Tag: Quarterback

NFL Week 2 Reaction

Interesting Note: The NFL averaged a record 21 million viewers per game during Week 1. It’s seems impossible, but the NFL keeps growing and getting more popular. Even the Friday game that aired mainly on Peacock (and also local NBC affiliates in Philadelphia, Green Bay and Milwaukee) averaged 14 million viewers. This is a good sign for the NFL as they push towards more games being on streaming services.

Buffalo Bills (2-0) 31 @ Miami Dolphins (1-1) 10

The Bills simply match up well with Dolphins and consistently beat them. Josh Allen is now 12-2 vs the Dolphins and is their kryptonite. Usually, Allen plays like Superman vs the Fins, but yesterday James Cook and great defense led them to a win. That is good news for the Bills because they can’t solely rely on Allen to carry them every game.

The biggest question mark for the Bills is who their main weapon in the passing game is. Keon Coleman and Dalton Kincaid both have potential, but neither has looked amazing yet. Currently their leading receiver, Khalil Shakir, is under the 100 yard mark for the season. Someone needs to emerge for the Bills to be able to get past the other elite teams in the AFC.

For the Dolphins, this game went as bad as it could possibly go. The worst outcome is the Tua injury and the uncertainty surrounding him. It absolutely sucks to see a great guy like Tua consistently get concussions and take brutal blows to the head. This is now his 4th known concussion in the past 5 years and it’s gotten the point that we are all concerned for his long-term health. The Fins need to be very careful about bringing him back and we wish nothing but the best for him.

Miami needs to figure out how to beat the Bills. They are the two best teams in the AFC East, but the reason the Bills keep winning the division is that they consistently beat the Dolphins. The Tua injury and recovery will have a huge impact on the rest of the season, but the Dolphins still have other issues. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle combined for just 65 yards receiving. After they were taken out of the game due to the blowout, they just sat on the bench and looked like they didn’t really care. That was a moment they needed to continue to be leaders, especially with Tua out of the game, and they failed to step up.

Seattle Seahawks (2-0) 23 @ New England Patriots (1-1) 20

The Pats welcomed back Super Bowl XLIX hero Malcolm Butler. Shoutout to him for making the greatest play in NFL history and giving Pats fans a moment to remember for ever. Also shoutout to the 20 other players who came for a Super Bowl XLIX reunion weekend. That 2014 team was one of my favorite Pats teams ever.

Rhamondre Stevenson and the rushing attack continues to carry our offense. Ja’Lynn Polk getting his first TD is big for his confidence. Hunter Henry was a beast today and we’ll need that to continue. Defensively, CB Christian Gonzalez and DE Keion White have both looked great through 2 games

The Pats offense still suffers from a lack of explosiveness. If they get behind the sticks and have to pass on 2nd and long or 3rd and long, they are ineffective. Likewise, if they get down in a game and have to throw the ball, they are screwed. These are the problems we have dealt with since Brady left. The hope is that Maye and the young WRs we have can eventually fix that. They still need to draft, trade for, or sign another good weapon or two to get where they need to be.

The Pats could’ve won this game if not for mistakes. A bad 2 minute drill led to the Seahawks getting the ball and a FG at the end of the first half. A blown coverage led to a long TD for DK Metcalf. They also had a FG blocked at the end of the game that could’ve won them the game.

Overall, I’m pleasantly surprised by the Patriots play the first two weeks. We have been competitive vs two teams that are much better than us. Our defense and rushing attack have been tremendous.

The Seahawks are a good team and have weapons all over the field. Three good WRs, two solid RBs, and a solid TE combined with an above average QB in Geno Smith make them a formidable offense.

Cincinnati Bengals (0-2) 25 @ Kansas City Chiefs (1-0) 26

These teams play each other so well and their games are always entertaining. The Bengals deserved to win today, but what makes Mahomes and the Chiefs so good is that they pull out wins even when they get outplayed. The Bengals had chances to put the Chiefs away, but let them hang around and it cost them.

Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson is so underrated. He’s one of the best pass rushers in the league and was THE BEST player on the field Sunday. He had two sacks, drew so many penalties, and put so much pressure on Mahomes. KC’s offensive line did not play well and will need to clean it up.

