The final catch of Gronk's career ended up setting up the Super Bowl winning touchdown. 

A few hours have passed since the news broke and I still can't believe it, even though it is a semi-expected move. It's a bummer and knowing it was likely coming doesn't make it any easier.  I am sad to see one of my favorite athletes of all-time retire, and even with his fantastic career, there's still a huge "what if?" when it comes to #87 (and sometimes #69).

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On a personal level,  the timing of this announcement by Gronk is WILD.  I was just talking about this very topic last night with my mom. I'm sorry guys, I feel like I'm partly to blame. 

We went to the Patriots HOF at Patriot Place (mom's in town for an unexpected visit from Florida) to check out the exhibit and grab some dinner.  During dinner she asked me what was up with Gronk and if he was gonna retire or not? I told her I thought he was going to, but since he hadn't announced anything yet I figured he was coming back. (boy was I wrong)  I told her that I was almost positive the Patriots announced they were under the impression he was returning.  Plus I always held onto hope that Gronk would stay until Brady retires. 

24 hours later Rob Gronkowski is retired. 

The news of this shouldn't come as a total shock. Gronk has been flirting with retirement for what feels like three years. His relationship with Belichick has seemed at times to be strained, and injuries have clearly taken their toll on him. I get why he's doing this.  As much as it doesn't always feel like it 2011 was a very long time ago. He's taken an absolute beating.  Gronk isn't the same guy anymore.  Although in 2017 he showed that he was still an elite TE. 1st team All-Pro. This year there were flashes of his old self, but his role had significantly changed. He no longer was the focal point of the passing game. Gronk's ability to dominant at the line of scrimmage helped the Patriots shift to a more run heavy team and win Super Bowl LIII. 


The writing has been on the wall for some time, and after this exchange with Belichick right after winning the Super Bowl it seemed like Gronk was good as gone one way or another.

When healthy there has never been a more dominating tight end in NFL history. He could block like a linemen, catch like a WR and run like a semi-truck.  It was like early 2000's Shaq where defenders had different rules when covering him. You could get away with more against Gronk because he's so big and dominating. I can vividly remember in the Edelman pass game against the Ravens in the 2014 playoffs there was a third down Gronk's arm-shield was getting blasted before a pass but it wasn't called cause you basically could do whatever you wanted to Gronk to try to stop him.

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​Whether he was catching touchdowns, throwin dudes out the club, or spiking footballs so hard that Tom Brady was accused of deflating them, Gronk was an absolute delight to watch. I feel like I'm doing him a disservice with this blog, but there will never be another Gronk (even though there are like 8 other Gronks)

Unfortunately for Gronk as the years went by the injuries started piling up. Actually it started before he was even a Patriot, as he missed his final season at the University of Arizona due to a back injury. 

His 2011 season is IMO the greatest overall season a tight end has ever had. 90 receptions for 1327 yards and 18 total touchdowns. 

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I still can't fucking believe it's actually over. I need more time to truly marinate the magnitude of this and give Gronk the proper farewell blog he deserves. I'll get back to you in 3 weeks. 



​P.S. I'm CRYING

THERE YOU GO G-MEN!!!

This has to be the most shocked I've been at a move... in any pro sport in some time. I did not think this would actually happen.  I cannot fucking believe the Giants actually just traded Odell Beckham Jr!  I know there had been rumors that the Giants were sick of Odell, but after signing him to a 5 year extension less than a year ago I was not expecting him to get the ole Blake Griffin treatment. 


Not really too sure of what the G-men are doing? but tbh it pisses me off.  I cannot stand the Giants for obvious reasons. It is so g damn annoying that they have been frankly a joke franchise for the better part of 20 years with the exception of 3 good months of football highlighted with Super Bowl wins at the Patriots expense. It's so frustrating. They are a joke, but also have the ultimate trump card over the greatest dynasty ever. And you throw in the NY-Boston shit. They went fucking 9-7 and won a Super Bowl.  God damnit I'm not picking the scab right now...

Let's just focus on the trade.


Honestly wtf is this organization doing? I'm no econ major, but this doesn't seem like a good use of resources.

this tweet will for sure get deleted

While I am in the school of thought that elite, play-making, dynamic WR are not essential for winning a championship---they for sure help.  And imo a 1st, 3rd and low key position-less draft bust are simply not enough return for someone like Odell. 

As for the Browns?

Dude, they are gonna be a prob-lem this year. Look at this offense. I totally forgot about Kareem Hunt!

