Eyes on The NFL: The 7 Best Offensive Moves Of Free Agency

By @TrueGodImmortal

The NFL free agency has been interesting to say the least so far. There have been many moves made for multiple teams, with a large number of surprises along the way. Today, we wanted to take a brief look at some of the best offensive moves so far for the Free Agency period. Most of these moves are related to the WR core or TE, as QB, running back and offensive line moves have been mostly slow. Let's examine.

*Martellus Bennett 
(Green Bay Packers)

-This Super Bowl Champion has been very outspoken over the last few months since the Patriots win, and he's not one to bite his tongue. With that being said, he's a solid TE that could provide another option for Aaron Rodgers and help the Packers get back to the Super Bowl again and possibly win one.

*Desean Jackson 
(Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

-Jameis Winston might be onto something here. He has Mike Evans already, who is a 1,000 yards receiver and now he has D-Jax. This could be very big for the Bucs going forward and with the NFC South looking the way it does, might it be the Bucs turn to head back to the Super Bowl promised land with their other added pieces and D-Jax? It's very possible that the Bucs could make a run now.

*Alshon Jeffery 
(Philadelphia Eagles)

-A WR who was seen as a big threat for the Bears is now with the Eagles and Carson Wentz will have a new favorite receiver. He's a solid threat and can end up making the difference for the Eagles going forward to compete. Alshon isn't a top 5 receiver, but I'd make the argument for top 10 and giving Wentz, who is a decent QB, that type of weapon could spell problems for the defense. We shall see.

*Terrelle Pryor 
(Washington Redskins)

-The WR/QB hybrid is heading to the Redskins, after they lose D-Jax. It's an interesting trade off for the Redskins, but one has to wonder how he will fare especially if Cousins remains QB. Will Pryor excel in Washington or will the Redskins suffer and end up with a losing season? I think Pryor will have a good year, around 800 yards receiving, but the Redskins themselves will have a rough season.

*Dwayne Allen 
(New England Patriots)

-The former Indianapolis TE is now going to be the replacement for Bennett so to speak, in a super stacked Patriots offense. It's interesting to see the Patriots secure Allen when they already have Gronk, but it's perfect because they have quite possibly the most depth for a NFL team that I've seen in quite a few seasons now. Time will tell if the Patriots repeat, but Allen can certainly be of assistance with that.

*Brandin Cooks 
(New England Patriots)

-Why are teams still trading or giving pieces to the damn Patriots? Cooks comes over to the Patriots and gets to work with Tom Brady. Brady to Cooks will be a real thing next season and that could be a problem for defenses all over the league. Cooks isn't the best receiver to be traded or sign in this free agency period, but he is a threat and could help the Patriots go back to back.

*Brandon Marshall
(New York Giants)

-After seasons with the Bears and Jets, it looks like Brandon Marsh will have a shot at the playoffs again for real this time. Him playing alongside the rest of those Giants receivers, including OBJ, could be a huge problem for any secondary to handle. This was a big deal for the Giants and could help them work their way to the top of the NFC East.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 10:24 PM  No comment

Eyes On ROH: Should The Hardys Stick Around?

By @TrueGodImmortal 

As of this writing, Matt and Jeff Hardy aka Broken Matt and Brother Nero are the Ring of Honor Tag Team Champions. After making a surprise appearance at Manhattan Mayhem, where they defeated the Young Bucks, the Hardys turned the wrestling world on its head and continued their tag team dominance over the indie wrestling landscape. Though they didn't lose the TNA tag team titles, apparently new champions will be crowned for TNA, as the contracts of Matt and Jeff have expired.

Regardless, to see Matt and Jeff together in Ring of Honor is special. They were reportedly in talks with WWE to return, but one would expect those negotiations to be longer than usual considering what Matt wants: creative freedom. Matt put in a large amount of work to make his Broken Matt character get over and now that he has, he should keep the momentum going. There's so much more to accomplish as Broken Matt and I think he has the perfect opportunity to complete the journey in Ring of Honor.

A return to WWE would only stop his creativity and reduce them to the same old Hardy Boyz role they had for many years prior. Don't get me wrong, the money WWE is probably offering is amazing, but the freedom to come and go as you please, work other dates in the indies, and earn top dollar in the industry is priceless. While there are some great feud possibilities in WWE for Matt and Jeff like Bray Wyatt, AJ Styles, Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, Finn Balor, and more, there is also a number of feuds for the Hardys in ROH that could help the company grow. Let's look at some of the upsides of staying with ROH for the two wrestlers.