The key drive of the game was the Burrow fumble drive. The Bengals got a highlight reel interception and had all the momentum and a five point lead. Mike Gesicki dropped a perfect pass on first down that would’ve gotten them another first down and kept the momentum going. Instead Burrow ends up fumbling and the Chiefs recovered and retook the lead. That was a drive the Bengals needed to take advantage of and they didn’t.

Mahomes is a wizard at somehow winning these types of games. Even on 4th and 16, I think we all expected that to go the Chiefs way and it did. That was a bad penalty by the Bengals, but Mahomes deserves a lot of credit. He threw a great pass to Rice and it put pressure on the defense that caused the penalty. Mahomes was terrible today, but still great in the clutch.

Speaking of clutch, Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker is the 2nd most clutch kicker of all time behind Adam Vinateri. This guy seems to always come through in big moments. Just like Brady’s legacy wouldn’t have been the same without Vinateri, Mahomes’s legacy wouldn’t be the same without Butker.

For the 3rd straight year, the Bengals fall to 0-2. They’ll be fine and normally start slow, but losing this game hurts in case it impacts home field advantage. At least the Bengals know they can come into Arrowhead and beat the Chiefs.

I’m not sure how Rashee Rice is playing after all of his incidents this offseason, but he has been huge for the Chiefs. On the flip side, Travis Kelce needs to get it going. 4 catches on 7 targets for 39 yards through two games is not ideal.

The Bengals need to pay Ja’Marr Chase. He’s clearly frustrated and it’s creating an unnecessary headache for them. Pay him and let him ball out.

Other

I gotta say, you have to feel good for Baker Mayfield. He’s gotten so much shit through his career and gone through some ups and downs, so it’s great to see him play well. He seems like a great teammate and locker room guy.

Game/Betting Picks Results

Game: 3-0 (5-2 This Season) (43-18 All-Time)

Spread: 2-1 (4-3) (43-17-1)

O/U: 0-3 (3-4) (32-28-1)

College Football Week 3 Recap

Arizona (2-1) 7 @ Kansas State (3-0) 31

Kansas State with a statement win that could make them the highest ranked team in the Big 12.

Memphis (3-0) 20 @ Florida State (0-3) 12

FSU’s downfall this year has been absolutely shocking. To be 0-3 this is fast and look awful while doing it, is absolutely brutal.

Alabama (3-0) 42 @ Wisconsin (2-1) 10

Bama is still a force to reckoned with and Jalen Milroe is playing great this year.

LSU (2-1) 36 @ South Carolina (2-1) 33

Game of the year so far.

USC really deserved to win that one, but that’s college football for you. LaNorris Sellers balled out and USC dominated the game when he was healthy. Sellers getting hurt was a huge turning point, but USC also hurt themselves (stupid blindside block that negated a pick 6) and had some bad calls go against them (non existent OPI call that negated a huge passing play).

LSU has some incredible talent. TE Mason Taylor looks like he could be a beast at the next level. LB Harold Perkins reminds me of Micah Parsons where he could be a stud at both LB and Edge Rusher in the NFL. Freshman running back Caden Durham looked great too.

LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier switches back and forth from good to head scratching but if he figures it out, LSU could be dangerous. One thing LSU really needs to work on is their red zone efficiency. If they miss out on so many opportunities vs a team like Georgia or Bama, they won’t win those games.

Boston College (2-1) 21 @ Missouri (3-0) 27

Bill O’Brien has BC playing great. They put up a fight vs a great SEC team on the road and almost pulled it out.

Oregon (3-0) 49 @ Oregon State (2-1) 14

Oregon fans can breathe a sigh of relief. After looking bad the past two weeks, they dismantle their rival on the road. This is the exact win they needed.

Notre Dame (2-1) 66 @ Purdue (1-1) 7

Notre Dame decided they were sick of hearing about their loss to Northern IL and took it out on Purdue by putting up 66. They did it with power, putting up 362 yards and 6 TDs on the ground.

Texas A&M (2-1) 33 @ Florida (1-2) 20

You have to feel for Florida. They have a lame duck coach and the most brutal schedule in the country. At least FSU sucks too.

