Life and Rays Baseball: The Tampa Bay Rays 2014 Season Recap

My 2014 started out with lots of aspirations and potential big changes.



The Tampa Bay Rays 2014 season started out with lots of hype from the baseball community. They were even considered to become potentially World Series bound. They had the talent, they had the playoff experience, they’ve all been there before---it was a deadly mix of youth and experience that was potentially shifting them from good team to championship-caliber team.

My 2014 went off to a very rough start. Complications, unexpected surprises, delays in progress, among other things hampered the beginning of the year.

The beginning of the 2014 Rays saw them take off in the totally wrong direction, having to endure a long dismal April and May and it was complicated by a series of injuries. Matt Moore disappearing from the rotation was a nasty blow, as the other pitchers suddenly had to step up. Alex Cobb went down. Hellickson went down. Alex Torres and Fernando Rodney had left prior to the season. All these players that could have helped us had moved on to other teams. Joe Maddon had to play severe damage control and attempt to salvage as much as he could during the injury-stricken weeks.

But like my Rays, I had been through rougher waters before. Surely my misfortune would turn around with a little planning, some hard work, and a few good breaks, right?

Well, by the end of June things were turning around. It was quite inspiring to see a team that dealt with so much crap while maintaining the bottom of the barrel attendance numbers to still hang around in the midst of the underwhelming performances and injuries. Even Evan Longoria’s numbers were not on par to his usual output. In spite of this, excellent non-closer relief pitching as well as improving stats from the starters was giving the offense the necessary breathing room to churn out its few runs that would lead to close victories the Rays were known for. The Rays have always been good at small balling their way to wins, and can grind out wins in the second half better than most teams.

Also on their side was the extreme parity that was engulfing the American League. In mid-July the Rays were below .500 but were still within 6 games of the second Wild Card. And if there is a franchise that can show that in baseball there’s always a chance: it would be the Rays with their magical 2011 September run. 9 games out in September, and still managed to get in—and this is before the inclusion of a second Wild Card.







And then we traded David Price…





And there went the season…..





You never ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever ever trade one of the faces of the franchise unless you truly believe that there is nothing left to fight for. The Oakland Athletics found out the hard way then they traded Cespedes and went on a torrid downward spiral and went from World Series bound all the way down to barely nabbing a Wild Card.





Now look at the Rays:

August 1st (24 hours after Price trade): 53-56 5 GB for 2nd Wild Card
September 1st: 67-71 8.5 GB for 2nd Wild Card
End of Season: 77-85 11 GB for 2nd Wild Card


Tampa never recovered from the loss. The fans stopped showing up, the players didn’t have the same spark, the organization altogether just never truly recovered from that gaping hole. Never mind that we were never going to keep him with his value skyrocketing in an increasingly competitive league that is seeing more and more teams playing deep into September. Never mind that we can’t afford him and could only hope for an Evan Longoria-like contract that happens very, very rarely. He still had value in Tampa, and could have still been used to propel the Rays into a playoff team. There was no tiff, there was no locker room controversy, David Price had become the leader amongst the pitchers in the Tampa clubhouse and was a fan favorite. If the Rays wanted to compete, keeping Price would have to become a priority.

Upper management didn’t see this. They saw a mediocre team that wasn’t going anywhere. This is slightly understandable---except for the fact that there was no outstanding team at the late July point. The Oakland Athletics were the top squad in the land, and yet the uncertainty immediately arrived when they made their trades. No team was actually safe. But management didn’t see this. And not only did they trade David Price, but traded him to a team that could potentially face them in the playoffs as opposed to an NL team, further showing their lack of confidence in a true turnaround. It was a devastating blow to Joe Maddon and his young, already-depleted squad.

Tampa is known for being tenacious but Price leaving was too much. Moore was already gone, Hellickson was still gone, I don’t need to explain this further. Once the fan favorite left, so did the fans. So did everyone. So did me.