*Freedom
-As I mentioned, you could very well have the freedom to do whatever you want in the indies and what better way to maintain that than to stay in ROH and keep building the company back up. The freedom he would have on the indies would disappear in the WWE for sure and we might lose the brilliance that is Broken Matt and Brother Nero. A return to being the "Hardy Boyz" just doesn't seem as appealing as having full creative freedom.

*Tag Title Run
-The Hardys can face a number of solid teams and makeshift teams in ROH, allowing for some great wrestling. ROH puts on consistently good matches so we could see The Hardys vs The Briscoes, The Hardys vs Young Bucks in a series of matches, The Hardys vs War Machine, The Hardys vs Jay Lethal & Lio Rush, The Hardys vs Adam Cole & Cody Rhodes, the possibilities are endless. The tag team run could honestly be something fun and engaging for not only the fans, but Matt and Jeff as well.

*Singles Feuds
-I think with the debut of Bully Ray in ROH, there's a chance for Matt and Jeff to provide true veteran experience to the company. Their style of wrestling fits within the ROH landscape, and the list of feuds and matches that could come from this are endless: Jeff Hardy vs Jay Lethal, Broken Matt taking on the Bullet Club and Adam Cole, Matt vs Cody in an interesting, Jeff vs Lio Rush, Jeff vs Daniels, Broken Matt vs Daniels, and even a 6 man tag match where Matt, Jeff and Bully Ray team up to take on the Bullet Club. I'd love to see Matt in a ton of these matches and feuds, because I feel they could bring more character to ROH, something they are desperately in need of. This could be mutually beneficial for the both of them.

*Building ROH
-This is the biggest one. Matt attempted to do something for TNA and it worked. He put more eyeballs on the product again, and himself. Even people who hate TNA (myself included) paid attention to what Matt was doing. Could Matt bring his "Ring of Deletion", his "Deletion With Honor", or whatever he needs to ROH? He could help revitalize ROH in more ways than one, and I'm 100% on board with Matt and Jeff both sticking around in ROH. I get that going back to WWE would likely signal that they're probably done in wrestling after the contract expires, and that's another reason why I hope they stick with ROH for a while. It not only keeps the company interesting, it makes for entertaining TV. So, please Matt and Jeff, stick around in ROH, work with some of the top notch talent. But most of all, DELETE all who oppose.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 10:08 PM  No comment

EOTR Report: Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor Is A Waste

By @TrueGodImmortal

Though we aren't the biggest fans of boxing in this day and age (I'm still hoping for GGG vs Canelo), the game still has the media abuzz and talking. However, in this case, the media isn't discussing a big time match up from two top tier boxers, but rather a clash of two different fighting worlds: UFC/Mixed Martial Arts and professional boxing. Conor McGregor is the current poster boy of UFC and he's extremely popular (and unpopular) amongst a large number of their fans. He's brash, smug, disrespectful, but most of all, he's a winner. He's handled his opponents mostly easy, and now he's trying his hand at something "new": professional boxing. For me, it's laughable, but for the rest of the world, there is huge intrigue.

For lesser fighters, Conor and his striking ability could essentially take them out regardless of the other elements. If Conor jumped in the ring against a relative unknown, this wouldn't be as big of an issue. I mean, Conor beating up on a relatively unknown guy isn't such a bad thing. Though, if the unknown guy knocked him out, this would all seem like a waste for Conor and his career, minus the paycheck of course. However, Conor isn't jumping into the ring for his first fight with an unknown or lesser fighter, instead he's going against one of the greatest boxers ever, and the undefeated Floyd "Money" Mayweather.

Though this fight isn't official yet, it keeps getting closer and closer to becoming a reality. Why? Simply put, the money is too much to pass up. Knowing Floyd, he will probably secure a payday of 150-200 million, if not more. After earning such a big payday for his Manny fight, one would assume he would only fight for something even bigger. There was speculation that with the right offers and sponsors that Floyd could walk away with a total of 400-450 million when all is said and done, with Conor looking at his biggest payday ever at 50 million when it is all said and done. Is that really worth it? Sure to the fighters themselves, it is worth it for the large payday, but outside of that, is it worth it?