Washington State (3-0) 24 @ Washington (2-1) 19

WSU gets their revenge on Washington for ditching the Pac-12. This was a great game that came down to the very end. Long term though, Washington is in a much better spot than WSU. Despite, WSU and Oregon State trying to rebuild the Pac-12, it’s unlikely it will be a relevant conference on par with the Power 4 ever again.

Georgia (3-0) 13 @ Kentucky (1-2) 12

Those grey UK uniforms looked so good for the night game. SEC games are hard to win and while Georgia would’ve liked to play better, the important thing is that they pulled out the win.

UTSA (1-2) 7 @ Texas (3-0) 56

Arch manning played great, showing Texas has a bright future. If Ewers is healthy, he will continue to be their starting QB. There are still two big impacts from the Ewers injury. First off, Texas has likely proven it should be #1 given this blowout with a backup QB. Second, Ewers has now dealt with an injury all 3 years he’s been a starter. Does this hurt his draft stock?

Kent State (0-3) 0 @ Tennessee (3-0) 71

Just a brutal blowout all around. I don’t know if TN has something against Kent State, but this seemed personal.

NFL Week 2 Predictions

Seattle Seahawks (1-0) @ New England Patriots (1-0)

A rematch of one of the greatest Super Bowls in NFL history…

Sorry, I’m just trying to remember the glory days of being a Pats fan. In the present, the Seahawks are missing their starting RB Kenneth Walker and starting RT George Fant. This should hurt their physicality in a game where they will need it. I expect this to be a low scoring, smash mouth football game because that’s how the Pats like to play. I think the Seahawks will still pull out a win, the Pats will cover (+3.5), and the under (38.5) hits.

Cincinnati Bengals (0-1) @ Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)

One of the best rivalries in football right now gets back underway. It’s as contentious as ever with Ja’Marr Chase saying Cincy is the team to beat in the AFC and another Bengals player saying all Xavier Worthy can do is run fast in a straight line. Joe Burrow is 3-1 vs Mahomes in his career, so it’s understandable why the Bengals feel good, but these comments will only fire up the Chiefs more.

Both teams are likely missing their number 2 WRs, but this should still be an exciting game like it usually is. I think the Bengals will be a great team by the end of the year, but they always get off to slow starts and Burrow is still healing and getting back into the swing of things. The Chiefs will win, cover (+6), and the under (48) will hit.

In Defense of Haason Reddick

The Hasson Reddick situation is a weird one. Like many players before him, he wanted a new contract before the last year of his current one. The Eagles decided to trade him to the Jets for a conditional 3rd rounder at the end of March instead of paying him. What’s unusual is that the Jets have still not agreed to a contract extension with him, despite giving up assets to get him. In fact, FOX NFL reporter Jordan Schultz said that the Jets have not talked to him since his introductory press conference. SIX MONTHS OF NOT TALKING!?! Only the Jets could pull of something like that.

I am normally in favor of a player not holding out. However, in this case I see where Reddick is coming from. He is an elite edge rusher and has the 4th most sacks in the NFL since 2020. Edge rusher is one of the most valuable positions in the sport and elite edge rushers get massive deals. Haason Reddick has not gotten one of those massive deals yet, despite playing so well the past 4 years. In his career, he has made just over $50 million. That’s obviously a ton of money. However, the best pass rushers in the league are making over $30 million per year and getting over $100 million guaranteed at signing. I’m not saying Reddick will get that kind of money, but he can reasonably expect to get a deal around 3 years for $60 million total and $40 million guaranteed. That would almost double his career earnings. Furthermore, this is probably the last big contract he will ever have the chance to sign since he turns 30 this month. That means it’s now or never for him.

Playing such a sought after position, the fact that the Jets traded a high draft pick for him, and the fact that the Jets are vying for a playoff spot gives him leverage. The Jets eventually either have to pay him or trade him to another team that will so they can recuperate their losses. If he plays, he could lose all that leverage by getting hurt or having a down year, which would likely ensure that he never gets the massive deal he could get now. So, while its a weird situation, I get why he’s doing what he’s doing.

And a little piece of advice to the Jets: If you’re going to trade a high draft pick for a player who you KNOW wants a new contract, try to have a deal in place BEFORE you trade for him OR be willing to pay him what he wants. The Eagles let the Jets negotiate with Reddick before they traded for him. Even though they couldn’t come to an agreement, they STILL traded for him. And then after all that, it’s not like they have been in back and forth negotiations all offseason. Instead, they haven’t talked to him in SIX MONTHS and now find themselves in an embarrassing situation that looks bleak for them.