My August was just as frustrating as the Rays. It was about having to start over—much like the Rays. It was about trying to find my rooting---much like the Rays. It was about trying to figure out which direction to go—much like the Rays. And just like the Rays by the end of the season---I am still working on it, still working on figuring things out. And you bet come next year I will be there ready to take on another season of circumstances---just like the Rays.

The damning thing about this article is that there is less to talk about with this team when compared to last year’s team. The season was shorter, it’s more of the same issues from years past (Offense, offense, offense), and the David Price trade removed all the flavor from the 2014 season. At the same time, my 2014 life also doesn’t have much flavor, it was full of unmet potential and lots of things out of my control that led to me having to move, having to save up money, having to desperately beg, borrow, and deal my way through the summer. Lots of mistakes also made along the way, including some to the level of the David Price trade.


But baseball is life. And like life, baseball is lengthy, you never know when it’s over, it’s full of surprises, full of triumphs as well as disappointments, heavily requires contributions of the environment around you regardless of good things might be going for you, and at the end of the day no matter how bad or how disappointing everything is going: there’s always next year. There’s always a chance to start over.



Because at one point, that is all you might have: hope in a better tomorrow.



For me, I need to work on my patience, my decision-making, my drive, and my overall demeanor towards potentially making big changes. For the Rays, they need to attempt to maintain a more consistent team that can grow and become a community with the fans. It does us no good to follow a team that shuffles their entire lineup like a deck of cards. Sam Fuld was a fan-favorite that could have contributed plenty off the bench and on defense during the injury-nagging beginnings. The other fan-favorite was Fernando Rodney, which could have deserved another year despite 2013 being rough with him because after all he set the franchise record for saves and when he is on fire, nobody could touch him. And look how well he did with the Mariners. So the Rays management needs a little more…patience with their lower-budget players.

Me and the Rays have seen better days, but it doesn’t mean that we’ve peaked. There’s still plenty of opportunities for me and the Rays to improve things---whether it’s going to be here in Florida……or elsewhere…like Montreal…..





..............................................





Go Rays. See you next year.

Netflix Instant Watch Pick of the Week: Pulp Fiction (10/10)

[[[Happy 20th Anniversary Pulp Fiction]]]]



Read this loud and clear: Pulp Fiction will never ever happen again. The impact, the delivery, the timing, and the overall stamp it has placed in cinema history can never be duplicated. See, there are bad movies, good movies, great movies, and trailblazers. The trailblazers are films that jump-start a movement, revolutionize the industry, change the landscape of motion pictures, and delivers an impact whether immediate (Star Wars) or down the road (Fight Club) that never exits the general consensus.

Wizard of Oz, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Psycho, Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Graduate, and Goodfellas are all examples of films that are trailblazers. None of these films have any contemporaries, they are their own category and all films of similar genres become compared to them. Pulp Fiction is a 90s indie trailblazer that absolutely altered the entire culture of movies by crafting what at the time was easily one of the most jarring, unexpected, stylish, and wholesome cinematic experiences ever witnessed.

Pulp Fiction was a low-budget flick with such high aspirations that 1994 didn't know how to handle it. The soundtrack (among the best in film history), the unexpected blend of violence, drugs, and realistic dialogue, the surprises, the utter lack of chronological order, the style, the tone, and the overall look of Pulp Fiction made it stand out not just among the films of the 90s, but everything preceding it. It talks like a Scorsese movie, moves like a 1950s Italian neorealism flick, paces like a spaghetti western, and breathes like an underground comic book come to life. Pulp Fiction is tasty cinematic soup.

Pulp Fiction knew it was cool before the viewer did. Pulp Fiction knew that its audience was going to put up with the 150 minutes of dialogue because the characters were so strong, the story lines were unique, and there were so many details (explained and unexplained) that it required multiple viewings to catch it all, and jump-started urban legends and mysteries that remain unsolved to this day. It was a movie that created its own culture and fanbase that would follow madman Quinten Tarantino for the entirety of his career---through the "bad" (Death Proof) and the good (Django Unchained).

