NFL Rankings - 12/16/14

So, a lot still remained at the top, but the Packers loss slides them down a bit. He's the details:

1. Seahawks - up 1
2. Broncos - up 2
3. Patriots - same
4. Packers - down 3
5. Cardinals - same
6. Bills - up 8
7. Steelers - down 1
8. Bengals - down 1
9. Colts - down 1
10. Cowboys - up 2
11. Lions - down 2
12. Chiefs - up 8
13. Ravens - down 3
14. Saints - up 4
15. Rams - down 4
16. Eagles - down 3
17. Falcons - down 2
18. Chargers - down 2
19. Raiders - down 2
20. 49ers - down 1
21. Panthers - up 4
22. Browns - down 1
23. Dolphins - down 1
24. Texans - down 1
25. Vikings - down 1
26. Bears - same
27. Jets - same
28. Giants - up 3
29. Redskins - down 1
30. Buccaneers - down 1
31. Jaguars - down 1
32. Titans - same

NBA Jazz Player Value - Quarter

Time again to look at the player value of the jazz purely from a stats standpoint. I've basically averaged how much they make by their output to come up with their value. Being 1/4 the way through the season, I felt it was time to asses their contributions based on how much we're paying them. Can't wait to see what new player Patrick Christopher brings to the team.

Above the Line:

1. Joe Ingles (same) - Still at the top because he gets paid so little, and leads with the lowest average for steals, assists and points.

2. Trey Burke (same) - still going strong!

3. Rudy Gobert (same) - averaging a team best $10,066 per rebound, he also leads the team in Field goal percentage at 60.30%

4. Alec Burks (up 1) - Still my favorite player on the team. Basically runs the offense.

5. Rodney Hood (up 1) - With Burks out for a few games, hood had a chance to start and upped his value. He is still last on the team in FG 29% and 3-point average 26.30%.

Below the line:

6. Trevor Booker (up 2) - is this close to being above the line!

7. Dante Exum (same) - is just ahead of Hayward on the value scale, but making only 59.10% of his free throws won't help him.

8. Gordon Hayward (up 2) - making strides in his value index.

9. Ian Clark (down 5) - the largest drop is due to his underutilization, but he's still making a team best 50% of his 3's and 100% of his Free Throws.

10. Enes Kanter (up 2) - I hope he proves me wrong, but we need someone new.

11. Derrick Favors (same) - not doing much as far as value is concerned, but making a huge impat on the court.

12. Steve Novak - (down 3) - not much playing time, but fills a good role. He's tops on the team with 50% 3 pointers.

13. Jeremy Evans - This guy just never gets to play.

Exodus: Gods and Kings - Review

There is a part in Exodus that sums up the movie perfectly..A vengeful God who looks nothing like you probably would imagine, throws a fit of rage as he wants the Pharoah to get on his knees before him, and then calmly says something profound to a lost Moses (Christian Bale), before the next scene evolves into something out of a Jaws movie. Such is the highs, lows and everything in between film of Gods and Kings. The Mood shifts from reverent to violent on a dime and not enough time is spent developing the charaters enough so that we care if they live or die. That could be a good thing since it spares us from a 4 hour run time like the 10 Commandments.

Christian bale plays a confused Moses who doesn't know he's Jewish, and never really accepts it while Joel Edgerton plays his brother-like king Ramses who is as conflicted and twisted as he is a loving father. I have no clue why they promote Sigurney Weaver, she has.. like, 1 line. Ridley Scott is the director and with that dream team assembled it seems like the movie should be way better than it really is.

The move in General is really good. The way the plagues are presented is graphic and realistic, giving this tale more of a sense of dire survival rather than spectacle. The parting of the Red sea is also particularly realistic and incredible. Other elements could have been fleshed out and conversations in the bible never happen on the film. God is inconspicuously absent in most of the film, giving Moses's decisions a sense of desperation rather than obedience. For a film about the works of God, you would expect him to have a larger (both literally and figuratively) role.