Will the the Jets will ever learn from their mistakes and cease to be one of the worst franchises in all of sports? As a Pats fan, I certainly hope not and as someone with a brain, I’m willing to bet they never will.

J-E-T-S JETS GONNA JETS.

Robert Kraft and the Hall of Fame

Most fans can agree that Robert Kraft deserves a spot in the NFL Hall of Fame. He is one of the greatest owners of all time, oversaw the best dynasty in the sport’s history, and has been a massive help in the NFL’s growth, their TV deals, and ending the 2011 lockout. However, he continues to be denied a spot. Why is that?

First off, owners take a while to get in. Even though they run the league, this is the reality they all face. Since 2000, five owners have gotten in the Hall of Fame and have waited an average of just over 35 years between taking control of their franchise and getting enshrined. The honored owners were, Dan Rooney of the Steelers (25 years), Ralph Wilson of the Bills (49 years), Eddie DeBartolo of the 49ers (39 years), Jerry Jones of the Cowboys (28 years), and Pat Bowlen of the Broncos (35 years). Kraft became owner of the Pats 30 years ago, so he’s by no means had to wait longer than usual to be inducted.

Another reason Kraft hasn’t been inducted yet is that, until this year, coaches and owners were grouped together in the “coaches and contributors” category. Usually only one or 2 people from this group get enshrined each year and coaches tended to get in over owners. Now, owners will be considered separate from coaches, which will help Kraft out.

The next piece has to do with human psychology. Reports are that for over a decade Kraft has lobbied hard behind the scenes, having people close to him tell voters that Kraft needs to be put into the Hall of Fame. This is naturally going to irk voters who don’t want to be told what to do. These people all know football and it likely annoys them when someone consistently asks to be voted for because they think they are so deserving. This may have led some voters to reject Kraft, as they don’t want to feel like they’re giving in to what they perceive as whining or being told how to vote.

Also, there are reports that Kraft used The Dynasty docuseries to basically be an advertisement for his Hall of Fame candidacy. According to ESPN, Kraft owns the docuseries and sought editorial control of it. If that’s the case, to voters this looks like an embarrassing plea that isn’t going to convince them. It also looks even worse because Kraft has denied he had any involvement and said he was disappointed with the film. The only thing worse than making a documentary like that, would be to then deny your involvement and say it wasn’t good. There is a lot of he said, she said, but regardless, it isn’t a great look for Kraft.

Another reason for Kraft’s current omission from the Hall is that when you think of the Patriots dynasty, you think of Brady and Belichick before anyone else, and rightly so. They were a lethal combo of a superstar quaterback and genius head coach. When you watched the Patriots march through the playoffs year after year, it was Brady and Belichick who were talked about the most since the QB and coach are always right in the thick of things. Kraft definitely deserves credit, but no owner is going to outshine their star QB and head coach. When we look back on the Chiefs dynasty, no one will mention Clark Hunt over Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid.

Lastly, I think it’s fair to say that some voters are jealous of the success the Patriots had and are salty because they consider the Pats to be cheaters. They see this as an opportunity to “get back” at the Pats, because Kraft is the one central member of the team they can get away with doing it to. Brady is guaranteed to be a first ballot Hall of Famer, because if he wasn’t, then it would completely delegitimize the prestige of the NFL Hall of Fame. Even Belichick, who is the least likable of the three, really has to get in first ballot. He is widely known as a football genuis and the greatest coach of all time. He has more Super Bowls than any other head coach and was the coach and architect of the greatest dynasty in the NFL’s history. Not putting him in right away, or damn near close to that, would just make the voters look petty and once again, delegitimize the prestige of the Hall of Fame.

I think Kraft is the greatest owner in NFL history and will soon get into the Hall of Fame. He just needs to stop trying so hard.

2024 NFL Week 1 Reaction

Baltimore Ravens (0-1) @ Kansas City Chiefs (1-0)

The exact type of opening game you wanted to see. The game set an NFL kickoff game record with 28.9 million viewers.