No. The simple answer is no. This thing is simple. For all the money the fighters stand to make, the fans run the risk of sure disappointment. The disappointment will come for a number of reasons. Don't be fooled by the confidence of Conor, it will be his downfall surely. While a good striker, this doesn't necessarily always translate well in a different arena. Floyd is the best fighter of the last 20 years, and to throw Conor in the ring with such a seasoned veteran is a mistake. Floyd has conditioned himself to fight 12 rounds and his body is up for the task. Is Conor? We don't know. The footwork, the speed, the pacing, the force, it all plays a huge part in what could become the big downfall for Conor. Conor is a great fighter, but this is boxing. There are very few who studied the mechanics of boxing like Floyd. Say what you want about him "ducking" opponents, but he strategically goes into every fight and tends to dominate. There have been a few moments of weakness, but Floyd makes sure to control the fight all the way through. Experience, dedication, and being the best at his craft is what makes Floyd a favorite to just about every fight he has.

And there lies the reason why this is a waste. Unless this fight is thrown, and Conor is the one who finally takes down Floyd, the truth is that Floyd will soundly defeat him and could honestly knock him out. Conor packs power in his punches, but power versus experience, versatility, and defense is a true mismatch. UFC lovers, please get over this line of thinking that UFC fighters are naturally tougher and can defeat anyone. In their own arena? Yes, they can. In someone else's arena? Not so much. What Conor lacks in pure skill and defense will serve to be the biggest issue in this fight if it happens. There's been so much talk that if this fight NEVER happens, we will be better off without it. It's a spectacle, it may be entertaining for the promos and build between them both, but Conor is better suited to head into films, TV, or a novelty run in WWE before stepping in the boxing ring with the absolute best. Don't make this fight. Don't waste that money. There's more productive uses for that money than watching Conor get defeated by TKO in 3 or 4 rounds by Floyd. Let's leave it alone.

-True

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Eyes on the Ring 7:03 PM  No comment

EOTR Tag Team Tuesdays: Tyson Kidd and Cesaro

Cesaro and Tyson Kidd styles should mesh well. I just can't believe they are a team. This is so cool.

— Meenhammad Ali ⚫️ (@OmegaShammgod) December 2, 2014

I hope they keep teaming Tyson Kidd and Cesaro

— Meenhammad Ali ⚫️ (@OmegaShammgod) December 2, 2014

By @OmegaShammgod 

By now I think most people who consistently read my articles have learned one important thing I love about tag teams. I love two random wrestlers coming together and creating insane chemistry. From Joe/Magnus to London/Kendrick, Miz/Morrison and The Revival, it's always a great thing to see two guys struggling to find their footing while chasing the imaginary brass rings come together to kick people's heads in. I've written about this team multiple times before and you'll probably be tired of it, but I don't care because I love this team just that much.

Before they became a team, just a month earlier (on the November 14th episode of Smackdown, a pretty good match if you'd like to go back and watch) Kidd and Cesaro were facing off with Dolph Ziggler in a triple threat match for the Intercontinental Championship, which ended with Ziggler retaining. A month later, they competed in a tag team gauntlet match for a title shot, but they were eliminated by the Usos. They joined Adam Rose in a short-lived feud with the New Day (a pretty weak feud, however we did get to see them walk out with Adam Rose's posse). The feud continued up until the Royal Rumble where Kidd and Cesaro defeated Big E and Kofi Kingston on the preshow.

A month later at Fastlane, they defeated the Usos to win the WWE Tag Team Championship. Although hesitant to join in on Cesaro and Kidd's heelish antics, Natalya intentionally got them disqualified so that they would retain their titles in a rematch with the Usos. At Wrestlemania 31, they defended their titles on the preshow in a Fatal 4 Way tag team match against the Usos, Los Matadores and the New Day with Cesaro getting the pin on Big E after Jey Uso delivered a diving splash and was tossed from the ring. At Extreme Rules, they dropped the Tag Team titles to the New Day, which at the time made zero sense to me until The New Day officially turned heel the next day. They would fail to win the titles back at Payback and at Elimination Chamber. The Elimination Chamber Tag Team Match would turn out to be their final match together as a team as Tyson Kidd would suffer a (pretty much) career ending injury at the hands of Samoa Joe on June 7th.