Final Consensus:
See it now!!!!
See it in theaters!!!
Rent it on DVD/BluRay!!
Wait for it on TV!
Don’t Bother Share

NFL Rankings - 12/9/14

So, here are my latest rankings based on quality wins. Let me know if you have any beef! Good luck to all those who made it to Playoffs in their Fantasy Leagues! I made it to all three of mine. WOOT!!

1. Packers - same
2. Seahawks - same
3. Patriots - same
4. Broncos - same
5. Cardinals - up 1
6. Steelers - up 13
7. Bengals - down 2
8. Colts - up 8
9. Lions - up 2
10. Ravens - up 11
11. Rams - up 3
12. Cowboys - up 8
13. Eagles - down 6
14. Bills - down 6
15. Falcons - down 6
16. Chargers - down 6
17. Raiders - up 8
18. Saints - down 6
19. 49ers - down 6
20. Chiefs - down 5
21. Browns - down 4
22. Dolphins - down 4
23. Texans - down 1
24. Vikings - same
25. Panthers - up 5
26. Bears - down 3
27. Jets - down 1
28. Redskins - down 1
29. Buccaneers - down 1
30. Jaguars - down 1
31. Giants - same
32. Titans - same

College Football - My Top 25 (12/7/14)

By now, everyone has seen who is in the playoffs. Lets see how my Algorithm stands up.

1. Ohio State - up 3
2. Alabama - same
3. Florida State - up 3
4. Oregon - up 4
5. Wisconsin - down 4
6. TCU - down 3
7. Arizona - down 2
8. Boise State - up 3
9. Baylor - up 14
10. Marshall - up 10
11. Missouri - down 4
12. Georgia Tech - down 3
13. NIU - up 3
14. Michigan State - down 4
15. Arizona State - down 3
16. Western Kentucky - down 3
17. Air Force - down 3
18. Stanford - down 3
19. UCLA - down 2
20. Kansas State - down 2
21. UCF - new
22. LSU - down 3
23. Ole Miss - down 2
24. Clemson - down 2
25. Louisville - down 1

So my algorithm chose the top 4 that will actually make the playoffs this year. I would still prefer a playoff with 8 teams, the top 8 conferences all battling it out. All that would do is add 1 more week of games + 4 new bowls. Heres how it would stack up using my scoring.

1. Oregon vs 8. NIU

2. Ohio State vs 7. Marshall

3. Alabama vs 6. Boise State

4. Florida State vs 5. TCU

That way nobody could complain...

NFL Rankings - 12/4/14

Here are my rankings based on quality Wins vs. opponents. You beat good teams near the end of the year, your ranking increases? Anyone got beef with these?

1. Packers - up 4
2. Seahawks - up 12
3. Patriots - down 1
4. Broncos - down 1
5. Bengals - up 10
6. Cardinals - down 5
7. Eagles - up 1
8. Bills - up 9
9. Falcons - up 14
10. Chargers - up 3
11. Lions - same
12. Saints - up 8
13. 49ers - down 1
14. Rams - up 7
15. Chiefs - down 11
16. Colts - down 6
17. Browns - up 1
18. Dolphins - down 11
19. Steelers - down 3
20. Cowboys - down 11
21. Ravens - down 15
22. Texans - down 3
23. Bears - up 1
24. Vikings - down 2
25. Raiders - up 7
26. Jets - up 2
27. Redskins - same
28. Buccaneers - up 2
29. Jaguars - up 2
30. Panthers - down 5
31. Giants - down 6
32. Titans - down 3

College Football - My Top 25 (12/1/14)

Using the same algorithm as before. here is where the rankings stand. Thats dosn't mean I would pick the top 4 for the playoffs this year but it's not far off. Without further adieu:

