After putting a shoe the size of Brian Daboll in his mouth in Week 1, has the Giants Wire editor come to his senses about the rematch? | From @KDDrummondNFL
New York City is a proud city with proud inhabitants, and it makes for fun banter anytime the Giants are on the Cowboys’ schedule. By fun, we mean delusional. Our enemy intel series, where we trade questions with the managing editor of the Dallas opponent for the week has brought some classic examples of a lack of self awareness. To a tee, every time we link up with Dan Benton, he has a ton of negatively skewed questions and euphoria-laced responses when we try to size each other’s teams up.
Has he learned his lesson? The Giants are struggling at 2-7 on the year, have lost their starting and backup quarterback and neither of them looked good anyway. The last time we spoke, Benton was highly confident Daniel Jones was the much better option to Dak Prescott, the Giants were on an elevator up and the Cowboys were in for a season of disapppointment. Then 40-0 happened. So we figured it’d be a good time to check in with Benton once again to see if his tune has changed from, well, this prior interview.
We asked Raiders Wire five questions about their team ahead of Sunday’s showdown with the Broncos.
Ahead of the Denver Broncos’ season opener against the Las Vegas Raiders this weekend, we asked Marcus Mosher of Raiders Wire five questions about Las Vegas and their showdown with Denver. See our questions and Mosher’s answers below.
We asked Chiefs Wire five questions about new Broncos pass rusher Frank Clark.
The Denver Broncos agreed to terms on a one-year, $5.5 million contract with former Kansas City Chiefs pass rusher Frank Clark on Thursday.
To learn more about the edge defender, we reached out to Charles Goldman of Chiefs Wire to ask five questions about Clark and his time in KC. Check out our questions and Goldman’s answers below.
Haley Jones has a lot to look forward to, but she’s trying to stay grounded.
Haley Jones is doing her best to stay in the moment.
The 2021 Final Four Most Outstanding Player and national champion has a chance to do something special one last time. Stanford is projected as a No. 1 seed for a third straight Women’s NCAA Tournament. The senior would love nothing more than to reach a third Final Four and go out on top.
But no matter when Jones’ illustrious college career comes to an end, she’ll be ready for what’s next.
Jones will be one of the first names off the board in April’s WNBA draft. She’s also dipping her toes into another future career, launching a podcast with The Players’ Tribune called Sometimes I Hoop. The podcast allows Jones to shine a light on her fellow basketball stars through conversations about their experiences on the court and interests away from the game. She’s already interviewed players like Aliyah Boston and Caitlin Clark.
FTW had a chance to chat with Jones about the podcast, her own hobbies, March Madness and more.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
“When they first come up to me and talk to me, they never talk to me about my son’s basketball ability. They do that second.”
Gary Payton II received a standing ovation when he checked into Game 2 of the NBA Finals with 5:30 remaining in the first quarter. It was his first game action in over a month since he fractured his elbow in Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals.
Of the thousands of Golden State Warriors faithful in attendance at the sold out Chase Center, however, none was happier to see Payton back on the court than his Hall of Fame dad – who even wore GPII on his shirt. While some have just recently learned of Payton’s journey from going undrafted to becoming a key contributor on a potential title team, Gary Payton, Sr. saw a person he’s proud to call his son. And not for what he does between those four lines.
“The Glove” joined For The Win prior to Game 2 to talk about his son’s work in the community, the untimely injury before the Finals and his own work with Hennessy to help small businesses power through challenges from the pandemic.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity
Candace Parker’s new documentary debuts the weekend of the men’s Final Four.
Sometimes, one dream leads to another. And sometimes those new dreams are built on the backs of those who came before them.
That’s becoming the life of WNBA superstar Candace Parker. In 14 years as a player with the Los Angeles Sparks and Chicago Sky, she’s more than lived out her dream of being a basketball player — she’s literally one of the all-time greats. Her career accomplishments include two WNBA MVPs, two Olympic gold medals, a defensive player of the year and rookie of the year award, two college national championships, and after helping Chicago win the title last season, two WNBA championships. The list goes on.
But now she’s also a budding star as a studio analyst for Turner Sports, where she signed a multi-year extension in September.
It’s an opportunity she called “a dream.”
It’s also keeping Parker busy this time of year. She’s in the thick of March Madness, covering the NCAA men’s basketball tournament across Turner’s family of networks. This comes a month after she and wife Anna Petrakova welcomed to the world their first child together. In two weeks, she’ll introduce another baby to the world; the very first film from her production company, Baby Hair Productions, in association with Turner Sports and Scout Productions. Titled “37 Words,” the film is a feature-length documentary that will “chronicle and celebrate the societal and cultural impact of Title IX, anchored through the perspective of Parker,” according to a press release.