With the Steelers imploding and the Ravens letting their entire defense walk, and the Bengals being the Bengals, it looks like the AFC North could be the Browns for the foreseeable future. I still don't love their choice for HC, but with this talent and youth on offense the Browns are going to be a fun ass team to watch yet again in 2019. Landy and Odell. I didn't even realize they were college teammates when they were playing. Who tf was the QB then? I do not remember LSU from 6 years ago, sorry.

​It's wild to think the lowly Browns could be the team to unseat the Patriots as kings of the AFC. What a story that would be from 0-16 to Super Bowl.  After breaking news that the Chiefs just traded Dee Ford you never know? Browns fans sure do have a lot to be excited for. I'm sure nothing crazy will happen to ruin it. 

A tradition unlike any other, the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots are losing key pieces in the free agency. The line play on both sides of the ball has taken a hit.

It should come as no surprise that both DE Trey Flowers and LT Trent Brown chose to leave the Pats in free agency.  I think most knowledgeable Patriot fans would have assumed Trent Brown was as good as gone. He wasn't in the teams long-term plans. He was a solid replacement for Nate Solder this year, but let's not forget this team already drafted who they hope to be their next franchise LT in Isaiah Wynn. The first rounder out of Georgia missed the season with a torn Achilles, but if he's anything like the other Bulldog the Pats took in the first round they should be fine. 

The fact that the Raiders just made a guy who's never been to a Pro Bowl, or elected to an All-Pro team the highest paid offensive linemen ever is just hilariously perfectly Raiders.  Did they not learn anything from Nate Solder and the Giants this year?!!? It's like they were blinded by the ghost of Al Davis. Who cares about anything other than measurables? When a 6'8" offensive tackle who's nearly 400 pounds is available you gotta make it happen, even if he is rated as average as average can get. Just win (4 games a year) baby.

To be fair,  teams like the Raiders have the money to take chances like this.

With Flowers as high #3 on all the "top X free agents of 2019" lists it looked like another team would outbid the Pats (who are notorious for trying to use coupons and promo codes during negations) for his services. 98 was never going to get 17 million a year in New England. More power to him for getting paid.  That's just not how they do things here. You hoped that maaaybe he'd sign a Hightower or Devin McCourty like deal to return, but with the money pass rushers get on the open market it seemed unlikely.

​Now Trey is reunited with Matt Patricia in Detroit. With the rumors he was going to team up with Brian Flores in Miami, personally I'm glad to see Trey leave the division. 

In 3 full seasons with the Patriots Flowers averaged 7 sacks a year, although most football guys would tell you he's a lot better than the sack numbers would indicate with all the responsibilities he had in the complicated Patriots defensive scheme. In the biggest moments Flowers came to play. Most notably his 2.5 sack performance in the Patriots 28-3 comeback in Super Bowl LI. Highlighted by a sack on 2nd and 11 late in the 4th quarter during the drive that saw the Falcons punt after reaching the Patriots 22 yard line.  Without this sack the Patriots comeback efforts may have been too little to late as the Falcons were in v make-able field goal range at the time.

Trey thanked the Patriots organization on IG today.

With the trade for Michael Bennett a few days ago, it appeared the writing was on the wall that the Pats were moving on from Trey Flowers. As much as I hate Michael Bennett as a man, he's not a bad replacement (on paper). As much as it stinks to see them go with like 32 draft picks this year and one of the youngest rosters in the league the future is still bright for the New England Patriots.

Look for another Razorback to step in for the loss of Flowers.

Song: Lo/Hi
​Artist: The Black Keys

It's been nearly half a decade since their last album, Turn Blue but The Black Keys are back.

On Thursday the Nashville via Akron, OH duo released their latest single "Lo/Hi" seemingly out of nowhere (maybe I'm just old and lame, but it came as a major surprise to me) to delight of their fans that have been anxiously pondering the future of the keys. what-does-dan-auerbachs-solo-career-mean-for-the-future-of-the-black-keys.html dan-auerbach-gave-more-insight-to-the-future-of-the-black-keys-on-cbs-this-weekend.html

Not to make excuses for my sporadic writing, but like J. Cole, I too think one listen reviews are ruining the music industry.  How are you supposed to truly digest a song or album after one listen?

After letting this song marinate for a few days, I have my official opinion on Lo/Hi.

Like most meals, it left me wanting a little more. Do not expect to see this on the best of 2019 blog. 