1. Wisconsin - up 6
2. Alabama - down 1
3. TCU - same
4. Ohio State - down 3
5. Arizona - new
6. Florida State - down 1
7. Missouri - up 6
8. Oregon - down 3
9. Georgia Tech - down 1
10. Michigan State - same
11. Boise State - up 9
12. Arizona State - down 6
13. Western Kentucky - new
14. Air Force - up 7
15. Stanford - new
16. NIU - new
17. UCLA - down 2
18. Kansas State - new
19. LSU - up 3
20. Marshall - down 9
21. Ole Miss - new
22. Clemson - new
23. Baylor - up 1
24. Louisville - new
25. Minnesota - new

NFL - Rankings

I have come up with NFL power rankings based on strength of schedule, point spread and wins. Here are my rankings for this week:

1. Arizona 
2. New England 
3. Denver 
4. Kansas City 
5. Green Bay 
6. Baltimore 
7. Miami 
8. Philadelphia 
9. Dallas 
10. Indianapolis 
11. Detroit 
12. San Francisco 
13. San Diego 
14. Seattle 
15. Cincinnati 
16. Pittsburgh 
17. Buffalo 
18. Cleveland 
19. Houston 
20. New Orleans 
21. St. Louis 
22. Minnesota 
23. Atlanta 
24. Chicago 
25. NY Giants 
26. Carolina 
27. Washington 
28. NY Jets 
29. Tennessee 
30. Tampa Bay 
31. Jacksonville 
32. Oakland

With that being said, here are individual performance extremes:

Wins: Most - Arizona, Least - Oakland

SOS: Hardest - Oakland, Easiest - Cleveland

Points: Most - Green Bay, Least - Oakland

Defense: Best - Detroit, Worst - Carolina

Spread: Best - New England, Worst - Jacksonville

College Football - My Top 25 (11/15/14)

I've came up with an interesting algorithm that awards teams for wins only based on the strength of their opponent at the time they played them. Score is not taken into consideration and a team is not penalized for losses. That means, only the teams that consistently beat other good teams rise to the top. Here's what I have so far:

1. Ohio State
2. Alabama
3. TCU
4. Florida State
5. Oregon
6. Arizona State
7. Wisconsin
8. Georgia Tech
9. Georgia
10. Michigan State
11. Marshall
12. Mississippi State
13. Missouri
14. Texas
15. UCLA
16. Utah
17. Utah State
18. Oregon State
19. Colorado State
20. Boise State
21. Air Force
22. LSU
23. Auburn
24. Baylor
25. Arkansas

Now who wouldn't want to see a playoff with those 4 teams at the top? That would be awesome! As far as conferences go, here's my ranking:

1. SEC
2. P12
3. B10
4. B12
5. ACC
6. MW
7. CUSA
8. MAC
9. AAC
10. SB

NBA - Jazz Player Value

So this year I was intrigued to see how much NBA players were getting paid. (Hint: It's a lot of money). Being that I will see every home game of the Utah Jazz this year, I decided to put together an algorithm that tallies up their stats vs. their salary to see who is the best deal on the Jazz Roster. Now this would take forever for the entire NBA, so you will just have to make do with these stats.

We are now officially 1/8 of the season in, And from my calculations here's the winners and losers from least Valuable, to most Valuable:

12. Enes Kanter - Center

It's good to be Kanter who makes the most money for the smallest amount of effort. With the organization paying him aproximately $1,423,669 per assist and $1,898,225 per steal, Kanter has a lot of work to do to show he's worth the money they are shelling out for him. Granted he adds a lot of intangibles from an inside size perspective, but overall, they are paying way too much for what they are getting.

11. Derrick Favors - Forward

This is just a case of getting paid so much that it will take a while to even out in the stats category. He's a really good player with even more potential, thats why he's making potential money, and not a logical salary. Lets see what he does come the halfway point.

10. Gordon Hayward - Forward

I've always though what the Jazz are paying this guy is ludicrous. He's making superstar money and I'll let you in on a little secret, he's not a superstar. Here's hoping over the next few years he proves me wrong, but it's gonna take a while before his value rises.