Oh, and the WNBA season starts in less than two months.
It’s not lost on Parker that her impressive portfolio may not have been possible without the 37 words tucked inside the 1972 education amendments that make up Title IX. The law prevents discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs and activities. And though there’s still a way to go to create true equity across genders, as highlighted by the discrepancies between the 2021 men’s and women’s NCAA tournaments, there’s no denying progress has been made. That’s the story Parker wants to highlight, she told For The Win in an interview that took place just before the start of this year’s tournaments.
We asked Seahawks Wire five questions about Russell Wilson and Drew Lock following the Broncos’ blockbuster trade.
The Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks have agreed to terms on a blockbuster trade that will send quarterback Russell Wilson to Denver.
Broncos fans are obviously thrilled about the trade, but how are Seahawks fans feeling? We asked Tim Weaver of Seahawks Wire five questions about the trade and Seattle’s perspective.
WNBA champion Aerial Powers is on a mission to empower women and people of color, not just through basketball but through esports as well.
WNBA champion Aerial Powers is on a mission to empower women and people of color, not just through basketball but through esports as well.
Powers, who won a title with the Washington Mystics in 2019, recently signed a new contract to join the Minnesota Lynx. The former Michigan State star caught up with For The Win to discuss the big move.
We also discussed her role in the gaming community, as Powers signed with professional esports organization Team Liquid last month.
Congratulations on signing with the Minnesota Lynx! What factors ultimately went into the decision?
Aerial Powers: I wasn’t sure if I was going to re-sign with the Washington Mystics or if I was going to sign with another team. This was my first year of unrestricted free agency. When I was talking with all of the teams, I had the best connection with Minnesota’s head coach Cheryl Reeve. Some of the players reached out to me and told me how much they wanted me on the team. I was thinking about my future and what I saw for the long haul and longevity of my game, I thought it was the best fit for me.
What are some of the biggest ways you will be able to help the organization for the Lynx?
AP: I’m very versatile. I’m not a girl that does just one thing. Not only do I bring a very high intensity when it comes to energy and just being there for my teammates, but defensively, I’m pretty good. I can shoot, I can pull up, I have midrange, I can drive to the rack and I can see the floor to find my teammates. When you have someone like that on your team, it really opens the floor for everyone.
As a former WNBA champion and gold medalist for Team USA, you also bring a championship pedigree. Minnesota is always a top team. Was that one of the aspects that drew you to the Lynx?
AP: I think that what Cheryl Reeve and her crew over there have built over there is a big legacy. They are known as good people. She is the winningest coach for a reason. She has four titles for a reason. Not only is she a good coach but she also makes sure that the culture remains what it needs to be so it can be the best organization.
For me, after winning a championship not too long ago, I also see what it takes to win a title. The culture is so important. Obviously, you have to have five good people on the floor. But you need everyone to step in and have a role. People don’t realize that if the second unit is performing well, too, that leads to more wins.
A lot of my new teammates have already won. Sylvia Fowles is an amazing center who has won two WNBA Finals MVPs. Reeve already has four but I want to win her more. I want to help her get to another level. I’m trying to bring another championship to the midwest because I am from Detroit.
(Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
Something that is unique about you is that you recently joined an esports championship team as well. How did that get started and what is your role?
AP: I signed with Team Liquid in January. I’m a streamer, a brand ambassador and now I also lead their diversity and inclusion task force. It started last year during the Team Liquid ProAM Valorant Showmatch and it was one of the first PC games I had played. I was on Team Rakin with pro-gamer Rafael Knittel. It was a blast. The relationship built from there.
As a streamer, I provide content from my Twitch page, which is called POWERZsurge. I help elevate events for Team Liquid. They just re-signed their partnership with Alienware so I did an event with them and the rapper Logic.
How important was it for you to have the diversity and inclusion task force as part of the commitment when you signed with Team Liquid and how does that manifest itself?
AP: That was huge. I spoke with their co-CEOs Victor Goossens and Steve Arhancet. Their values align with mine and that really gravitated me to join their team. As you and I both know, gaming appears to be male-dominated. But it is not. More than 40 percent of gamers are women. When I spoke with their executives, we had the same vision. They realized that I was the right person to lead this task force because of my passion for this. Esports come down to the skills that you bring to the controller. But women in gaming still face some serious cyberbullying. I wanted to do whatever I could to help stop that.
So now with Team Liquid, I counsel and collaborate with them on ways to create meaningful change. That means really helping the development and initiatives to help foster the space for female gamers. For example, last year, I hosted an All-Female 2K Tournament. This gave the participants a safe community not only to be visible in front of a large audience to show that they are gamers as well and was a great opportunity to include women, especially women of color.