Lamar Jackson falls to 1-5 vs Mahomes despite being 60-19 against the rest of the league. He and the Ravens need to solve their Chiefs problem. In terms of optimism for the Ravens, Lamar plus Derrick Henry should be a problem for other teams, especially as the year goes on. I love the 2 TE set the Ravens are using. Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely are both so talented that this formation will be lethal for their running and passing games.

The Chiefs look scary. Last year in their opening game, and for much of the season, they looked lethargic offensively and still won the Super Bowl. This year, their explosiveness is back. Rashee Rice continues to get better and develop into their WR1, Isaiah Worthy looks like he could be the next Tyreek Hill with his track star speed, Travis Kelce is gonna be Travis Kelce, Isiah Pacheco continues to get better, and Marquise Brown is going to come back from injury. I’m sure all the sports media will say that the Chiefs three-peating is a given for the next week and a half. One word of caution is that Brady’s Patriots teams that won the Super Bowl were often the ones who were “boring” like last years Chiefs. Those boring teams fared better than his ones with explosive offenses, so nothing is guaranteed.

Stats of the game: Mahomes became the Chiefs all-time leading passer this game at just 28 years old. Jackson moved to third all-time on the QB rushing list and could break Michael Vick’s record this year.

The league is sending a message with the illegal formation calls. It’s annoying right now but teams will learn and it will make the game better.

Green Bay Packers (0-1) vs Philadelphia Eagles (1-0) (In Brazil)

The playing surface was very slippery. That plus first game rust led to a sloppy game.

Saquon was on full display. It was a reminder that when he is on, he is one of the best RBs in the league. Him plus a great offensive line, two star WRs, and Jalen Hurts gives the Eagles an offense that can go toe to toe with any other in the league. Jahan Dotson and Dallas Goedert are good compliments too.

Jayden Reed looked electric for the Packers. They have so many good young players that it might be hard to keep them all happy and develop them like they want to. Their biggest current concern is Jordan Love. He sprained his MCL and should be back in a couple weeks. The Pack need to keep it together during his absence.

New England Patriots (1-0) @ Cincinnati Bengals (0-1)

An absolute shocker of a game. The Pats defense absolutely stifled the Bengals and they had no momentum or fire as a team whatsoever. For the Pats, I don’t think wins like this are sustainable because the defense completely carried and the offense was not very good. Still nice to get a W though.

For the Bengals, this is concerning. It’s one thing to lose and its another thing to lose and have the team not look like it gives a fuck. They had a loud offseason and have let the Ja’Marr Chase drama spill into the season. They are 1-5 in Week 1 the past six years, so this is familiar territory. They normally start slow and build momentum, but they need to sign Chase and have some passion as a team.

The one bright spot for the Bengals was that their rookie punter, Ryan Rehkow, had the best game by a punter I have ever seen. He had 4 punts and his AVERAGE punt went 64.5 yards (an NFL single-game record), including an 80 yard punt. The first and, probably, last time we hype up a punter on this blog.

New York Jets (0-1) @ San Francisco 49er (1-0)

The 49ers look motivated to get back to the Super Bowl. They went out and dominated the Jets without their best player Christian McCaffrey. McCaffrey missing the game is probably good long term, as now the Niners know Jordan Mason (147 yds rushing), can help take some of the burden off McCaffrey. The one area they needed to be better was finishing drives, as Jake Moody made 6 field goals last night.

Rodgers and the Jets looked rusty last night. They clearly have the talent, but they need to mesh. Realistically, this was the first full regular season game they have played with Rodgers, so some kinks need to be worked out.

Game/Betting Picks Results

Game: 2-2 (2-2 This Season) (40-18 All-Time)

Spread: 2-2 (2-2) (41-16-1)

O/U: 3-1 (3-1) (32-25-1)

College Football Week 2 Recap

The first real wild week of college football comes to an end.

3 Texas @ 10 Michigan

A win that shows Texas is a legitimate championship contender. This is going to be one of their marquee wins this year regardless of how Michigan finishes. Quinn Ewers continues to show he is possibly the best QB in the country and that he shines brightest in big games. Beck and Sanders are great, but I think Ewers is the top QB for next year’s NFL draft. Not only is he supremely talented but has dealt with the pressure of being Texas’s QB while having people clamoring for Arch Manning behind him. That kind of pressure has built him into a resilient QB, which is massive for the next level.

