Matthew Schmidt Articles - Page 9

Was that Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons that just made a 3-pointer? Or is the Orlando heat causing mirages? No, it really was Simmons. The Sixers point-forward drained a catch-and-shoot triple during his team’s exhibition matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday, much to the delight of Joel Embiid and the rest of his teammates: […]

Memphis Grizzlies big man Jonas Valanciunas has expanded his offensive repertoire over the couple of years, and on Friday, Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid found that out the hard way. During an exhibition game between the Grizzlies and 76ers on Friday afternoon, Embiid essentially dismissed Valanciunas’ ability to hit a three-pointer. Valanciunas responded by draining […]

At this point, the NBA MVP race seems to be a two-player discussion: Giannis Antetokounmpo and LeBron James. While there are other players who certainly deserve a mention, Antetokounmpo and James are unquestionably the two names that come up most in conversation, and for good reason. Yes, Kawhi Leonard may very well be the best […]

Golf legend tiger Woods has taken to Twitter to announce that he will skip the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in Memphis next week. Disappointed to miss @WGCFedEx, but doing what I think is best to prepare me for the @PGAChampionship and upcoming FedExCup Playoffs. — Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) July 24, 2020 Woods had been waffling […]

With Lionel Messi’s deal with Barcelona expiring rather soon, many are wondering if the superstar could leave for another club. Well, now, some fuel has been added to the fire of those rumors. According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Messi’s father, Jorge, is purchasing a house in Milan and plans to complete his move to Italy […]

There is a new regime in The Windy City, meaning new Chicago Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley could look to shake up the roster this offseason. Does that mean Zach LaVine could potentially be on the move? While LaVine has not asked for a trade and […]

Patrick Mahomes just signed a 10-year, $503 million extension with the Kansas City Chiefs, giving him the largest contract in NFL history. While there never seemed to be any doubt that Mahomes would remain in Kansas City, the superstar quarterback says that head coach Andy Reid was instrumental in convincing him to essentially agree to […]

Josh Gordon’s stint with the Seattle Seahawks in 2019 did not last very long. The Seahawks signed the wide receiver back in November after he was waived by the New England Patriots, but Gordon played in just five games with the club before being suspended indefinitely for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. That marked the […]

The Kansas City Chiefs locked up Patrick Mahomes with a massive 10-year, $503 million contract extension earlier this month, ensuring that they will have the best player in football through his prime years. There never seemed to be any doubt that Mahomes would stay with the Chiefs. Since being drafted 10th overall by the club […]

The Minnesota Vikings have signed rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson, according to Field Yates of ESPN. Jefferson will receive a $7.1 million signing bonus as part of his guaranteed deal. Jefferson, who played his collegiate football at LSU, was selected by the Vikings in the first round (22nd pick overall) of the NFL Draft back […]

The Carolina Panthers have an odd franchise trajectory. They entered the NFL in 1995, instantly climbed into the upper echelon ranks by winning 12 games and making it all the way to the NFC Championship Game as soon as their second season and then stunk for six years before making it to their first Super […]

The Jacksonville Jaguars don’t have a very extensive history, as they entered the NFL in 1995 and have yet to make a Super Bowl appearance. However, that does not mean they haven’t had some terrific players walk through their doors. Sure, the Jaguars have made just one playoff appearance since 2008, and for much of […]

The Pittsburgh Steelers went just 8-8 and missed the playoffs in 2019, but the effort they put forth given their circumstances was admirable. Ben Roethlisberger was sidelined for the season as soon as Week 3, leaving the Steelers to bounce back and forth between Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges for the remainder of the year. […]

It’s the dawn of a new era for the New England Patriots. Tom Brady is no longer under center for the Patriots, marking the first time since the beginning of 2001 that New England will begin a season without Brady as its starting quarterback. And of course, Brady finished out that year as the starter […]

Washington’s NFL franchise has been in the news a whole lot lately. First, the organization agreed to move on from the name “Redskins,” a term that is offensive to Native Americans. While it took the club many years to ultimately make that decision, it was at least a step in the right direction. Then, on […]

A lot of the time, the team that wins the NBA championship is not exactly well-liked. I don’t think anyone outside of Los Angeles was rooting for the Lakers during all of their titles runs, and Michael Jordan’s Bulls certainly had their fair share of haters around the nation. But every once in a while, […]

When it comes to NBA rappers, Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard is definitely among the best. The Blazers point guard has become renowned for his skills on the mic, and recently, he released a song called “Home Team” that he says is one of his favorite tracks he has ever made. On Friday, he […]

When Dion Waiters signed with the Los Angeles Lakers back on March 6, it marked the second time he joined LeBron James as a teammate. The first time Waiters played with James came back during the 2014-15 campaign with the Cleveland Cavaliers, when Waiters played in 33 games and struggled before being traded. Waiters was […]

The Dallas Mavericks always seem to be involved with big-name free agents. However, they always strike out. There was even some talk that they were trying to lure Kawhi Leonard this past summer, but obviously, that did not work out. But that could change in 2021 when Giannis Antetokounmpo hits the open market. Assuming the […]

The shelf life for an NFL running back is not very long. Just ask Todd Gurley, whose career already appears to be in sharp decline at the mere age of 25. But Frank Gore doesn’t want to hear any of that. Gore is 37 years old, and while he clearly is not the same player […]