9. Steve Novak - Forward

Granted he's not a starter, but they are still paying this guy a whole lot of money to do not much. He's last on the team in rebound value making $1,148,649 per rebound, and points pulling in $287,162 per point. I think anyone in the world would like to be making that much money.

8. Trevor Booker - Forward

How many Forwards are on this frekin' team? Trevor, like Favors is a victim of a large paycheck. He will definately be pulling down better value in the weeks to come as he has found a niche in the defensive scheme of the Jazz. He also has monster flashes on offense, so I expect his value to improve significantly. Even as a backup.

7. Dante Exum - Guard

The unknown from down under is still a bit of an unknown. If he builds up he can turn into the next Burks. Until then, the jury is still out. Lets hope the Jazz didn't waste an amazing draft pick on this mystery.

6. Rodney Hood - Guard-Forward

The two rookies are side by side on the value index even though Hood makes significantly less. That's OK though because he gets significantly less playing time. He has a Jekyl and Hyde complex coming in last in field goals at 25.80% but making 100% of his free throws. If he had the same minutes as Exum, he would be a much better value, and for that reason, I have him above Exum.

5. Alec Burks - Guard

He better enjoy this season from a value standpoint, because when he starts making the big bucks next year, his value will not be near as high. He'll be down in the Favors range. He's second in point value being paid a measly 20 grand per point (measly?) and thats what makes his value so high.

4. Ian Clark - Guard

This guy gets almost no playing time but also makes almost nothing compared to his teammates. He leads the team in FG and 3 point percentage. For that reason, Ian is so high on the list. Its a perfect scenario of making the most of the few minutes your in. Keep this up and he may turn it into a higher paycheck with more playing time.

3. Rudy Gobert - Center

I really like this guy. He's smooth and plays smart. As a backup his value is through the roof because the Jazz aren't paying him an amazing amount. He has the best rebound value on the team at $22,106 per rebound. If he keeps playing at this level with all the minutes he's been given, the Jazz will be forced to make him a better offer, or he'll be gone for sure.

2. Trey Burke - Guard

The unsung hero of the team, Trey can't hit a three to save his life (24.10%) but makes up for it in assists and a relatively low salary wich puts him near the top of the value index. He hasn't emerged as the star the Jazz hoped he would, but he's making strides.

1. Joe Ingles - •Guard-Forward

This is the perfect storm of a ridiculously low salary and high utilization (he's played in every game so far). He leads the team in value for assists ($28,185 per), steals ($72,477 per), and points ($19,513). If he can maintain these numbers on the limited playing time, he will reamin in the tops of player value for the sheer fact that his salary is so low. His one flaw is he has is making a team worst 50% on free throws.

Jack Ryan - Ordinary Recruit

The Jack Ryan franchise has  never really existed in the same tier as Bond, or even Borne for that matter, and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit movie proves it. While not bad by any means, there was nothing spectacular about the plot or writing that would set this adventure apart from his other ones. That and the fact that this was made with yet another actor in the Jack Ryan role (Hunt for Red October) makes it a techno spy-thriller in the most generic sense.

What does save the film this time is the direction and acting. Seriously, the story is the most predictable ever...you know whats going to happen. But luckily Kenneth Branagh infects it with just enough style to get your heart racing. Chris Pine plays an almost humble and shy character as the new recruit into the CIA's most undercover organization. This big change from the cocky energy filled Captain Kirk is worth the view alone. Luckily, we also have Keira Knightley in her most human role to date as the noncommittal fiance and Kenneth Branagh who can do a villain almost as well as Shakespeare. Kevin Costner does...well, Kevin Costner.

In all it was a good attempt at invigorating a character that the late Tom Clancy pulled through his novels with such care. I was glad to see a lot of Russia in the movie and the accents were actually tolerable! It does make me wonder what it could have been with a plot and script to match the actors.

Final Consensus:
See it now!!!!
See it in theaters!!!
Rent it on DVD/BluRay!! 
Wait for it on TV!
Don’t Bother
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