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By Marc Lawrence
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Monday, Jan 19 |
As one might imagine, C.J. Stroud wasn’t happy with himself.
The Houston Texans star quarterback threw four first half interceptions in Sunday’s loss to the New England Patriots as Stroud and the Texans offense couldn’t stop tripping over themselves.
With it, the Patriots moved on to the AFC Championship Game, while the Texans are going home early.
Following the game, Stroud owned up to his poor performance, putting 100 percent of the bad game on himself.
“I feel like I let people down. And it hurts. Today just wasn’t my day… I take full responsibility.”
Afterwards, DeMeco Ryans defended his star quarterback when he said, “Keep your head up, I love you,” Ryans reportedly told Stroud postgame. “I have your back. This whole team has your back.”
That sounds like a team united. We haven’t heard the last from them yet. |
ON TODAY'S SCORECARD
And the Winner is...
The Super Bowl-like atmosphere of Miami and the $3,600 ‘get in’ price for a nosebleed seat say it all.
The 2026 CFP title game is tonight, and Miami is the place to be. Unlike today’s 22-degree weather in Bloomington, the Hoosiers will enjoy 60-degree weather in Miami this evening.
However, to do so, they must concede the home-field advantage to the Hurricanes, who will play as a 7.5-point underdog at home. The ‘U’ has a 12-9 SU and 14-7 ATS record as a home underdog in games played in this century, including 5-0 SU/ATS when their win percentage is .750 or higher.
They are also 7-0 ATS versus AP Top 25 teams, while QB Carson Beck has won and covered in each of his last 9 games against top opponents.
Other factors favoring Miami include that this is the first national championship during the BCS/CFP era played in a team's home stadium. Familiarity with Hard Rock Stadium provides Miami with a clear logistical and crowd advantage — no travel required, venue knowledge, and a passionate local fanbase expected to dominate attendance.
So then, one might wonder, why Indiana is favored by more than a touchdown.
To start, this matchup pits Curt Cignetti, last season’s CFB Coach of the Year, against Mario Cristobal – a HUGE edge in Indiana’s favor. Additionally, favorites have cashed in on each of the last 6 national title games.
It’s also the first championship game featuring a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback since Joe Burrow led LSU to the 2019 National Championship over Clemson, 42-25.
The ball is in your court. Pick your poison.
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GRINDING OUT THE PROFITS
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions
A recent report suggested that the Cardinals are likely to move on from quarterback Kyler Murray this offseason. As ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes, however, Arizona could keep Murray for at least one more year.
Murray has not been able to recapture the form that led to consecutive original-ballot Pro Bowls in 2020 and 2021. That early success convinced the Cards to authorize a five-year, $230.5MM contract for the first-overall pick of the 2019 draft, but the Murray/Kliff Kingsbury partnership veered off course soon after.
Murray did not play particularly well in 2022, and an ACL tear suffered in December of that year forced him to miss the last few games of the season as well as the first half of the 2023 slate. By that point, Kingsbury had been replaced by Jonathan Gannon.
The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner had a bit of a resurgence in 2024. He ranked ninth in the league in QBR, and the Cardinals finished with an 8-9 record that suggested a playoff berth could be within reach in 2025. That did not materialize, and Murray’s season ended prematurely again due to a Week Five foot injury.
His recent medical history and middling results over the past four seasons have cast doubt on his future with the Cardinals.
Things are about to get interesting in Arizona. |
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TRENDING TODAY
A Depth Chart Redacted |
If a team tries to beat the Seahawks by pounding the ball, best of luck to them.
It didn’t work for the injury-plagued 49ers yesterday when San Francisco amassed six points while rushing for only 64 yards on 3.0 yards per carry by non-quarterbacks.
Through 18 games, no running back has rushed for more than 91 yards on the Seahawks, with Kyren Williams doing that in Week 11. Of course, Williams could be the familiar face Seattle sees next Sunday with a Super Bowl appearance on the line, against a Rams team that had a rushing success rate this season of more than 50%.
Of course, injuries and the test of depth is a part of NFL life. But for San Francisco to win 12 games and reach the final eight even with those challenges is something worth remembering.
For what it’s worth, the Niners lost 254 man-games to injury during the regular season this, per RotoWire. |
BETCHA DIDN’T KNOW
Finding the ‘G’ Spot
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Giannis Antetokounmpo has spent his entire NBA career with the Bucks, but his name has been floated around the trade deadline for a few years now as Milwaukee has underperformed since its championship run in 2021.
This year, those rumblings got especially loud, with reports that both Giannis and the Bucks were openly discussing the two-time MVP’s future with the franchise.
Since then, it felt as though the trade talks have quieted down a bit. Giannis returned from injury and helped the Bucks secure a few impressive wins, and last week issued his clearest statement yet regarding his feelings towards Milwaukee, saying “there will never be a chance, and there will never be a moment, that I will come out and say ‘I want a trade.’”
But despite that strong statement, the rest of the NBA apparently isn’t fully buying that Giannis is sticking with the Bucks just yet, and a few poor performances of late have only raised more doubts across the league.
The market at the NBA trade deadline can move at an intense pace, and a domino of Giannis’s size isn’t moved that often—despite what last year’s Luka trade might have you believe. It makes sense that while teams would be lining deals up, they might not want to pull the trigger until they are 100% sure Giannis isn’t leaving Milwaukee. No one wants to find out one of the best players in the league is available to the highest bidder the day after they traded two first-round picks for a rotation guy.
As things stand, based on Antetokounmpo’s own words and his 14 seasons in Milwaukee, it feels like the most likely outcome here is Giannis remaining with the Bucks. We’ll know after the trade deadline passes on Feb. 5. |
STAT OF THE DAY
5 - 0 |
The total number of National Championships won by the
Miami Hurricanes, and the
Indiana Hoosiers, respectively. |
QUOTE OF THE DAY |
"If you fail, congratulations.
Most people don’t even try."
- Anonymous |
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