When they were intially put together, I prayed to God that WWE would let them become an official team (I have the tweets to back it up!). Kidd was going through a career rebirth after his stint in NXT. He was called back up to the main roster and things got better and better for him. Cesaro was on a long losing streak and there seemed to be no end in sight. Putting them together resulted in the creation of one of my favorite teams ever. I loved both of these guys as individuals. Two extremely talented wrestlers being overlooked because they didn't have the "It" factor on the microphone.

However, when put together, Kidd's cocky attitude rubbed off on Cesaro perfectly, kind of like how Chad Gable's energetic personality rubbed off on Jason Jordan. Had Kidd never got injured who knows what could have happened? My hope had always been that they'd get a few more runs with the Tag Titles, agree to mutually part ways, one wins a midcard title and they have a competitive rivalry for the belt. Now we're unsure if Kidd could ever step foot in any kind of ring period. The matches they've had together were good, not great but it was always clear who the better team was in their matches. They were always a step ahead of the others and seemed to be communicating with their minds or something. Only one can wonder what could have been.

-Ameen

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Eyes on the Ring 11:59 PM  No comment

WWE Fastlane 2017 Preview

By @Phranchize19 

Sunday will mark the last WWE pay per view before WrestleMania. Raw will produce Fastlane and we will bear witness to some intriguing stories heading into this show. While the show is centered around Goldberg vs Kevin Owens, there could be some quality matches on this card.

*Rich Swann & Akira Tozawa vs The Brian Kendrick & Noam Dar

-What a mighty fall Swann has had. WWE treated him winning the title as such a big deal and now he's on the pre-show. Noam Dar, as great as he is has been, is saddled with a horrible gimmick, so the real story here is Kendrick and Tozawa. Their rivalry has been brewing for a while now. Given that the Cruiserweights don't get development or proper ring time, I expect this to be a solid match to get the crowd going.

Prediction: Swann and Tozawa win with Tozawa pinning Kendrick

*Sasha Banks vs Nia Jax

-This rivalry has been solid given the little focus its had. Jax has excelled in her heel role and we haven't seen a woman this dominant since Beth Phoenix. We all know Sasha is the second best female wrestler on earth, but this will be more about the rise of Nia Jax. Jax will win easily here with more fight from Banks than their previous encounters

Prediction: Jax pins Banks

*Gallows & Anderson vs Enzo and Cass 
Raw Tag Team Championship Match

-To be perfectly honest, Gallows and Anderson have ZERO momentum after failing to beat Reigns on two occasions and made to look like fodder instead of champions. I believe WWE was trying to bide time with Enzo and Cass winning the tag titles. While I understand Enzo and Cass are clearly the future of the Raw tag division, I don't think they should pull the trigger just yet. Let this moment happen at WrestleMania.

Prediction: Gallows and Anderson hit Enzo with the Magic Killer and win

*Sami Zayn vs Samoa Joe

-While I am excited to see two world class wrestlers get it on, one has to feel bad that Rollins was not in this spot. I'm sure WWE had Rollins vs Joe in mind before the injury and Joe needed more momentum, so they had to create this rivalry out of necessity. Zayn will make for a great opponent and there will be good psychology, but we all know how this will end.

Prediction: Joe pins Zayn

*Neville vs Jack Gallagher 
Cruiserweight Championship 

-I am a Gallagher fan. I think he has massive potential and will one day be the champion. I'm a bit confused as to why they are feeding him to Neville here. If they needed an opponent for Neville, Perkins would've fit just fine here. I don't want to see Gallagher lose momentum here, but I don't expect WWE to pull the title off of Neville so quickly.

Prediction: Neville beats Gallagher by Submission 

*Charlotte vs Bayley 
Raw Women's Championship

-This one is a bit hard to figure out. Vince is obviously obsessed with Charlotte (who's not been out of the title picture since her first title match with Nikki Bella) and that's fine, but WWE missed an opportunity by not being patient with Bayley. This match will be good, but I'm iffy on who wins because Bayley is over, but Charlotte is dominant on pay per views.