For Michigan, it’s a comeback to reality. Everyone knew they weren’t going to really compete for the title and this made it obvious. Their season isn’t over but they lack the spark offensively to keep up with the big boys. However, Michigan is a program that recruits and develops well, so they should be back to elite in a year or 2.

Northern Illinois @ 5 Notre Dame

Normally ND loses a tough game to another elite school for their first loss of the year. This year is not the case as they suffered a terrible upset at home. Their season is not over, but being an Independent with an awful home loss will make it tough from here on out. They really need to win out and could maybe afford one “impressive” loss the rest of the year. I think they have the coach and talent to do so.

14 Tennessee vs 24 NC State (in Charlotte)

This looked like it would be one of the best games of the weekend and was an absolute blowout. Nico Iamaleava had some up and downs, but he is an absolute stud.

Colorado @ Nebraska

Colorado continues to show they have talent but are still mostly hype. Dylan Raiola and Matt Rhule could bring Nebraska back to their glory days.

Boise State @ 7 Oregon

The Ducks barley pulled out another game against a non-Power Four team. Boise State is good, but Oregon is going for a National Championship. They need to look better than they do.

Other

10 of the top 11 teams are from the SEC or Big 10. Things will change but these two conferences will dominate the CFB Playoff for years to come.

Patriots Season Preview

The Patriots are currently at the beginning of a full on rebuild so expectations are low. Hopefully last year was rock bottom and we see improvement this year. The biggest thing we need to see is improvement offensively. I don’t know how much Drake Maye will play, but we obviously want him to look good if he does. I think Maye will start playing around the mid season mark so the Pats can see what they have in him. The young wide receivers and offensive lineman we have ideally get experience and develop a lot this year too. The offense will likely start slow but gain momentum as the season goes on.

The defense has been a strength so we want them to keep playing well. Expect a great season from Christian Gonzalez who played well before a season ending injury last year. It will also be interesting to see if anyone can replace Matthew Judon as a premier pass rusher. The Pats defense should be at worst average and will be the strength of the team.

Finally, we want to see that Jerrod Mayo can coach. He is replacing the greatest coach of all time so it doesn’t get harder than that. As a part of the dynasty as a player, he knows what it takes to win here so I have belief that he can have a similar positive impact that DeMeco Ryans had on the Texans last year.

I think the Patriots go 6-11 and finish last in their division. In addition to rebuilding, they have the hardest schedule in the NFL, so they get no break whatsoever. This should net them a top 10 draft pick and allow them to get another great young player to help build their team up. This year might be tough at times, but unlike last year we should have some things that give us hope for a great future.

The Unique Careers of Curly Lambeau and George Halas

Curly Lambeau and George Halas had unheard of careers in the NFL that will never be replicated. Both of these men were players, coaches, and owners (sometimes all 3 at the same time) for their respective teams. Looking at the modern NFL and seeing how that would be absolutely impossible to do today makes these feats even more incredible.

Lambeau founded the Packers in 1919 in his hometown of Green Bay, WI. He played on the team from 1919-1929 and was named to the 1920s All-Decade NFL Team. The Packers joined the NFL in 1921 and he was a player-coach from 1921-1929, before retiring as a player.

He continued coaching the Packers until 1949, winning 209 games and 6 NFL titles. He is tied for being the longest tenured coach in NFL history with Tom Landry and is tied with George Halas and Bill Belichick for the most NFL championships by a coach.

Lambeau won 226 games total as a coach, was part of the first NFL Hall of Fame class in 1963, and was named to the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. The Packer’s stadium was named Lambeau Field in 1965 and bears the same name to this day.

George Halas co-founded the NFL and took ownership of the Chicago Bears in 1921. The Chicago native played for the Bears from 1920-1928 and was a member of 1920s All-Decade Team.

From 1920-1967, he coached the Bears 4 separate times for a total of 40 years. He was a 2-time AP Coach of the year, won 6 NFL titles as a coach (tied for an NFL record), and 318 games (3rd all-time). He won two additional NFL titles while owning the Bears.

Similar to Lambeau, he was part of the first NFL Hall of Fame class in 1963, and was named to the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. He is nicknamed “Papa Bear,” due to his everlasting connection with the team and the NFC championship trophy is named after him.