We had a lot of partners help with the funding for that event. One of those was Starbursts, which was so crazy because they’re a non-endemic brand for esports. They’re not tied to the market at all. But they flourished, which was amazing. We were on the front page of Twitch the next day and we got more than 26,000 people to watch even after it was already done. There are a lot of eyes on the esports community. So because of that, I’m doing a lot of work with GEF, which is the Global Esports Federation. One of my biggest goals is to get esports into the Olympics.
That is absolutely amazing! I’d love to hear about your origin story with video games.
AP: It is actually crazy. I started as a young girl, playing Nintendo 64. One of the first people I saw playing was a woman. It was my mother. She played GoldenEye 007. That was obviously normal for me. As I grew up, my mom stopped, but I just kept gaming. I was playing a game with my brother. My dad came in and was like: “What the heck! You guys never get along and now you are quiet and cool with each other.” He realized we were playing Call of Duty. So then my brother taught him how to play. The next day, he came in with two more consoles and two more headsets. We were all playing in this small house, driving my mom crazy. It took off from there.
I brought my console with me everywhere, whether it was in the states or overseas. Even when I was in China, no one played the games that I was playing. I’d asked my translator how I could get the games that they played on my iPad as a way to connect. Sometimes, like if we were in the airport, I would just sit by them and watch them play. They loved that I was there with them.
Then, when I learned about Twitch, I learned how massive it was. I didn’t think people would watch me play video games. But I started and fell in love with it and it was a way to connect with my fans. I can’t sleep so I might as well stream. [Laughs] I first launched my channel to connect with my fans beyond my on-court performances. But then it just grew from there as people started to realize: “Yo, AP loves to stream. She loves to play.”
I’d love to hear more about your audience. How has the reception been to this chapter of your life?
AP: I put it on my social media accounts so everyone knows when I’m gaming. People used to look at gamers as nerds but I think people are realizing that it is for everyone. It has become its own community where people are looking forward to my streaming.
Last season, before the bubble, I was heavy into Apex Legends. I met someone who watched me on Twitch who made a customized shirt that was half me and half Apex. It was the coolest thing I had ever seen. He had a front-row seat so I walked up to him and asked what made him want to do that. He said he loved my stuff on Twitch and he said he could see my passion on the court and off of it as well.
What is the breakdown of your gaming consumption? What is getting the most rotation?
https://youtu.be/px8nff76BbA
AP: I had been playing a lot of Apex Legends but lately, I’m playing a lot more Call of Duty. It is because I kept getting into tournaments. I am extremely competitive and I didn’t like how I was doing in them so I’ve been grinding, trying to get better. I also play a lot of NBA 2K because I’m a basketball player. My fans love to see me play basketball on Twitch.
When you were younger, the WNBA was not included in video games. How surreal is it to not only see women in the game but to see yourself?
AP: It is crazy. I grew up wanting to be a WNBA player and I accomplished that dream. But I also played video games consistently. I played all of the time. All of a sudden, I’m in an actual game. I could tell my friends: “When you play in 2K, go ahead, pick me. Get buckets with me.” I’ve come home to my dad playing as me in 2K, scoring 60 points, not passing to anyone else. [Laughs]
I played as myself a good amount but my jump shot looks nothing like my actual shot. If my shooting form was a little better, I’d probably play a little more. Mostly, I play in the park. But I like ProAm the best because 5v5 is the most realistic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5uWQAVuJ68
What are some of the observations you’ve had about women in the NBA 2K community?
AP: I’ve talked to a lot of women who play 2K and they say that they mute their mic or that they will disguise their voice. They feel a lot of times, they’ll get flak during the game as a woman. Or if they are pretty good, it no longer becomes about their skill level. People just say: “Oh, you’re a girl that plays?” And it’s all about their gender. We don’t like that at all. If you’re good, sometimes you just want to be known as good, not as good for a girl. We have a voice. But we just have to speak and fight that fight.
What would you tell someone who is trying to get more involved in the gaming space?
AP: If you’re passionate about something or even if you like it but you are a little nervous about potential cyberbullying as a female on the sticks, who cares what other people think? If it makes you happy, do it. If you’re trying to be competitive and maybe you feel a little nervous about the pressure, it’s okay!
I always tell people, whether it’s basketball or esports, confidence comes from preparation. I really believe in that. If you prepare for that moment, you don’t have to be afraid. If you’re trying to get into it, try it. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you may be more upset if you don’t try.
For one last time, the Dallas Cowboys are trotting out on the field for the 2020 regular season. Will these be their final snaps of the season? That answer won’t be known until well after the final whistle, but the contest against the division rival …
For one last time, the Dallas Cowboys are trotting out on the field for the 2020 regular season. Will these be their final snaps of the season? That answer won’t be known until well after the final whistle, but the contest against the division rival New York Giants contains all the intrigue a once-lost season can contain.