Prediction: Charlotte regains the title

*Roman Reigns vs Braun Strowman

-This could be match of the night. While this won't be a technical masterpiece, this will be a hard hitting fight. Strowman has improved leaps and bounds as a performer since coming from NXT and Roman has improved tremendously as well. It remains to be seen if Roman can carry a match, but this is the opportunity to do so.

Prediction: Strowman only wins unless Undertaker shows up during (not after) the match.

*Goldberg vs Kevin Owens 
Universal Championship 

-Isn't the result obvious? All I can say is poor KO. Saddled with poor booking and now this.

Prediction: Goldberg convincingly defeats Owens

How will this PPV turn out? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

 -C. Yates

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Eyes on the Ring 1:51 AM  No comment

EOTR Tag Team Tuesdays: TNA's Team Canada

By @MeenHendrix 

O CANNNNNAAAAAADAAAAA! There's nothing more I love than a good stable. But this wasn't just any stable, its TEAM CANADA! Led by Scott D'Amore, this crop of young talent was boasted as the future of TNA.

The team was originally created for the 2004 America's X-Cup Tournament with the original team being made up of Team Captain Teddy Hart, Jack Evans (who was actually American....), Johnny Devine and Petey Williams. Team Canada would lose out in this tournament to AAA's Team Mexico led by Juventud Guerrera. After the America's X-Cup, TNA announced the World X-Cup. Petey Williams became the new captain of a revamped Team Canada with Teddy Hart being released by the company and D'Amore kicking Jack Evans out of the group, with Eric Young and Bobby Roode as their replacements.

In Round One, a Gauntlet Match featuring all 16 competitors in the tournament awarded 3 points to the last man standing's team. Team Mexico's Captain Héctor Garza would win this match giving Team Mexico an early advantage. In Round 2, Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper defeated Bobby Roode and Johnny Devine, awarding Team TNA 2 points. Round 3 ended with Team Canada finally getting on the board (4 Points) by way of Eric Young's victory in a Fatal 4 Way ladder match with Jerry Lynn, Mr. Águila and Taichi Ishikari. However, they would come up short in a winner takes all Ultimate X Match, with Team TNA's Chris Sabin beating out Petey Williams and Héctor Garza. Team Canada placed second in the Tournament.

After the World X-Cup Tournament, D'Amore would keep the team together to great success. Petey Williams defeated Amazing Red for the X-Division Championship. EY and Bobby Roode would then become 2-Time NWA World Tag Team Champions. In early 2005, Johnny Devine tore his MCL and was replaced with A-1. For the remainder of the year, Team Canada would join Jeff Jarrett's Planet Jarrett stable and feud with Team 3D and 3LiveKru. At Lockdown 2005, Team 3D defeated Team Canada in an Anthem match. In 2006, they lost the World X-Cup to Team USA/TNA once again. In June of 2006, they lost an all or nothing 8 man tag team match officially forcing the team to disband.

I liked the makeup of this stable because it showcased the present and in parts, the future. Eric Young and Robert Roode would go on to become staples in the history of TNA and reach the top of the Mountain multiple times. Petey Williams, the former team captain, lived up to the expectations D'Amore had thought of him when he dubbed him the future of the X-Division. With his Canadian Destroyer finisher armed, Petey would become king of the X-Division again. I was never a huge fan of Johnny Devine. Honestly, I believed him to be the weakest link and I thought Team Canada would be better off with A-1.

They were better to an extent with him, but nothing necessarily changed as far as the group's standing within the company. To be fair, I also thought A-1 would be the future of the company and maybe he would have if he could properly execute a dropkick. But alas, it was not meant to be and he was cut in 2007. As a kid, I hated these guys. D'Amore was a coward who hid behind his guys after running his mouth too much, but looking back it made this team a lot of fun to watch because all of these guys (with the exception of Divine and EY) were athletic freaks and were more than capable of backing up D'Amore's bragging. I think they had a pretty good run. It lasted 2 years and they were a very solid midcard act. My only complaint is their break up was random and set up all wrong. Jim Cornette randomly coming out and saying the team is officially broken up then giving them a match later that night to reverse his decision is just terrible booking. I guess we have no one to blame for the fall of Team Canada except Eric Young (who D'Amore blamed for the forced disbandment).

-Ameen

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Eyes on the Ring 12:51 AM  No comment