Everything in this movie works. The cast was downright phenomenal and nearly miraculous considering the budget (Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson, John Travolta, AND Christopher Walken in one movie??!!). The dialogue was sharp, witty, brutal, and breathes life into each character you see within the pulp-influenced saga. The directing by Tarantino was practically flawless as he makes transforms the camera into a curious witness by mixing in a barrage of close-ups, long shots, and spastic movement that never feels like its framing a shot but more so just following the story along where ever the action was going.

This movie literally has it all: sex, violence, drugs, rock n' roll, dancing, singing, crime, morality issues, romance, revenge, monologues, potential miracles, shootouts, dark humor, dozens of film references, and even a couple glimpses of the California underworld that most people would rather not know about. And all this was accomplished without a Hollywood budget. There was a slight sense of amateurism that gave the movie an edge, like a black sheep in the meadows of the film industry. This would inspire an entire wave of budding, ambitious, and hopeful filmmakers that also had their stories to tell and didn't want to cater to the typical Hollywood output or abide by its rules. Pulp Fiction is a B-Movie setup executed like an underground masterpiece from the dialogue-heavy start to the sudden finish.

You can't duplicate this. I couldn't duplicate this. Tarantino could never duplicate this. Pulp Fiction is one of the greatest films ever made, and a perfect storm of innovative filmmaking that lifted 1994 into one of the best years of film that has ever existed---and launched an entire era of indie filmmaking that still has its effects on the industry today. Pulp Fiction is as absolutely cool as its gets.

Netflix DVD Pick of the Week: Hard Boiled (9/10)

We can start the review by stating one fact about this movie: the body count is 307. That is over two bodies a minute.

To sum it up, this action film is pound for pound, inch for inch one of the biggest, baddest, most intense, and most insane action movies in the entire spectrum of cinema----not just China but the entire planet. This movie nearly immediately starts off with a bang (Well, a medley of bangs) and then interweaves action sequences with a plot full of betrayal, undercover work and slight double-crossing (Yea, technically there is a plot) before leading up to a finale that ranks up there as among the best you'll ever see.

Hard Boiled is 90s action cinema plain and simple: takes no prisoners, the plot comes second, and its main focus is to satisfy the audience by any means necessary. But the biggest difference between this bloody gem and your old-school 90s Michael Bay and James Cameron is that Hard Boiled was far, far riskier in terms of stuntwork and far, far less restricted with rules, regulations, and insurance companies. Not to knock the safe techniques of Hollywood, but the extremely dedicated staff behind this dangerously destructive movie paved the way more stunts, explosions, and utter mayhem that just wouldn't be humanely possible in a film made in the American borders.

John Woo (and Chow Yun-Fat) is at his prime here, cut down by age and Hollywood limits shortly after his peak in 1992. Unlike your rapid-fire editing, extreme close-ups, shaky camera-work, and over-abundance of CGI of your modern, easier-to-make action movies, Hard Boiled was layers of stuntwork, lack of trickery, exquisite long shots of just egregious shootouts---and so much action you might feel like having to clean the television set once the credits start rolling. The final showdown alone takes up about half an hour and has more broken glass than a mirror maze overrun by black cats.

Physics and continuity are stretched to the limit as the gun fu style of action allows for thousands of bullets to fly out of the hundreds of guns at such an intense and entertaining pace you don't realize how impossible the entire sequence is. Picture high-energy martial arts except instead of punches and kicks you'll see bullets fly at each other and hundreds of near-misses from our heroes and some of the enemies. You are going to see years of action, violence, blood and guts compacted into a two-hour chunk of pure exhilaration.

Non-action moviegoers would probably see this as mundane and repetitive, devoid of good dialogue and a deep plot. Action fans will see this as a sweet dream come true as you'll see fights of gunfire in multiple angles, multiple speeds, and plenty of creativity to keep it all engaging--while telling a tale about good cops going up against really bad men. This is John Woo at his best, Chinese cinema at its finest, and a violently beautiful example of what happens when you rely solely on real life stuntwork and good ol' actual explosives. And most impressive is that with a $5 million budget it feels like a bigger movie than your modern $150-$200 million summer blockbusters.

