Broncos will finish with their third consecutive losing season. Much of Broncos Country (including myself) was hopeful that last night would prove that these Broncos were capable of competing for the playoffs. If they could extend their winning streak to three games, at home, against the reeling Chiefs, they would find themselves only a game out of first place in the AFC West! And from there, anything could happen!! After all, the Broncos should have won those games against Chicago and Jacksonville!!!
Instead, the Chiefs win their eighth straight against the Broncos, extending all the way back to 2015, the year the Broncos won Super Bowl 50.
The knock against the Chiefs has been their defense, and yet the Broncos offensive line and Joe Flacco made them look like the Steel Curtain. Eight sacks of Flacco, and one more of Colby Wadman on a botched fake punt.
The Broncos offense was putrid. They actually scored minus one points. Although they scored the six points on the opening drive (although assisted by Kansas City penalties), they handed the Chiefs seven points on Flacco's fumble shortly after Mahomes exited the game. I didn't even need to pay attention in the second half because I knew the result of their drives would be three-and-out.
It was almost like they knew they had no business being on the field with Kansas City. What was the deal with going for two after their touchdown on the opening drive? I didn't understand the call. It was like they knew they weren't going to be scoring again so they might as well get what they could when they could.
I examined the remaining schedule after the game finally ended. Five road games left: Colts, Vikings, Bills, Texans, Chiefs. If the season ended today, four of those five would be in the playoffs, with the Colts losing a tiebreaker on the final wildcard in the AFC. The five teams have a collective record of 20-9 at this point in the season. The Broncos probably will not win any of those games.
The remaining home schedule is a little more manageable: Browns, Chargers, Lions, Raiders, with a collective record of 9-12-1. Yet the Broncos haven't done that well at home thus far, winning just one out of four. Even if you say the Broncos win three of their four remaining home games, that still leaves them at 5-11 on the season, which is not even as good as last season, and would beg the question: why did we get rid of Vance Joseph and Case Keenum, if their replacements yielded no better results?
I feared that if the Broncos had a rough start, the Drew Lock debates would begin. And so here we go: how long before they decide to play the rookie?
After last night's demoralizing 30-6 loss to the Chiefs, who played most of the game without Patrick Mahomes, it's obvious the Broncos will finish with their third consecutive losing season. Much of Broncos Country (including myself) was hopeful that last night would prove that these Broncos were capable of competing for the playoffs. If they could extend their winning streak to three games, at home, against the reeling Chiefs, they would find themselves only a game out of first place in the AFC West! And from there, anything could happen!! After all, the Broncos should have won those games against Chicago and Jacksonville!!!
Instead, the Chiefs win their eighth straight against the Broncos, extending all the way back to 2015, the year the Broncos won Super Bowl 50.
The knock against the Chiefs has been their defense, and yet the Broncos offensive line and Joe Flacco made them look like the Steel Curtain. Eight sacks of Flacco, and one more of Colby Wadman on a botched fake punt.
The Broncos offense was putrid. They actually scored minus one points. Although they scored the six points on the opening drive (although assisted by Kansas City penalties), they handed the Chiefs seven points on Flacco's fumble shortly after Mahomes exited the game. I didn't even need to pay attention in the second half because I knew the result of their drives would be three-and-out.
It was almost like they knew they had no business being on the field with Kansas City. What was the deal with going for two after their touchdown on the opening drive? I didn't understand the call. It was like they knew they weren't going to be scoring again so they might as well get what they could when they could.
I examined the remaining schedule after the game finally ended. Five road games left: Colts, Vikings, Bills, Texans, Chiefs. If the season ended today, four of those five would be in the playoffs, with the Colts losing a tiebreaker on the final wildcard in the AFC. The five teams have a collective record of 20-9 at this point in the season. The Broncos probably will not win any of those games.
The remaining home schedule is a little more manageable: Browns, Chargers, Lions, Raiders, with a collective record of 9-12-1. Yet the Broncos haven't done that well at home thus far, winning just one out of four. Even if you say the Broncos win three of their four remaining home games, that still leaves them at 5-11 on the season, which is not even as good as last season, and would beg the question: why did we get rid of Vance Joseph and Case Keenum, if their replacements yielded no better results?
I feared that if the Broncos had a rough start, the Drew Lock debates would begin. And so here we go: how long before they decide to play the rookie?
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