The Green Bay Packers turned a lot of heads with their decision to take Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in the first round of the NFL Draft back in April. Not only did the Packers select Love, but they traded up to grab him. Considering that Aaron Rodgers is currently under center for Green Bay […]

George Kittle has already established himself as one of the best tight ends in the NFL and could be on his way to becoming one of the best tight ends in history, but that doesn’t mean he is satisfied. Graphic designer Mike Stadlmann has been photographing Kittle’s workouts in Nashville this offseason, and let’s just […]

Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs had a tremendous rookie season, and he is being rewarded for his efforts with his ratings in Madden 21. As a matter of fact, Jacobs has just one halfback ahead of him in the break-tackle rating, and that player is Cleveland Browns star, Nick Chubb. Good luck tackling […]

The Minnesota Timberwolves are not exactly a marquee NBA franchise. Since entering the league in 1989, the Timberwolves have made it past the first round of the playoffs just once. What’s more, they have only made one postseason appearance since 2004. But that doesn’t mean some fine players haven’t come and go through the organization. […]

The Cleveland Browns handed Myles Garrett a massive five-year, $125 million contract extension on Wednesday, a pact that makes him the highest-paid defensive end in the NFL. One fellow pass rusher that Garrett’s deal will inevitably affect is Los Angeles Chargers defensive lineman Joey Bosa, as Gavino Borquez of Chargers Wire notes. Bosa is slated […]

The Kansas City Chiefs have been very busy over the last couple of weeks. First, they inked superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a 10-year contract extension worth up to $503 million on July 6. Then, this week, the Chiefs locked up defensive lineman Chris Jones with a four-year, $85 million deal. Kansas City slapped a […]

There is a lot of concern about the 2020 NFL campaign as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Some are wondering if the league will even be able to complete a full 16-game season plus playoffs. Of course, the No. 1 concern is player safety. However, Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Eric Fisher is not […]

The resumption of the 2019-20 NBA campaign is closing in, and even if the playoffs won’t be as intense as usual, they will still occur. That means a champion will eventually be crowned. But in these strange times, which teams are under the most pressure to get it done in 2020? Here are the three […]

The Cleveland Browns signed rookie safety Grant Delpit on Wednesday, making him the last Browns 2020 draft pick to ink a deal, according to the team. Delpit, who played his collegiate football at LSU, was selected by Cleveland in the second round (44th pick overall) of the NFL Draft back in April. The 21-year-old arrived […]

The Tennessee Titans are signing running back Derrick Henry to a four-year, $50 million contract extension, and now details are beginning to emerge on the specifics of the deal. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Henry will earn $25.5 million in guaranteed money over the next two years. That will come in the […]

The Cleveland Browns officially signed defensive lineman Myles Garrett to a five-year, $125 million contract extension on Wednesday, and afterward, Garrett released a statement expressing his gratitude: “In 2017, the Cleveland Browns bet on me,” Garrett said in a statement, via the Browns’ Twitter account. “This city quickly became my home and these people quickly […]

On ESPN’s “The Jump,” NBA analyst Paul Pierce offered up another one of his famous hot takes, calling Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic “the most talented player in the NBA.” Not surprisingly, Pierce’s proclamation has been met with some pretty firm kickback, just like pretty much everything he says these days. To be fair to Pierce, […]

The Brooklyn Nets signed Michael Beasley last week with the hope that he would provide a lift to a roster that has been devastated by injuries and COVID-19. Five days later, the Beasley experiment seems to be over even before it started. According to Malika Andrews and Tim Bontemps of ESPN, Beasley has left the […]

The Tennessee Titans have until Wednesday to reach a long-term agreement with running back Derrick Henry, but unless things changed dramatically within the next 24 hours, it doesn’t look like that is going to happen. Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill, who re-signed with the Titans on a multi-year deal earlier this offseason, spoke out on Henry’s […]

Between the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings, the NFC North was supposed to be incredibly competitive in 2019. Instead, the Bears laid an egg and the Vikings, while still good, were remarkably inconsistent, due much in part to Kirk Cousins’ Jekyll-and-Hyde performance under center. The Packers ended up winning 13 games and […]

Earlier on Tuesday, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that the Cleveland Browns were closing in on a five-year, $125 million contract extension with defensive lineman Myles Garrett. Now, some more details are emerging. According to Rapoport, Garrett’s monster deal will include $100 million in guaranteed money. Rapoport also mentioned that extending Garrett was the […]

Chris Jones got paid on Tuesday, as the defensive lineman agreed to a four-year, $85 million contract extension with the Kansas City Chiefs. Afterward, Jones took to Twitter to express his excitement about being in Kansas City for the long haul: Let’s gooooo!!!!The Dynasty Continues….#RunitBack #Sacknation — Chris Jones (@StoneColdJones) July 14, 2020 The Chiefs […]

The Baltimore Ravens slapped a franchise tag on linebacker Matthew Judon earlier this offseason, and it doesn’t look like the two sides are going to come to terms on a long-term agreement before the Wednesday deadline. After Chris Jones—who was franchised by the Kansas City Chiefs back in March—agreed to a four-year, $85 million extension […]

The San Francisco 49ers are not only the defending NFC West champions, but they also made it all the way to the Super Bowl this past season, so it’s only natural for them to be the favorites to win their division again in 2020. But who is the biggest threat to the 49ers in the […]