Earlier this week, Peter Schrager and Esquire put together a fabulous, well-sourced list of the Top 10 current NFL players that you'll see next on television.  Given the sheer amount of NFL coverage and five networks in play (ESPN, NBC, CBS, Fox, NFLN), there will always be jobs available for players that want to make the transition to being in front of the cameras.  Esquire talked to agents, TV execs, writers, and nearly everyone in the industry to compile their list.  The best part about the list is the honesty of unnamed industry insiders speaking about notable flops.  "More often than not, we have been wrong. Tiki Barber was supposed to be the best at this. He sucked. Joe Montana? The same thing."  (I'm guessing ESPN knew Emmitt Smith was going to be terrible from the beginning.)

Below we've listed the Esquire Top 10, but why not have even more fun with the list.  Since we've just endured National Signing Day, we'll also project where each player will analyze in their post-playing media career.  If only Peyton Manning were able to hold a press conference and pick up a CBS hat from a table, that might actually be compelling television.

1) Peyton Manning
Projection: CBS #1 Booth
Analysis: One agent quoted says Manning could have any seat he wants in broadcasting.  A media reporter says he'll be the most sought after ex-player in the history of television.  Seeing as how Peyton Manning has never met an interview, commercial, or TV camera he didn't like so a media career is extremely likely.  With his career in doubt, that may happen sooner rather than later.  The perfect fit for him is stepping into the #1 CBS booth alongside Jim Nantz.  Top game analysts at each network are all about quarterbacks (Simms, Aikman, Jaws) and it's conceivable for Manning to immediately be among the best of the bunch from Day 1.  A megastar like Peyton Manning shouldn't be crowded out in a studio with loud noises cancelling him out.  The booth is where he belongs.  With AFC games on CBS and Phil Simms' analysis seeing a sharp decline in the last few years, it makes too much sense to not make this happen... if CBS has the gumption to make such a high-profile move.

This is Savalace Townsend from Arkansas Pine-Bluff, one of those tiny schools that makes the NCAA tournament once in a blue moon, and then is always in the play-in game. Anyway, they were playing Grambling State and Townsend absolutely destroys a Grambling State player like something you'd see on a Blake Griffin highlight reel.

And now, the reason why we're here: the announcer's call of the incredible dunk. He's so muted, so understated. "Are you kidding me?" Instead of sounding like he's calling one of the craziest plays he'll see during this or any season, he's talking like a baseball announcer that sees a single up the middle in the 8th inning of a 9-2 game. You know that sound in an announcer's voice, that bored, disinterested type of voice... kind of like Joe Buck doing a baseball game. 

At any rate, it was a phenomenal dunk by Townsend that really got downplayed by a tepid call. This is why Gus Johnson needs to be cloned about 100 times, ladies and gentlemen.

[h/t: Ballin Is A Habit]

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We've felt it our duty here at AA to keep you all aware of the latest on Craig James' ill-fated Senate run in Texas.  We've already seen James' laughable political ads, covered the fact that he's polling at about 4% with unfavorable numbers through the roof, and looked at the threats of perjury from Mike Leach's attorney.

But what we haven't heard much of, especially with regards to the Mike Leach fallout, is the defense of Craig James' alleged actions from... Craig James.  On Wednesday, James changed that by appearing on the radio in the place where he is least popular - Lubbock, Texas.  That's the home of Mike Leach's former employer Texas Tech.  The full interview is online at KFYO if you can stomach James talking about balanced budgets and mayonnaise sandwiches.  But, from our own suffering through the interview along with the help of Tom Benning from the Dallas Morning News, enjoy the best (or is it worst) from the mayor of "Real Street" below:

"I'd wake up in the middle of the night looking at the ceiling thinking about our foreign policy."

-Obviously, Craig James was such a crappy football analyst because he was distracted by our trade deficit with China and transpiring events in the Euro Zone.  I wonder if Vladimir Putin ever wakes up in the middle of the night thinking about the spread offense. 

"There's some people who won't understand. There's some people, if they wouldn't defend their own son, I don't want their vote. I don't want to run with those kind of people."

-You heard it, Craig James doesn't want your vote non-believers!  This works out well because nobody apparently wants to vote for Craig James either.

"You know how many big, high-profile people have come and gone at ESPN because of poor judgment. Had I done anything remotely close to any of these things that have been alleged and said by Mike Leach, ESPN would've gotten rid of me a long time ago."

-People at ESPN with poor judgement?  You don't say.  Well, I guess there was this guy.  And this guy.  And this guy.  Of course, if the reports about James harassing the Texas Tech coaching staff are true, James should have been gotten rid of by ESPN on the spot.  It's times like this you wish ESPN had an independent voice who would fulfill their promise to explore the controversy surrounding James' employment at the network.  Moving on!

