The media folks — nearly 70 of them, nearly all from Japan — in attendance Monday at Salt River Fields already knew the drill. The television contingent congregated along the baseline of the U-shaped formation, with the reporters and camera operators crowded next to their cameras and tripods, and the boom mics laid out in front, in aesthetically pleasing parallel lines.
The writers stood bunched together on either side of the horseshoe formation, leaving a comfortable gap in the middle for a certain star baseball player to answer questions without being too crowded.
The Bengals got just four receptions out of Eifert last season before back and knee problems ended the tight end’s season.
It’s nothing new for the 27-year-old, who has played 39 games in his NFL career and missed 41.
It also treats “knowing the system” like it’s the most valuable skill imaginable, as if the offensive mind the Bears are trusting to mold their franchise quarterback couldn’t possibly teach another veteran passer the complexities and mysteries of Andy Reid’s offense.
It’s easier to have Daniel around, of course, but this deal has $7 million in guarantees.
If Daniel collects the $10 million on this contract, it will take him to $34.3 million in earnings as an NFL quarterback.
To this point, he has thrown all of 78 regular-season passes, which have produced a combined passer rating of 81.1.
Of Sporting News’ top 101 free agents, seven of the 10 highest ranked players on the list are still available as we hit Valentine’s Day, and The Athletic is making more moves than most teams right now.
Arizona won 93 games last year, reaching the division series after beating Colorado in the wild-card game, but we can’t possibly know how its offseason went until J.D. Martinez picks a team. If Martinez goes to Boston, that immediately validates the Red Sox’s quiet offseason while leaving the Snakes without a player who bashed an absurd 29 home runs in 62 regular season games last season after being acquired in July from Detroit. Martinez’s decision also impacts N.L West rivals Colorado and San Francisco, after both teams made key veteran acquisitions to try competing with Arizona and Los Angeles in the division.
Benson’s succession plan had been to hand control of the Saints and Pelicans to his granddaughter, Rita Benson LeBlanc.
He suddenly reversed that plan, changing his will to transfer control over the teams to his wife, Gayle, instead.