Loud, uncut, and out of control, Hard Boiled is as tough as nails, and deserves your full attention.

Rice, Goodell, and the Morally Decaying Days of the NFL

Ethan Westbrooks is this rookie for the St. Louis Rams that got the motivation to play for the NFL by getting a face tattoo. His logic was that with the face tattoo, he could never, ever get a normal job—pretty much forcing him to man up, beef up, and shoot for a football career. And he is most certainly right; the NFL is not a normal job---because it has such a blurred line as to what is considered wrong, what is considered right, what is considered fair, and what is considered a fireable offense. Welcome to the job that employs convicts, women beaters, drug addicts, rapists, dog-killers, assault weapon owners, and other hoodlums without taking an extra breath. In this job, no matter what awful society-threatening activities you commit off the field, as long as you produce on the field it’s all okay.


But we’ve reached a point that even the biggest football fans are starting to cringe.



The NFL is in a bit of trouble.


Because it has done absolutely everything wrong in the past few weeks, and it’s now opening the doors to other issues that up until now was secretly plaguing the league.

The Ray Rice ordeal has been an absolute disaster from start to the eventual finish. And everyone involved is totally in the wrong here. The Ravens were absolutely disgusting in their stupid pep rally for the domestic abuser. The Ravens fans are rather disgusting in forgiving him so quickly, still wearing his jersey, and nearly making him out to become some sort of victim in all this. Ray Rice sunk to a level that very few men would ever find themselves (although apparently in recent statistics, some would debate this) in as he not only struck his fiancée (twice) but also spit on her in the process, before treating her body like a sack of potatoes. The justice system was horrifically wrong in pretty much giving him a slap on the wrists for the incident which could have turned out to be much worse if she had landed incorrectly. ESPN should have fired Stephen A. Smith for suggesting that the victim provoked and slightly deserved the beating. Paul George and some of the other asinine athlete Tweeters are in the wrong for also claiming the same thing.

Before I dwell on the main culprit for all this, let me point out that no matter what she says, what she does, or what she threatens to do, you as a man should never, ever, ever, ever strike your woman, or any woman for that matter. It is as simple as that. We are not in the caveman days. Grow the f’ up, America.

And point #2, if anyone brings up race in this debate, you need to go home. This is not a white/black issue, this is a domestic abuse issue that is bringing light on one of the sadder epidemics occurring in the country.

But the National Football League and Roger Goodell, you messed this up royally in every possible conceivable way.


I mean seriously: Every. Single. Way.


The first video alone should have led to a much lengthier suspension than just two games. At least a season. Rice treated his fiancée like a heavy bag of garbage as he was dragging her along as opposed to asking for any type of help to remedy the situation. That first video should have been evidence enough that at that point he has little respect for human beings. You just don’t do that to anybody. We all knew what had happened on that elevator. Nonetheless, the NFL gives him two games. Josh Gordon caught with weed? An entire year. Granted he is a repeat offender, but it wasn’t performance-enhancing, isn’t anything that can effect anybody. He didn’t hurt anybody. One year.

And only God knows how much more lenient the punishment would be if he was playing for Denver or New England as opposed to Cleveland---because now Wes Welker after getting busted for illegal drugs suddenly gets to play again as the NFL approved a new deal with the player’s union and immediately reinstated the Broncos star. But no hope for Gordon. He gets 10 games, Welker comes back after getting in trouble for the same exact offense, and Ray Rice originally got two games.Must be good to be part of a successful franchise, eh?

Then of course there’s the NFL’s newest punishment for domestic abuse: 6 games. Really? Tormenting your significant other with mental and physical pain warrants you only missing 6 games? At this point it was realized that the NFL didn’t get it. Yes the other leagues have their players with domestic abuse problems: but the NFL hands-down has the biggest staff of delinquents, and as the league with the most public case of domestic violence, should have made a firm example on how to handle this. Yet we have two players (one for the 49ers with Kapernick, and the other for the Panthers with Newton) still playing despite being enamored in their own domestic abuse case. We have an announcer for San Francisco suspended for COMMENTS, while the ACTUAL ABUSER IS STILL PLAYING.



