2013 NFL Preview
Adam Underhill08.26.13
Football’s crystal ball: a rundown of the teams, their history, and karma for the 2013 NFL season. Art by Danny Jock.
Year of the Quarterback
Adam Underhill01.06.12
‘Penn and Teller could have devoted an entire episode of Bullshit! to the "run the ball first" canard,’ as this season proved to be all about the QBs. From Tebowmania to the precision of Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees, Adam Underhill looks forward to the playoffs and the quarterbacks still in contention.
Showtime’s Encore
Adam Underhill06.19.10
Now that the NBA Finals are finished, with the Lakers taking their fourth title of the decade, it’s already time to look ahead to next year. What makes a team great this season creates an outline for the other 29 teams looking to capture the same magic, or just make the playoffs. Adam Underhill recaps what the Lakers did right in the Finals and spells out what the league’s other superstar players need to do to step up and do the same. Does what makes great players in the ’70s and ’80s still apply? Is it possible for another dynasty? Of course. Is it probable? Well, that’s another story for the likes of Lebron James, poised to become the league’s next heir to the crown.
Super Bowl XLIV Preview: Saints & Colts in Miami
Adam Underhill02.03.10
I never thought about the double entendre of awfulness that would have fell on earth had Bret Favre beat New Orleans last week and gone on to (maybe even win?) the Super Bowl. No I’d forgotten about the cheeseheads and the humiliation that would haunt them had THEIR guy won on that damn Vikings team (I like Favre btw – CM). Was just pondering New Orleans, still Katrina repairing, rushing to their first Super Bowl ever by beating a fellow borne and bred gulf coaster… that game was a team vs an individual right? the twilight of a heavyweight? the phoenix-like rise of a city? or did I get confused? Well Adam Underhill, long time Green Bay fan didn’t miss anything. Here’s his preview for Super Sunday, ‘tween the Saints and oh yeah, the Colts. And speaking of drama, keep an eye on Colts receiver Pierre Garçon, the Haitian descent player who played with incredible gusto in the AFC championship. Prediction? Well read on…
Momentum
Adam Underhill01.08.10
It’s been a long time since we talked football (talk about momentum, not that we haven’t been watching). Most of my teams have gotten knocked out by now – the Giants first of all, the Falcons, the Bills …ah well this always happens with them, lately, but it doesn’t have to, I mean welcome back Jets, but that can only last a week, ’cause who knows, what evil, lurks in the head of Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis who may rouse his team from somnambulism for a rematch of last week (it didn’t as I write this, sorry Cincy and Ochocinco – change the name back, get the mojo back, if it helps). It’s wild card week from Adam Underhill (who must of got a Beatles Rock Band for Xmas…see last page). Art by Danny Jock. -CM
Threading the Needle: Deconstructing NFL Uniforms
Adam Underhill09.13.09
With the scent of fresh pigskin fresh and heavy in the air, our attention shifts slightly from the art of working the clock while clinging to a 34-31 lead, or an agonizing dropped pass in the end zone, to that subtle, ever-present force, yet so often overlooked in terms of team superiority. That’s right, it’s the uniforms. And while Adam Underhill may have a different cultural definition for "Cleveland Browns" than I, he possesses a unique zeal and sharp, critical eye for such topics. He opines—no, he decrees—exhaustively on The State of the Uniform for each of the 32 professional football teams. Art by Danny Jock.
Herr Bud
Adam Underhill07.18.09
Bud Selig: a man often vilified among the ranks of baseball fans and sports writers alike, a man whose judgement and quiddities often flew in the face of baseball purists, a man who made many changes to the game to keep it up with the times, for better or for worse, but usually for better. Although he will probably be best known as the commish who reigned during the ugly times of steroid scandals, Selig’s positive contributions to the game must be (reluctantly) acknowledged, as Adam Underhill does here.
Draft-Brewed Goodness: A Look Back, and A Look Ahead
Adam Underhill06.26.09
Woke up to two emails this morning. First, Danny Jock, responding to the news of Michael Jackson’s death. “I heard. I was in a diner. Where were you when the king of pop died? I immediately said, they should reshoot the video THRILLER now with him. An old lady said, you shouldn’t make fun of the dead. I said yeah? They could put you in the video?” Which I have to say after all the hullabaloo yesterday, which was a big deal (and ABC’s going on and on about Farrah Fawcett’s hair, which wasn’t, her hair that is) was a refreshing let’s move on kind of moment. Then in kind, Adam Underhill’s NBA draft piece came in, which reminds us that something else happened yesterday besides two icons dying – some were being born, or at least just suddenly becoming rich. Art of course by Danny Jock.
Superbowl XLIII Preview: The Cards in Tampa?
Adam Underhill01.29.09
Adam Underhill is waiting till after the Super Bowl to put a lid on 2008 and start singing "Auld Lang Syne." But who will the corks be popping for – Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and the historically lamentable Cardinals? or will the Steelers be celebrating their 6th title? With a win or not on Sunday, the Cards have shown an atypical full deck this season.
Frost/Nixon: in review
Adam Underhill12.21.08
If you are too young to know which came first, Deep Throat or “Deep Throat,” now is a good time to wiki some history on the presidential scandal known as Watergate. These days there will certainly be plenty to read about, as infamous informer Mark “Deep Throat” Felt has passed away just days before Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon sees its nationwide theatrical release on December 25th. There have been other notable films on Richard Nixon, but Howard’s is different as it catches the man post-presidency, trying to secure his legacy against the reportage of David Friost, a rival in some ways as complex as Nixon himself. Adam Underhill reviews.