While I am absolutely pumped one of my favorite bands ever are making new music again.. like do not miss that. If you remember one thing about this blog it should be that I am fucking pumped the Black Keys are back.  With one of my favorite shows, Crashing getting cancelled it's nice to have something I like still be around. I know they have their critics, but I associate their music with a lot of great times in my life. They'll always be one of my favorite bands. I think Brothers and El Camino are perfect. I've seen them live twice, and they were two of the better live shows I've ever seen. (Florence + the Machine is still the best concert I've ever been to)

But this "Spirit in the Sky" rip off with an elementary, Imagine Dragons-esque chorus is a bit underwhelming.  Are we really doing  "lo/hi... hi/lo" ???????????  In terms of chorus writing this is shade above "Thunder, feel the thunder, lightning and the thunder". I mean how many times has this already be done?

"Low, like a valley?"

Come on, Dan you're better than that.


Don't get me wrong, it's not fully like Imagine Dragons, because it's not a truly horrible song. Despite a weak chorus Lo/Hi has a lot of qualities that I enjoyed. The rest of the lyrics aren't horrible, but sadly they are forgotten due to hill I am fully prepared to die on. But okay, it's time to be a little more positive. This song rocks. Not in like a "you rock!" way, but this bitch gets down.  This is some good ole fashion bluesy rock with a little soul. Sure it's sort of sounds similar to a lot of their music from earlier in the 2010's, but there's nothing wrong with a signature sound. The guitar solo around 2 minutes in is classic Dan Auerbach. To me this song is a lot like in rap when a beat can carry a track and the lyrics almost don't matter. It shows they still got it musically, while I do think the whole "low like a valley" thing is pretty fucking tired and lazy. After five years that's all you've got? I'm not mad, I'm just disappointed. It's like getting C work out an A student.  I know they can do better.
​. 
"Lo, Hi, Hi, Lo"  

I can't get over that, bro. It's like the blues-rock version of Livin La Vida Loca. All I can think about is "upside, inside out", "push and pull you out" whenever I hear that line. It's just so simple and kind of hacky to me. Although I can't lie Livin La Vida Loca still bangs.

Despite kind of shitting on my favorite band, I still really excited to see what else the Black Keys have in store. I'm not going to write off this latest comeback because I'm not in love with this one song. If anything it makes me more excited to see, or in this case hear what else they've got for us.  Like I said, I'm just happy this song exists. It is fantastic news that the Black Keys are making new music.

I just hope next time maybe they can do what I do, and go to thesaurus.com when feeling a little too simplistic. Because I mean I totally get it, not everything is like riding a bike. Sometimes you can't just pick up right where you left off like nothings changed. I feel that in my writing constantly. Like I've lost my fastball due to lack of use. Maybe the same could be said for the Black Keys? Both Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney have been separately p busy exploring other opportunities in music since the keys went on hiatus after finishing the Turn Blue Tour, but after years apart maybe it's to be expected? 

Overall I give Lo/Hi  a 7.2/10. The foundation is solid, but the exterior could use some serious work.

Just absolutely devastating news; Alex Trebek has stage IV pancreatic cancer. That is the worst stage there is according to my research (webMD).

The greatest game show host of all-time released a video today facing this prognosis head on. Like Trebek always does, he handled this with class, professionalism and a sense of humor.  

Despite the grim news Trebek, who (somewhat shockingly) is 78 years old said intends to continue to work as he battles this calamitous disease. Total bad ass. I'd crawl up in a ball and just wait to die. He's going to fight. Unfortunately pancreatic cancer is essentially a death sentence, and as he said over 50,000 people a year are diagnosed with this disease.  It's synonymous with death. Hopefully he can prove the statistics wrong.  Why God couldn't it have been Sajak??
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It's an overused cliche by hacks like me, but Alex Trebek is one of those people that I've never heard a bad word about. I'd say beloved is a fitting adjective. I don't know anybody who dislikes him other than Sean Connery and Turd Ferguson. He's staple of American entertainment, which of course is the dream of all Canadians. ​

Probably the most famous Jeopardy alum of all time, Ken Jennings had this to say about Trebek. A take I agree with wholeheartedly. 

Classic Alex moment. 

What do pancreas' even do besides get cancer?  Real talk. I've never heard anybody ever talk about a pancreas without cancer immediately following. Without the aid of google I bet you don't know either.

As a lifelong Jeopardy fan and anti-cancer man I am rooting for you, Mr. Trebek.  As are millions of other people who have open their homes to you for what has to be close to 40 years at this point. 

What I love about Alex Trebek is how real he is. A real straight shooter. He told you he has stage four cancer. He'll laugh at you when you get an easy question wrong and call you a loser when you tell him your favorite music is nerd-core rap. 
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As is tradition.

Song: Pearl Cadillac 
Artist: Gary Clark, Jr.
Album: This Land