Hold on, the fun continues.


Now we have the second video come out, which was far more graphic than people imagined, and suddenly the Ravens cut Rice and the NFL suspended him indefinitely. This caused even more disaster because now people are trying to figure out why suddenly the punishment increased tenfold when we all knew what had happened. Ray Rice had already (sort of) mentioned what he did during the “pep rally” yet somehow this video made the NFL rethink the punishment. And this was after Roger Goodell lobbied and explained and argued his reasoning behind the original suspension.


Now….the question is…did the NFL have the tape? Goodell says no, and the flurry of anger continues.

How on earth could TMZ have the footage, and the NFL does not? How can the multi-billion dollar industry not be able to obtain the footage of a simple elevator exchange? How is it that it seems like TMZ was more willing to reveal the truth than the league employing the culprit? And now with the investigators claiming that the NFL had the tape back in April, everything smells like bullcrap. Goodell says he didn’t have the tape, and even went as far as to say that Rice never told him the actual story as to what happened on that fateful night. Both are obvious lies.


Wait, there’s more….

Now Goodell starts up an independent report---that is being overseen by two owners that have deep ties with the commissioner that’s already in trouble. This entire thing is a pure mess. So now we have controversial decisions, dumbfounded decisions, and even more player violence occurring at the same time with Adrian Peterson suddenly being wanted for beating one of his kids with a switch many, many times. What you see here is a horrifically botched attempt at a cover-up and hordes of athletes continuing to operate without much regard for others. The NFL is in pure moral decay, and the entire front office has to go.

Roger Goodell has to go, plain and simple.


He had one job. ONE JOB. The NFL was already the biggest thing in American sports by far. Surely the world prefers its soccer, baseball, and basketball, but in the US of A football was reigning supreme. The 2000s has made it excruciatingly easy to follow your sports teams no matter what league you follow. MLB, NBA, NHL, MLS, and even the WNBA has seen a vast increase in fame and fortune thanks to evolving technology, thanks to sports becoming a more desirable and required escape, and because the talent level amongst all sports has become more streamlined so even lower-market and lesser-known teams like the Florida Marlins, Chicago White Sox, San Antonio Spurs, Detroit Pistons, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Columbus Crew winning the championships within the past 15 years. And even then, thanks to the influx of sports in the American mainstream, teams like the Spurs are becoming well-known even if they come from more obscure cities.


GOODELL YOU HAD ONE JOB: KEEP THE BOAT AFLOAT. Ride the wave of success and prevent it from crashing.


All he had to do was improve the player conduct that was getting rather out of hand in the early 2000s. However we have seen no improvement whatsoever and not just on the player conduct, but we are seeing a commissioner that overplays his hand to a point of diminishing the overall product. The BountyGate Scandal happened, the referees were locked out, the players at one point were locked out and nearly sacrificed part of the season, we have seen the issues of concussions reach new levels because of the increase in suicides and post-traumatic cases long after the football careers were over, and then the overall attitude of the league remained stuck in the 20th century.

We have Michael Sam perform quite well in the preseason, even taking in a few sacks (and taking out Johnny Football) in the process. Now, it is easy to say that I am jumping to conclusions as to his sexual orientation factoring in to why he didn’t get the job----but then there’s the Tim Tebow story.

Tim Tebow is the ultimate example as to why the NFL hasn’t grown up or evolved with the times. This man was a proven winner, the perfect breath of fresh air for the league. He was the Mary Poppins of the NFL, couldn’t do anything morally wrong. Constantly remained positive, never had a bad bone in his body, and still managed to lead a less-than-decent Denver Broncos team to the playoffs despite having rookie numbers and even beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in the postseason. His numbers were on par with most rookies that would become great quarterbacks, yet after one not-even-full season he was gone. Picked up by the Jets as a joke, picked up by the Patriots also as a joke, and now is doing Good Morning America not being able to fulfill his actual dream because he has been blackballed by the entire league.

