Friday Fun Time

Gotta get down on Friday

It’s time for a dump of the things I found amusing this week but didn’t merit a post on their own. Happy Friday!

• One of my favorite commercials on right now are the “Let’s go to the review” commercials. This is a Progressive Insurance series, and when one of these guys says, “So … we just own a cat now?” I literally laugh out loud. (That’s called a litlol, and this phrase was created by my brother and brother-in-law, but that’s not what we’re here for right now.)

This entire series is pretty solid (I also love how ANGRY the guy looks when he realizes he is, in fact, the one who left the lifejackets at home) and it strikes me that Progressive has this, the Becoming Your Parents series, and of course Flo. That’s a pretty solid lineup - and commercials in general STINK. And other insurance companies (GEICO) do a decent job as well. Why do insurance companies a) do better at something so many stink at and b) why do they feel the need to have SO many commercials? Is it perhaps because their product is essentially a commodity and there’s so little difference we can only differentiate between them by name brand? Hmmm…..

• This space has well established that I’m a bit obsessed with golf. So it should come as no surprise that I absolutely loved this video, where Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas play 18 holes with Soly and Neil from No Laying Up. Not only is there great smack talk, but Jordan and Justin come across as fairly normal guys who are disgustingly good at golf. JT in particular hits what I have to state is one of the top-3 best shots I’ve ever seen.

  

  What if I told you that JT hits this shot to about four feet from the cup? (Don’t ask if his partner Soly makes the putt.) Just disgusting, amazing stuff.

• You may have seen this, but if not it’s sort of bonkers. Two guys, both named Brady Feigel, both 6’4” with red hair, glasses and who are minor league pitchers .. are not related whatsoever. They even took a DNA test to see.

  

• As the NFL playoffs begin, I don’t know what to do with my beloved 49ers. The craziest part of the team is it’s somehow the healthiest it’s ever been going into the playoffs AND has the 3rd string QB starting. Brock Purdy is a baffling guy - he’s so poised, accurate and goes through his reads in a way that suggests he’s anything but a rookie, let alone the last player drafted. And I need to give props to my Uncle Howard who during the preseason, when Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo were both healthy, stated that Brock Purdy looked special. He stressed that while he wasn’t comparing him to Joe Montana, there was something about the way Purdy went through his progressions, his footwork, etc., that reminded him of the 49ers great. I have to admit, I shrugged that off - he was always throwing against the worst defenses, etc. But damn if he wasn’t right.

  

  We knew coach Kyle Shanahan saw something when the team released Nate Sudfeld even after committing to a $2,000,000 salary (unheard of for a 3rd string QB) in order to keep Purdy. And in the six games Purdy has played he has the best QB rating in the league, has won each game and honestly looked better than Jimmy. And the play calling has been more aggressive with Brock. I truly never saw this coming. This was posted on Reddit, and it’s fairly amazing as well. Apparently QB coach Brian Griese pushed for Purdy in the draft process and has worked very closely with him since the draft. Man, what a find.

• A stat I NEVER would have believed at the start of the season, or honestly at any part of the season - despite going to the 3rd string QB, the 49ers finished tied for 4th in passing TD (30) and in 3rd for fewest interceptions (9). That’s … crazy pants.

• Speaking of football, somehow the Houston Texans chose the dumbest possible time to win a football game, ensuring they would NOT get the top pick in the draft despite two years of what from the outside seemed like deliberate tanking. Instead, the Chicago Bears have it - and also seem to have their QB of the future in Justin Fields. This week, the team said they wouldn’t preclude taking a QB in the draft, and Twitter and Rotoworld fell for it. Guys, they HAVE to say this in order to maximize any draft value they’ll get in return. This is Draft 101.

• This is not to say Rotoworld is bad. In fact, it’s always been the best resources for fantasy news. Sometimes, I think they get a little punchy. Witness this update from last weekend:

  

  You truly have to love it.