To get better acquainted with what’s new with the Giants, we checked in with Dan Benton, managing editor of Giants Wire. We needed to know how things have gone in Jason Garrett’s first year as offensive coordinator, life and times without Saquon Barkley and with Daniel Jones, and many more things. In exchange, we gave them the keys to the Cowboys’ turnaround, thoughts on Ezekiel Elliott, Andy Dalton and the Giants’ biggest nightmare, DeMarcus Lawrence.
We go behind enemy lines with Rams Wire to get some intel on what Los Angeles is bringing to the game.
The Dallas Cowboys (6-7) are hosting the Los Angeles Rams (8-5) in a rematch of an August preseason game. Oh wait, that’s not the important matchup. That was actually January’s NFC divisional playoff round, when the Rams ran over and through Rod Marinelli and Kris Richard’s defense and embarrassed the Cowboys out of the tournament.
There is a big fear, thanks to Dallas’ three-game losing streak, that history is about to repeat itself on Sunday afternoon. To check in on things from the other side of the fence, we brought in Cameron DaSilva, managing editor of Rams Wire, to get the skinny on the Rams in a quick Q&A.
Cowboys Wire: The Rams offensive line has undergone major changes, how much of that is the reason for Goff’s regression?
Rams Wire: It’s a good chunk of it. It’s no coincidence that Goff has been playing much better in the last two weeks than he did in the month of November. He’s been getting excellent protection from his big men up front, and it’s giving him more confidence not only on straight dropbacks, but more importantly on play-action passes. He’s definitely had his share of overthrows, missed receivers and questionable decisions, but the offensive line has done him no favors. When he’s on, though, he’s one of the top quarterbacks in the NFL. It’s just that he’s been off more than he’s been on this season.
Cowboys Wire: Has Jalen Ramsey been as good as advertised since joining the Rams?
Rams Wire: Not exactly, to be honest. Troy Hill has been the better cornerback since Ramsey was acquired, stepping up as an above-average starter at cornerback. Ramsey’s physicality and ability to match up man-to-man certainly elevates the entire defense and allows Wade Phillips to be more aggressive, but he hasn’t been a lockdown cornerback, per se. That being said, he is usually tasked with covering the opponent’s No. 1 receiver, which is a much tougher challenge than what Hill is asked to do.
Cowboys Wire: Do you feel the Rams are one of the NFCs best teams, overall?
Rams Wire: When they’re on, yes. But they just haven’t been consistent enough for me to put them among the best teams in the conference. Yes, they beat the Saints earlier in the season, but New Orleans is better now than it was then and Drew Brees missed half that game. At this point in time, the Saints and 49ers look like better teams in my eyes, but the rams are getting hot at the right time and their defense is one of the best in football. It’s just a matter of the offense carrying its weight.
Rams Wire: Where has Dak Prescott improved most this season?
Cowboys Wire: Prescott’s mechanics were the subject of plenty of microscopes over the last two offseasons. His lower-body work was egregious and he rarely had a consistent base to throw from. That’s been much improved under the tutelage of new QB coach Jon Kitna, who came in and corrected a few issues.
The result is a much more powerful cannon from Prescott, as he’s able to generate a lot of torque on his throws from his hips (queue the dance video memes and gifs. In fact, there’s some theories that the Dallas receivers lead the league in drops because of how much of a difference there is on his throw velocity and/or spin rate on the ball.
Rams Wire: Who’s an underrated defender the Rams have to worry about
Cowboys Wire: Nobody. This defense is trash if we’re being honest. OK, it’s not really trash, but you know the usual subjects. DeMarcus Lawrence, low sacks or not, has to be accounted for on every play and Robert Quinn is sharp on the opposite end, leading the team with 9.5 sacks. The linebacking corps has been subpar this season, and it will likely be without both Leighton Vander Esch and Sean Lee. (Update: Lee will play.)
That will open up the door for veteran Joe Thomas and rookie Luke Gifford to get plenty of snaps. If you’re looking for a possible surprise performance, that’s where your attention should be focused. Gifford was impressive in training camp and the preseason before a leg injury, but these will be his first regular season snaps on defense. With the way Sean McVay exposed Jaylon Smith to the world back in 2017, Dallas should expect to see a lot of a rejuvenated Gurley on pass patterns.
What’s your prediction for this game?
Cowboys Wire: Pain. The Cowboys are reeling, and it’s tough to see them getting back on track against a getting-hot Rams team. Los Angeles comes to Texas and gets a win, 37-24.