So we hate the calm, religious, and anger-free Tim Tebow to a point of driving him away, yet we forgive and forget the crimes of the other NFL hoodlums? The culture of the NFL is very contradictory, as it doesn’t want to be known as a league that has become softer yet at the same time introduce dozens of rules that reduce players of all their individualism into mere money-making drones. Roger Goodell has created all these limitations to the way players play, celebrate, tackle, defend, and even unveil emotion and this has done little to nothing to fan the flames of player misbehavior.

Within this decade, we have seen terrible replacement referees with superior instant replay technology ruin entire games, we have seen a terrible murder-suicide happen in front of an NFL stadium, we nearly saw the cancelling of a football season, an inconsistent drug policy, an inconsistent celebrating policy (Lambeau Leap still allowed….), and just a decrease in quality coming from the overall product of the league. While it is still the #1 sport in America, its firm grip on the nation’s sports pulse is beginning to waver a little.

Originally, this article was going to dwell upon how the NFL will still survive this and will maintain its position as the top entertainment billing in television. Originally, I was going to put down that the fans will forgive nonetheless and we will still be moving on despite the awfulness of the current scenario because the NFL sells hope, as a miniscule 16-game season gives every fanbase the mentality that there is a chance. But as more and more complications mount as I type this, I am not sure if the NFL can recover from this without any bruises.

The current NFL has taken too many punches. And do remember that being on top of the mountain never lasts forever. Once upon a time MLB was king. Once upon a time boxing was king. If the NFL wants to keep being #1 in popularity and revenue (its lead over baseball is dwindling) it needs to do one major thing:


Get rid of Roger Goodell. His time is up.

Netflix DVD Pick of the Week: The Grand Budapest Hotel (9/10)

You know you've made your mark in the cinematic world when just a few visual images from a trailer reveals that you are behind the movie. Whether it's the rapid-fire editing of Tony Scott (or his successor, Edgar Wright), pulp house content of Robert Rodriguez (who just isn't the same anymore), or the long-sweeping blockbuster shots of Steven Spielberg, if you can immediately figure out who made the movie with just an image or a scene alone, it's a very, very good sign.

And now we have Wes Anderson and his whimsical, colorful, adult Dr. Seuss style of storytelling that has potentially reached its peak with the enduring, zany, and unpredictable Grand Budapest Hotel. This cinematic ball of energy looks like a Pollock painting if it ever got organized, runs like a Looney Tunes cartoon, and delivers an adult story in a most unique, childlike wondrous way. Similar to how Woody Allen's career took a second wind as he went overseas, Wes Anderson's movie-making trip to Europe elevates his skills and abilities as a director to brand new heights. Just one look at this film not only do you know who made it, but more or less what type of movie you are about to witness.

The story is surprisingly dark, as it spans multiple World Wars and covers a mystery involving a woman that may or may not have been murdered. The plot however moves so swiftly, so quickly, and contains so many humorous twists and turns you don't have time to dwell on the grimness. It does help that we have an excellent cast playfully tagging along for the ride, including Ralph Fieness in an Oscar-worthy performance, William Dafoe, and Tony Revolori---while also giving points to Jude Law, F. Murray Abraham, Adrian Brody, and Jeff Goldblum for their small but memorable roles.

Cast is important (Wes always has great casts, Hollywood should take notes), but this is Anderson's work first and foremost, and it's his writing and meticulous attention to detail that has allowed for him to emerge as one of the top directors in the game. Too bad that his light indie style doesn't exactly fit with the norm that usually gets Oscar attention (Similar to Spike Jonze). Don't let the lack of Oscar bait bum you though, the movie is dazzling eye candy with gorgeous shots and even more gorgeous cinematography that warrants multiple viewings to appreciate the backgrounds and foregrounds that blend with the cast and the story being told. The unconventionalism (not a word, I know) of Anderson separates him from not only Hollywood but from the Indie movement as well.

