The horror show that is the 2016 presidential election has finally ended, or, perhaps, just begun if you weren’t on the side of the victors. But don’t worry, we’re not here to discuss politics…we’re here to see what the best election is in each of the four major sports at this time….
NFL: Who Is the Class of the NFC?
The Patriots are more or less on an nine-game bye until the playoffs being, and nobody, save for maybe the Oakland Raiders (!!!!!!!!!!!) seems worthy of giving them a challenge in the AFC. In the NFC, however, we have a shootout going down between birds and Cowboys.
Will a potential quarterback controversy between Tony Romo and Dak Prescott derail Dallas’s momentum? Can the Atlanta Falcons finally get over their late season molts? Can the Seahawks win a huge game without tying it, making a silly call at the goal line, or with officials’ assistance?
Don’t forget the third-party candidates in this equation, too. Can the suddenly hot New York Giants stage another miracle Super Bowl run? Who will win the mediocre yet exciting NFC North three-way between Detroit, Green Bay and Minnesota? Move over, Gary and Jill…they’re the type of independent candidate that can really mess with the status quo.
MLB: Who Is the New Face of Baseball?
Some media noted after the retirement of Derek Jeter that with his departure, baseball had no more “household names” left. However, an exciting trio of young superstars proved this was anything but the case, as a trio of fun exciting stars in Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, and Andrew McCutchen have picked the game up on their shoulders and have gained massive fanbases across the country. Harper even spearheaded a campaign to take the stuffyness out of baseball by paraphrasing our president-elect’s campaign slogan with the manta “Make Baseball Fun Again”.
None of these guys have had the success in the postseason, but who will rise above? Is it possible we could even get a write-in candidate, like new world champion Kris Bryant, in on this?
NHL: Which Superstar Rookie Will Win the Calder?
Scouting and making predictions for the NHL Draft is difficult. College hockey isn’t exactly on the caliber of its football and basketball counterparts, and at times the guys play their pre-NHL hockey in foreign countries. Other times, guys don’t sniff the league until two or three years after they’re drafted, if at all. But the top two picks in this past year’s draft, Toronto’s Auston Matthews and Winnipeg’s Patrik Laine, have made instant impacts. Matthews tallied four goals in his NHL debut, while Laine has already gotten the first two hat tricks of his NHL career. It’s part of an amazing youth movement in the NHL, one that figured to suffer when Conor McDavid and Jack Eichel both suffered injuries at separate points. Seeing who wins this epic Canadian battle will be a thrill to watch.
NBA: LeBron or Jordan?
Oh no!!!!!! It’s the one debate in America that annoyed us more than Clinton-Trump!!!!! The James/Jordan argument has succeeded the Manning/Brady debate as the most annoying one in sports. Being an extremist in anything is never good, and that’s the problem with this debate…there are nothing but extremists on either side. Their guy was the greatest, while the other wasn’t worthy to shine their self-titled shoes.
James is currently at the height of his powers, and doesn’t figure to be going away anytime soon. With the monopoly that James has established on the Eastern Conference, this is going to be a talking point each and every summer. Personally, I’m in the boat that Jordan is, and always will be, the greatest, but instances like Game 7 of last season’s NBA Finals (heck, that entire comeback really) shows why this argument remains a thing.
What sports elections do you face now that we’ve picked a president? Tweet @GeoffMags5490 and keep the conversation going.