Sarni's Scrolls: A Football Feast
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
Jack Frost nipping at your nose
Football games being seen on a screen
And fans dressed up like Cowboys and Dolphins
It's Christmas Week and Santa has loaded lots of football on his sleigh.
The NFL is playing on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday (Christmas Eve) and Monday (Christmas Day). I
There are college bowl games Thursday (1), Friday (1) and Saturday (7).
NFL national telecasts
Thursday
■ 8:15: Saints at Rams, Amazon
Saturday
■ 4:30: Bengals at Steelers, NBC
■ 8: Bills at Chargers, Peacock
Sunday
■ 4:25: Cowboys at Dolphins, Fox (mostly national)
■ 8:15: Patriots at Broncos, NFL Net
Monday
■ 1: Raiders at Chiefs, CBS
■ 4:30: Giants at Eagles, Fox
■ 8:15: Ravens at 49ers, ABC/ESPN
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Tom Brady is making more waves with his take on the Damontae Kazee suspension for his hit on Michael Pittman.
The former quarterback and future Fox analyst posted on Instagram that blaming the Steelers safety is wrong, and Colts quarterback Gardner Minshaw bears responsibility for throwing a pass that had Pittman in a position where he was sure to get drilled.
"Nobody likes seeing players get hurt. But hard hits happen. QBs should not be throwing the ball in areas where they are exposing their own teammates to these types of hits. Coaches need to coach better, QBs needs to read coverages and throw the ball to the right places and defenders should aim for the right hitting areas. To put the blame on the defense player all the time is just flat out wrong. Need better QB play!! It’s not OK QBs to get your WRs hit because of your bad decisions!”
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Coco Gauff and David Beckham made "People's" 25 Most Intriguing People of 2023.
Others: Taylor Swift, Margot Robbie, Emma Stone, Britney Spears, Galle Bailey, Jacob Elordi, Adele, Jeremy Allen White, Pamela Anderson, Colman Domingo, Lily Gladstone, Ryan Gosling, Ashley Park, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Prince Harry, Jenna Ortega, Ariana Madix, Beyonce, Jada Pinkett Smith, Robert Downey, Donna Kelce and Pedro Pascal.
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Manchester City and Bayern Munich received the easiest draws as the UEFA Champions League set the round of 16 on Monday.
SSC Napoli vs. Barcelona and Inter vs. Atletico Madrid are the most compelling matchups.
With several power clubs out of the knockout stage -- Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Juventus -- the tournament looks more open than usual.
- ■ FC Porto vs. Arsenal
- ■ SSC Napoli vs. Barcelona
- ■ Paris Saint-Germain vs. Real Sociedad
- ■ Inter vs. Atletico Madrid
- ■ PSV Eindhoven vs. Borussia Dortmund
- ■ SS Lazio vs. FC Bayern Munchen
- ■ FC Copenhagen vs. Manchester City
- ■ RB Leipzig vs. Real Madrid
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ETC.
■ The Washington Post has a superlative new project called "The Divided States of Football," which looks at football participation in the U.S. and how race, politics and economics shape which kids continue to play and which ones don't.
■ Amazon could come to the rescue of Bailey Sports and its more than 40 teams in MLB, NBA and NHL.■ The NCAA Volleyball title match between Texas and Nebraska attracted a record 1.7 million viewers on ABC.■ Kevin Kisner, 39, a full-time member of the PGA Tour, will be NBC's analyst for two tournaments in early 2024. NBC has not replaced former lead analyst Paul Azinger.■ ESPN signed Nicole Briscoe to a new, multi-year contract.
■ Ahmed Fareed is replacing Maria Taylor (maternity leave) on "Football Night In America."
■ The Boston Celtics are 14-0 at home this season.
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■ The Bill Belichick-Andy Reid matchup at last Sunday's Chiefs-Patriots game was the first regular-season pairing of head coaches with at least 250 or more wins in history. Belichick 301, Reid 256, total 557. Next: Don Shula (Dolphins) and Tom Landry (Cowboys) with 496 in 1987.
■ Retiring QB Teddy Bridgewater wants to be a high school coach.
■ Travis Kelce has hawked more products (375) than any other celeb during NFL games this season. Patrick Mahomes (347) is second followed by Kevin Miles a.k.a. Jake From State Farm (247).
■ The Savannah Bananas are offering a 2024 cruise, which includes a game at the Marlins park, a four-night round trip to the Bahamas, and meet-and-greets.
■ Shohei Ohtani debuted his adorable puppy Decoy (Decopin in Japanese) at the MVP Award announcement.
■ Neymar was ruled out of Copa America with a knee injury.
■ The Miami startup that developed ChatGPT enabled glasses signed Dolphins DE Dolphins Emmanuel Ogbah as a new brand manager.
■ The WNBA announced changes to the Commissioner's Cup format and schedule starting in 2024. Each of the league's 12 teams will play five games, one each against each of their in-conference rivals. That's a total of 30 games that will be played during a two-week span from June 1-13.
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■ According to a American Christmas Tree Association survey, 77% of Americans who display a tree this year will choose an artificial one.
■ The mockingbird has been Florida's state bird since 1927 but that could change. There are two bills in the state legislature to replace the mockingbird, one with the American flamingo, and another with the Florida scrub-jay.
■ Martha Stewart has dogs, cats, chickens, five horses and five donkeys.
■ A "Wednesday" spinoff about Fred Armisen's eccentric Uncle Fester is in early development at Netflix.
■ FX's excellent comedy "What We Do In The Shadows" is ending after Season 6.
■ Olivia Rodrigo returned to "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" for the second time in two weeks, singing "Vampire." Eerie.
■ "Bon Appetit's" 20 Best Recipes of 2023: 1. Ultimate Tuna Melt, 2. Triple Chocolate Brownies, 3. Cozy and Quick White Chicken Chili.
■ Bill Gates, in his year-end newsletter, predicted a massive wave of AI " innovations, beginning in 2024.
■ Axios signature holiday drink: "Our Thought Bubble(s)" -- Prosecco and Cranberry juice.
■ Singing together at any occasion, holiday or not, boosts well-being. Endorphins, baby.
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THEY SAID IT
■ "I'm a dog. I put the work in day in and day out. I haven't played a game in eight months. Had a lot of hard days where I went through it but basketball is my life, what I love and (it's) therapeutic for me and I'm excited to be back." -- Ja Morant, who had 34 points, eight assists, six rebounds to lead the Grizzlies to a 115-113 victory over the Pelicans.
■ "I think we should all be independent in football." UCLA coach Chip Kelly on trying to solve the biggest issues in college football.
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Jim Sarni, BC Class of '69, is a former sportswriter for The Boston Globe and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He resides in Fort Lauderdale and watches a lot of television. If you have a comment or an opinion, we'd love to hear from you Jksarni@aol.com