Grand Budapest Hotel is a Wes film plain and simple: great plot, colorful cast of characters, detailed settings, bite-sized dark humor, quirky swirl of comedy and drama, and an energy that you just don't get in many works nowadays. Grand Budapest Hotel is a visual treat from start to finish, so if you can handle his unique flavor and brand, then there is no reason why you would skip this movie. Easily one of the best you'll see this year.

The Deja Vu Syndrome of the upcoming NFL Season

Originally I was ready to put down my picks as to who would win each division, what each team’s record would be, and other miscellaneous shenanigan predictions. I was going to put down that the stinkin’ Patriots would once again find a way to win the AFC East even though the Dolphins might actually make a run for it (I did predict something similar last season, and they were doing fine until the locker room drama overwhelmed the season). I would put down that the Colts would repeat, the Bengals would pointlessly repeat, the Broncos would run away, the Eagles would conquer, and the Packers and Saints would win their division. I don’t see a lot of upsets, I don’t see a lot of surprises, and unlike what’s happening in baseball, I don’t see the usual script dwelling far from the norm.

But the more I write, the more I realize that there isn’t a point to any of this. None. No point in talking about my Dolphins, the Broncos, the Patriots, the Packers, the Eagles, the Jaguars (Kidding), and not even the Browns (Simple: Keep the same quarterback that actually started winning until the injury, nuff’ said). Because there is one undeniable truth to all this:


The road to the Super Bowl is being paved in the NFC West, and the winner will be a West Coast team nearly guaranteed.


It will once again be the 49ers and the Seahawks duking it out for the Super Bowl, and whomever wins there will win the entire thing. Both teams are still mostly intact, still have their momentum, still have their drive, and still have their ferocious reputation. They still have their young quarterbacks, their coaching staff has returned, and it’s always an added bonus that they hate each other. Unlike the diminishing rivalries of the Colts/Patriots and Yankees/Red Sox, this one is just as strong as ever.

Both have an intense and deep defensive scheme that can reduce the greatest offensive blitzes into mere candy. Both have clutch quarterbacks (Even though Kaepernick did fail quite badly in the NFC Championship Game) that shall be around with their franchises for quite some time barring unforeseen circumstances. Both teams know how to run, know how to pass, know how to defend their home turf, and overall will find different ways to defeat you..and defeat each other. Their Championship Game was separated by a great tipped pass. 

The 49ers are absolutely starving for a Super Bowl, since they’ve spent the last three seasons getting so close. They could have destroyed the Broncos just as badly as the Seahawks did on that fateful night. Bruno Mars performed better than the Broncos, but it has less to do with the Denver squad failing and more to do with the Seattle/San Francisco style and intensity of play being far too much for anyone in the AFC to handle. The 49ers during their recent run were bested by the Ravens and the Giants in the playoffs and neither team will reach that level of play for at least a half-decade. The 49ers can handle the Saints, the Packers, anyone you can throw at them. Seattle will remain their only hurdle.

Yes, the Super Bowl Curse does exist as we haven’t had repeat winners since the Patriots a decade ago. But this Seahawks team is one of the younger ones to win a Super Bowl and would love to repeat and prevent their rivals in Cali from winning the elusive prize. The fans don’t like each other, the coaches don’t like each other, and both have enough bandwagon fans to keep the ball rolling. Arguably the best secondary in a decade, a quarterback that consistently gets the job done, a great coach whose carefree approach is perfect for the Seattle culture, how can you possibly not vote for Seattle to potentially win it all again? The 12th Man is no fluke, as the Seattle Seahawks cannot lose at home. The only way to get to them is to force them to settle for a Wild Card.




The script this season shall remain the same, whomever walks out of the NFC alive will win it all. And it will definitely be whether the Seattle Seahawks or the San Francisco 49ers.



No point in predicting any other team, because the champ will be somewhere between the Bay Area, and Starbucks Country.