Niners vs Ravens Preview || NBA Zion WIlliamson Contract No Longer Guaranteed || One NFL Game in Week 16 is Doing Something Special || Guest Post Corner || YOSHINUBO YAMAMOTO SIGNS WITH LAD || More
Edition #35
Intro
The NFL is doing something special in Week 16. We don’t always like this, but they’re cutting that out. I can’t tell you more than that, so read up! We have a guest writer today, and they’re going to share their pick. Mr. Zion Injury, is going to hit a clause in his contract about how much money he gets because he keeps sitting his butt on the bench. One game that really could be voted the Game of the Year is happening on Christmas Day.
Btw: Sports Square and All Around Cricket will not have an edition next week (Christmas Break) and we might not have an edition the following week. Breaking News will be there the entire time, so check your email or the site if you want to stay tuned.
WE WILL HAVE AN EDITION ON DECEMBER 31ST!
We are going to do a 2023 Sports Rewind. We’ll also do a prediction sheet for the upcoming year in EVERY SPORT. We’ll talk a bit about the Olympics and yeah!
Few Stuff I Found
If you’re interested in politics, I found something for you: https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/21/business/starbucks-israel-war-union/index.html
There is also a house listing that has Lambeau Field as its front yard. Oh, and it has 0 OFFERS: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2068-Wildwood-Ln-Green-Bay-WI-54304/51162797_zpid/?lid=uyn1dktvky7z
NBA Zion Williamson Contract No Longer Guaranteed
Zion Williamson is Mr. Injury.
He can’t stop getting injured on the court, and off the court, he does a few weird things. I ain’t going to list that stuff here, but research it if you want to.
Zion Williamson's contract with the New Orleans Pelicans is no longer guaranteed for the final three seasons. He signed a five-year, $197-million extension with New Orleans in July 2022.
He has already got this punishment, but do you want to know what might happen to him this year?
It could cut into his salary for next year. He'll be absent for Thursday's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers due to an illness, the Pelicans announced.
To get his guarantee back, he would need to reach specific checkpoints during the 2024-25 season. If the Pelicans star passes all six of his weigh-in checkpoints that campaign, 20% of his salary becomes guaranteed for the 2025-26 season. An additional 40% will be assured if he plays in at least 41 games, while the remaining guarantees will be applied if he appears in at least 51 and 61 contests.
To get a guarantee for the next seasons, he must achieve the same goals over and over again. Of course, these goals may change after this season, but for now, we can say it might be the same.
One other, kind of funny to me, condition is that his weight and body fat percentage must be less than 295. If he exceeds that total, he could lose more guaranteed money from his deal.
He’s losing money for being… overweight?
That’s what an athlete has to endure, folks.
Over his four seasons in the NBA, Williamson has played in more than 60 games just once.
GUEST POST CORNER
Our guest today has made Sports Square Week 15 Picks. If I enter a check, that means I agree with what he says. X means no. We might do more of this stuff frequently so make sure to continue reading this edition if you like this one. He didn’t exactly write anything else other than the picks, but that doesn’t matter!
Saturday:
Bills at Chargers - Bills ✅
Bengals at Steelers - Steelers ❌
Sunday:
Commanders at Jets - Jets ❌
Lions at Vikings - Lions ✅
Browns at Texans - Browns ✅
Seahawks at Titans - Seahawks ✅
Packers at Panthers - Packers ✅
Jaguars at Buccaneers - Jaguars ✅
Cardinals at Bears - Bears ❌
Colts at Falcons - Colts ✅
Cowboys at Dolphins - Dolphins ✅
Patriots at Broncos - Broncos ✅
Monday:
Ravens at 49ers - Ravens ✅
Giants at Eagles - Eagles ✅
Raiders at Chiefs - Chiefs ✅
It’s going to be a very interesting slate of games this Christmas weekend. By the way, the Rams bullied the Saints until the 4th quarter. Then the Saints suddenly started coming back, but in the end, the Rams lead was a bit too much for a Saints comeback.
One NFL Game in Week 16 is Doing Something Special
Commercials.
Some of them are good. Some of them are bad. Some of them convince you, and some of them are funny.
Remember, when NBC announced a deal with the NFL about having one game exclusively on Peacock? Well, the Bills and Chargers game is going to be the one featured, and to make that feeling merrier, 40% of ads will be eliminated in that game and there will be NO ads in the entire 4th quarter. Ads are another great source of revenue for the streaming service, and NBC won’t be getting much of that, although they’ll make a lot of money with the subscribers of the platform.
The plan for the fourth quarter is for NBC to kick things off with a branded moment from its main sponsors (Hyundai, Capital One, and Walmart) and then go ad-free after that. Although there won't be any commercials, the normal commercial breaks will still be in place, but instead of getting ads, NBC will feature some NFL-related talk from its studio team. Tirico, Collinsworth, and Stark (NBC Reporters) will also get a chance to take a deeper dive into the game's earlier storylines.