"I don't feel uncomfortable at all in Lubbock...I've owned ranch land, I get it.  I understand the culture of West Texas."

-Own a ranch, automatically you are a perfect fit in West Texas.  Eat ranch dressing on anything, you understand the culture of West Texas.  Why wouldn't Craig James feel uncomfortable in Lubbock?  Mike Leach is stuck in Pullman, Washington... a long way from any equipment sheds to throw James or his petulant kid into.

"What's right is right and what's wrong is wrong and it's never right to do wrong... I've got a backbone and i will stand against evil every time."

-This is one of those campaign slogans that the Pony has begun using in ads and on the campaign trail.  Instead of sounding full of integrity, it's just laughable when faced with all of the evidence stacked against James and his involvement in Mike Leach's dismissal.  It's like if Craig James says this meaningless crap enough, it will actually become true.  You also have to love James lumping in Mike Leach with generic evil like communists, the devil, or the Boogeyman. 

"Mike leach did what he did... he'll have to own up to the truth in a court of law."

-If anything has become clear, it's that James' "Real Street" is truly a land of delusion.  Clearly, despite all the reports to the contrary, James still believes he has done nothing wrong regarding his career at ESPN and his documented involvement with Leach's firing.  Once the Senate campaign is over, a possible lawsuit featuring James, Leach, Texas Tech, and ESPN may still be in the cards.  And the prospect of that might finally bring James back from "Real Street" to the real world.  

[H/T Dallas Morning News]

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NBC plans on adding Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Steelers receiver Hines Ward, and former Giants receiver David Tyree to their pregame coverage of the Super Bowl on Sunday. Here's the NBC Sports tweets containing the news...

It is an audition of sorts for the two active players according to USA Today, but I'm not sure why Rodgers would really need to audition for anything, considering he's entering the prime of his career as one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Why would he be thinking about becoming an analyst? Rodgers is being known off the field for his State Farm commercials, which are everywhere at the moment and making football fans across the country possibly regret hearing the phrase "discount double check" ever again.

But for Ward, the move makes a lot more sense. He's nearing the end of his career, and has reportedly shown a lot of interest in transitioning to a studio role once his career comes to a close. He has mainstream appeal after his appearance on Dancing With The Stars and is a very well-spoken individual, which could set himself up very well for his post-playing career. It's really a crapshoot with NFL analysts though, and the Super Bowl pregame show will be a good chance for Ward to get his feet wet and see if he's got a future there.

As for Tyree, I know he had the big play in Super Bowl XLII, but the helmet catch was his last one in the NFL. Perhaps NBC will be able to get out all of this footage in the pregame and not let it dominate the Super Bowl XLVI broadcast.

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That's weird, I've never heard testicles referred to as a "love stomach" before.  Anyways, that's Phi Slamma Jamma graduate and NBA legend Clyde "The Glide" Drexler describing Luis Scola's unfortunate hustle play and likely America's Funniest Home Videos finalist. It's also humbling that a well-placed basketball can reduce 6'10", 260 pound NBA star Kevin Love to a what we saw in this video.

Drexler even has some sage advice for NBA players in how to avoid being in such a predicament,

"You were taught when a guy gets ready to throw the ball back in bounds you gotta turn sideways. Why? You gotta protect the jewels."

You were taught that? That sounds like the absolute worst day of practice ever. If we're going to fine players thousands of dollars for not wearing collared shirts then I think it's time to crack down on the groin shots. Intentional or not, I think every male would support an automatic ejection for such an egregious play.

Now that that's out of the way, here's a related video that is probably the finest clip on the internet.

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One year ago, absolutely nobody would think a 24 year old crime reporter from Harrisburg, PA would be doing the best sports-related journalism in the country. Sara Ganim, the reporter from Harrisburg, PA's Patriot-News, is apparently receiving consideration for a Pulitzer Prize for her work in breaking and reporting on the Jerry Sandusky child rape scandal. Buried in this story from Philly.com about Ganim is a brief tidbit that Ganim's work was submitted by the Patriot-News to the Pulitzer committee for consideration.

The story itself is quite interesting, detailing Ganim's background (born in Detroit, grew up in Florida, graduated from Penn State), her history with the case (broke the story last March, which didn't get mainstream media attention until the fall, after two years of work on researching the case), and future plans (Ganim has stated that she has a lot left to do, and isn't thining about any future jobs). It's also a testament to the work still done in local papers in a world becoming increasingly dominated by 24/7 cable news. Ganim herself referred to her own work as a "testament to local journalism."

As a resident of Harrisburg, and an occasional reader of the Patriot-News, you got a sense from reading Ganim's work in the paper that she would receive national recognition for her work early on. My father, a Patriot reader for 30 years, immediately began the cries for a Pulitzer from the beginning of her reporting on the case. The case has been largely manhandled by many of the major news outlets, and public perception is decidedly skewed in this situation. Ganim has done a great job in keeping everything level, and focusing attention on Sandusky, the real monster in the case.

