The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
NFL work halt could postpone 2021 draft party in Cleveland
The NFL, with smiles all around, on May 21 grandly announced the 2021 NFL draft will be held in Cleveland and the 2023 draft will be held in Kansas City.
The 2022 NFL draft does not yet have a host city. Why is that, it is fair to wonder.
The answer could be very disappointing for community leaders planning to show what a great host Cleveland could be. The possibility of the draft two years from now and the 2021 season being wiped out by a work stoppage after the current CBA expires in March 2021 is very real. In fact, the union is urging its membership to prepare for a lockout, like news stations warning citizens to stock up on bread, milk and toilet paper because a blizzard is in the forecast.
Those dire warnings from the weatherman usually prove unnecessary. Likewise, there is plenty of time for NFL owners and the union to strike a deal if greed doesn’t get in the way.
If the owners stage a lockout, as they did in 2011 and a new CBA isn’t reached in time to save the 2021 season, Cleveland could host the draft in 2022 — assuming the league and union eventually come to an agreement. It’s as though the NFL is making contingency plans by not naming a host for the 2022 draft.
This might all sound like Chicken Little panicking and saying the sky is falling. There was a draft in 2011, the last time the two sides hammered out a collective bargaining agreement, but the lockout that year lasted 18 weeks and wasn’t resolved until July. That meant no free agency, OTAs, or minicamps. Coaches and players could not communicate. Players rehabbing from injuries could not consult team doctors.
It seems ludicrous either side would risk losing a season. There is so much money for everyone with a finger in the pie. But, according to a tweet from NFLPA President Eric Winston the status quo is not enough.
“Any conversation with NFL owners will be a renegotiation for a new deal, not an extension,” Winston tweeted March 26. “At our board meetings we told everyone to prepare for a work stoppage; nothing has changed.”
The union wants a larger share of the revenue and better health care for retired players. The union also wants to strip some power from Commissioner Roger Goodell to hand down punishment.
The league and the union believe it would be better for all concerned if a new agreement can be reached without a work stoppage. The two sides had preliminary talks in April.
But the guideline the union recently issued to players gives sound advice in case the paychecks do stop:
• Save half of each paycheck, if not more.
• Consider selling a car you have not driven in the past six months.
• Learn to say “no” — or at least “not now” — to family or friends asking for money.
• Try cooking at home instead of eating out as much.
Of course these pointers are good advice for players even if the money spigot isn’t turned off.
The 2020 NFL draft is in Las Vegas.
Road to October
Fans who believe the Indians will have momentum in October if they have to fight for a playoff spot are getting their wish. With one week remaining in August, the only thing certain is the Tribe won’t be setting their season on cruise control anytime soon.
While the Indians were getting swept by the Mets in Queens from Aug. 2022, the A’s were sweeping the Yankees in Oakland. The Rays won six of 10 games while the Indians went 3-7 over the same stretch.
The result was the Indians returned to Progressive Field (they split four games with the Yankees before playing the Mets) a half game behind Oakland and Tampa for the second wildcard spot in the American League. They were 3.5 games behind Minnesota in the race for first place in the AL Central.
The Indians and Rays won their games Aug. 23. The Twins lost and the A’s were idle, so with 33 games to play the Indians, 75-54, are 2 1/2 games behind the Twins, a half game behind Tampa Bay for the first wild-card spot and tied with Oakland for the second wild-card slot.
Here is a look at how the Indians, Twins, A’s and Rays finish with five weeks left in the regular season. The records in parenthesis are heading into games Aug. 24.
The Indians have six games left with Minnesota in their bid to win a fourth straight Central Division title. The team that doesn’t win the Central is likely competing with the A’s and Rays for the two wild card spots.
INDIANS >> Royals (45-84), two games at home; Tigers (39-87), three in Detroit; Rays (76-54), three in Tampa; White Sox (59-69), four at home; Twins (77-51), three in Minnesota; Angels (63-68) three in Anaheim; Twins, three at home; Tigers, three at home; Phillies (66-61), three at home; White Sox, three in Chicago and Nationals (71-57) three in Washington. TWINS >> Tigers (39-87), two at home; White Sox (59-69), three in Chicago; Tigers, four in Detroit; Red Sox (69-61), three in Boston; Indians (75-54) three at home; Nationals (71-57), three at home; Indians, three in Cleveland; White Sox, three at home; Royals (45-84), four at home; Tigers, three in Detroit and Royals, three in Kansas City.
RAYS >> Orioles (41-88), two at Baltimore; Astros (83-47), three at Houston; Indians (75-54), three at home; Orioles, three at home; Blue Jays (52-79), three at home; Rangers (63-67), three at Texas; Angels (63-68), three at Anaheim; Dodgers (85-45), two at Los Angeles; Red Sox (69-61), four at home; Yankees (84-46) two at home; Blue Jays, three in Toronto. A’S >> Giants (63-65), two at home; Royals (45-84), four in Kansas City; Yankees (84-46), three in New York; Angels (63-68), three at home; Tigers (39-87), three at home; Astros (83-47), four at Houston; Rangers (63-67), three at Texas; Royals, three at home; Rangers, three at home; Angels (63-68), two in Anaheim and Mariners (55-74) four in Seattle.
The Indians play five of their 11 remaining series against winning teams — a total of 15 games. Aside from the six games against the Indians, the only two teams with winning records the Twins face are the Red Sox and Nationals.
The Rays have 14 games remaining in five series against teams with winning records. They are the only team among the four that has to play three division leaders — the Astros, Dodgers and Yankees.
The A’s have the easiest path to a wild card spot with a total of seven games against the Astros and Yankees as their only opponents with winning records.
I didn’t know that
... Until i read my Snapple bottle cap.
Baby giraffes fall up to six feet to the ground when they are born. … Tomatoes have more genes than humans. A tomato contains 31,760 genes — about 7,000 more than humans do. … Sailors once thought wearing gold earrings improved eyesight. … The blue in the Sistine Chapel is made of ground lapis lazuli gems and oils. … Strawberries are the only fruits with seeds that grow on the outside. … An alligator can grow up to 3,000 teeth in a lifetime.