Although this is the first exclusive Peacock game of the season, it won't be the last. The streaming service will also be the exclusive provider of an NFL wild-card game that will be played on Saturday, Jan. 13. As of right now, NBC hasn't announced if that game will also be going commercial-free in the fourth quarter.
The game probably might not be a good one, but you’ll be able to watch football without ads for 15 minutes of the game (1/4). It’s going to be awesome because of only that factor, and that’s also the only reason I’m telling the non-Bills and Chargers fans to watch this game.
Niners vs Ravens Preview
Here are some notes:
Baltimore is #1 in points per game Allowed (Least Points Given Up) #2 in yards per game allowed and #5 in 3rd down defense
49ers are #2 in Points Per Game Allowed, #9 in Yards Per Game, and tied #1 for turnovers
Baltimore is #4 in Points Per Game Gained, #5 in Yards Per Game Gained, and #8 on 3rd down
49ers are #3 in Points Per Game Gained, #2 in Yards Per Game Gained, and #4 on 3rd down
Baltimore had 50 sacks (#1), 101 QB Hits (#3)
49ers have 43 sacks (#7), 109 QB Hits (#2)
Brock Purdy: 29 TD (#1), 7 INT, 119.0 rate (#1)
Lamar Jackson: 17 TD, 7 INT, 96.5 rate 221.8 Pass YPG, 52.9 Rush YPG
Christian McCaffrey: 1292 rush yds (#1), 13 TD
Baltimore has allowed 4.2 Yards Per Carry to RBs
The 49ers have allowed 4.3 Yards Per Carry to RBs
Passing to RB’s, Baltimore has allowed an average of 97.9 rate (#24)
A lot of notes. A lot of statistics. I have the Ravens winning this game. This defense for the Ravens with guys like Roquan Smith will always be a winner, but you can’t always predict what’s going to happen with that 49ers offense. Kittle could go off. So could Samuel and Aiyuk. McCaffrey could trailblaze past the defense. The only thing that irks me is the 49ers defense, which is why I say that they lose. There isn’t anything wrong with it, but can it stop the Ravens offense? Gus Edwards isn’t Christian McCaffrey, but he is a high-level RB. OBJ as we all know is a great WR. Zay Flowers has had excellent production and an unlikely hero has stepped up inside Isiah Likely. If the 49ers win, it’s going to be because of their defense, making stops when they need them too.
YOSHINUBO YAMAMOTO SIGNS WITH LAD
The Dodgers are showing themself as a heavyweight spender this offseason with Los Angeles agreeing to a deal with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the top ace on the market. The contract is for 12 years and is worth $325 million. The team has not confirmed the deal, which is pending a physical.
The Dodgers must also pay the posting fee which is approximately $50 million, making their total commitment for Yamamoto about $375 million. The deal includes a $50 million signing bonus and does not include any deferred money. (Surprising that there ain’t any deferred money.)
The $325 million contract represents the most guaranteed dollars ever given to a pitcher, topping Gerrit Cole by $1 million. Cole's deal with the Yankees has an average annual value of $36 million (9 years, $324 million), still significantly higher than Yamamoto's $27 million yearly salary.
The blockbuster deal for Yamamoto comes after the Dodgers won the offseason by signing Shohei Ohtani, and then turned around and swung a trade for right-hander Tyler Glasnow.
As evidenced by his historic deal, the 25-year-old Yamamoto is considered a potential frontline starter despite his slight frame. The 5-foot-10 righty’s repertoire features a fastball that sits in the mid-to-upper 90s and multiple wipeout secondary pitches, including his signature curveball, as well as a splitter and cutter/slider.
He comes to the Majors having won the pitching Triple Crown in Nippon Professional Baseball, leading the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts, and the Eiji Sawamura Award, Japan’s version of the Cy Young, in each of the past three seasons. Altogether, he went 49-16 with a 1.44 ERA and 580 strikeouts in that span.
Yamamoto improved his legacy with a 14-strikeout complete game on 138 pitches in what turned out to be his final NPB start, leading Orix to victory in Game 6 of the Japan Series. The Buffaloes ultimately lost the series to the Hanshin Tigers, but Yamamoto’s performance under that spotlight won’t soon be forgotten as he moves on to the next stage of his career.
Yamamoto previously helped Orix win the Japan Series in 2022, and he also won gold pitching for his country at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
The Dodgers have now spent more than a billion dollars on the 3 pitching arms they have gotten this season.
Extra News
https://www.thescore.com/nfl/news/2800573/report-lions-oc-johnson-wants-15-m-per-season-for-hc-job?mc_cid=6bff21d1a1&mc_eid=9c97a3c7a2
Conclusion
Well, that’s it y’all. We will see you on December 31st when we’ll do a Sports Rewind. I’m so excited and thank you for reading. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Make sure to watch some sports events.
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thanks! super helpful!