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Mike & The Mad Dog may be the most influential sports talk radio show in the history of the airwaves.  But ever since their split a few years ago, with Chris Russo going to host his own show at Sirius XM and Francesa sticking with WFAN in New York, they've been unable to recreate the same mojo.  Russo's raving lunatic rants aren't the same without the calming influence of Francesa and Francesa's arrogance and curmudgeonliness are more grating without the laughter of Russo.  This is a situation where the sum is truly greater than the individual parts.

So when the two met up at the Super Bowl in Indianapolis on Tuesday, it was like seeing Dean Martin come back to life and immediately start trading jokes with Jerry Lewis.  These two look and sound so excited to be with each other that it may create whispers about a possible full reunion of Mike & The Mad Dog.  Seriously, they haven't missed a beat in doing radio together.  Don't get your hopes up though - Francesa said earlier this year, "there's a better chance that the Mets win the pennant" when talking about a permanent reunion with Russo.  So it looks like fans of Mike & The Mad Dog and great sports radio will have to settle for these few minutes and wistfully reflect on what once was.   

(via Hot Clicks)

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A new poll conducted by Sports Business Daily asked the nation’s top marketers and sports business execs “who is the most marketable NFL player today?”

Before you say Tebow, slap yourself. Almost all of the top 10 most marketable players in country have something in common: they’ve won a Super Bowl.  Although Tebow does make the list, he's got a lot more winning to do to take the top spot. Besides Super Bowl winners dominating the list, another prevalent note is that 8 out of the 11 players shown were all quarterbacks. While that shouldn’t come as a surprise, it is a little shocking that three defenders made the list and not a single running back or wide receiver makes an appearance.

Let’s take a look at the final list.....

1. Aaron Rodgers
The success of the “Discount Double Check” commercials speaks for itself. It shows Rodgers as a normal guy who expects everyone to recognize him after his Super Bowl MVP performance and also plays on the Favre shadow. Plus, I think the main reason Rodgers ranks so high is that he seemingly has it all - he is THE man in one of the most storied franchises in all of sports, a Super Bowl winner and MVP, and he's just getting started.

2. Tom Brady
He’s the Golden Boy. 3 Super Bowl wins, a supermodel wife, and a brand new ENORMOUS mansion. Brady never gets in trouble, always says the right things, and is pretty much the perfect pitchman. Yet, his endorsement products are sketchy at best considering there is a billboard somewhere showing Tommy Boy rocking Uggs as if any guy in their right mind would do the same.

In my time at AA, I've seen some strange videos.  None may be more strange (and more unfortunate) than the video you're about to see.  It comes from the 2012 Hilton Invitational, a high school basketball tournament in Norcross, Georgia.  The tournament featured a host of top teams from around the Southeast.  You may also remember Norcross from awesome football announcer Joel Hillsman back in the fall.

Here, the hosts Norcross are taking on Charlotte Christian on the hardwood and trailing 57-56 with just a few seconds left.  We pick up the game with about twenty seconds left and the announcers talking about a Charlotte Christian player, Ryan Potocnik, going the wrong way and catching a break by the ball going out of bounds.  Evidently, the Charlotte Christian coaching staff didn't get him the memo about which basket he was supposed to be defending.  The Knights inbound the ball to Potocnik who then casually lays the ball in his own basket uncontested.  It actually takes a few seconds for the reality of what just happened to sink in with the announcers.  Norcross would sink two free throws at the other end to win the game 60-57.  It's one of the most bizarre clips you will ever see...

You've got to feel bad for the kid, hopefully he's able to bounce back from this, but somewhere right now Jim Marshall is shaking his head in empathy. 

Thanks to squintsjoseph for the tip.

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This video came into the AA Twitter account, and features the call of the end of the game between Tennessee high schools Brentwood and Ravenwood. Brentwood player Jack Montague lays in a basket with 1.6 seconds left to give Brentwood the win, and announcer Alex Dostaler goes completely bonkers. By the time the crowd storms the court as the final buzzer sounds, Dostaler's voice is cracking as he's screaming and cheering in the booth. 

WBHS-9 appears to be a local public access channel that's run by Brentwood High, featuring tons of sports programming. That explains the exuberant attitude shown by Dostaler in the booth. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any contact info for him on their website to try to get a comment. At any rate, the insane reaction shown by Dostaler is a nice breath of fresh air in the era of political correctness, even if this was just a high school game.

For the record, when I was watching my high school football team play in the state title game back in December, the announcers didn't show a fraction of this emotion. It's good to see that at least one announcer out there has passion for something. Unfortunately, this didn't give us a "PY-RO-TECH-NICS" moment, but it was still pretty funny.

[h/t: Twitter]

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