Non-Sports Thoughts of the Week:
• American President Donald J. Trump had Twitter afire last week.
“Throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart,” said Trump, who also referred to himself as a genius.
If Trump really were a genius – and I think we all know the answer to that question, if anyone is asking – he wouldn’t proclaim himself to be one: a genius doesn’t do that, he lets others say it for him. Even a person of average intelligence knows that much.
I shall defer to Arthur Conan Doyle on this matter:
“Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.”
• Much-loved Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in hot water (even with some members of the fawning media) for taking a vacation that cost Canadian taxpayers more than $200,000. There are also ethics-related issues at play here.
I’m not longing for the days of Stephen Harper – things would have to go really, really wrong before that ever happened – but maybe the prime minister can pay for his own vacation. After all, we are already paying for his rent and, plus, almost everything else.
Furthermore, if you’re thinking ‘Vacation from what exactly? He doesn't do anything!’ it wouldn’t be completely unfair).
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Tennessee Titans at New England Patriots
The second weekend of the NFL playoffs is upon us, and there is one thing we know, with (almost absolute) certainty: the Tennessee Titans will not beat the New England Patriots.
But the other games? We don’t know for sure.
The Titans/Patriots clash will probably be over by the time they get to about mid-way through the third quarter. Were the Titans to win this game, it would be the biggest upset ever, in the history of sports and the universe. I’d love to see Tennessee pull off the upset, but, like, they’re not going to.
New England, 33-17.
• Jacksonville Jaguars at Pittsburgh Steelers
Even thought we here at The News had the Steelers as our pre-playoff Super Bowl favourite (it’s actually just me; nobody else really cares), the Jaguars’ defence, relentless in their win over the Buffalo Bills last week, gives them a fighting chance.
That said, Jaguars QB Blake Bortles trying to beat the Pittsburgh defence is going to be, like, not happening.
Pittsburgh, 22-9.
• Atlanta Falcons at Philadelphia Eagles
The Falcons are rolling right along, a wildcard playoff entry that has to win out the road if they want to be, like, playing the first Sunday in February. The Eagles have a pretty good defence but Atlanta is peaking at the right time.
Atlanta, 26-20.
• New Orleans Saints at Minnesota Vikings
If the Cleveland Browns and Buffalo Bills did not exist (some fans almost wish they didn’t), the Minnesota Vikings would be considered the NFL’s most snake-bitten franchise.
You kids out there might not know that the Vikings lost in the Super Bowl, like, four times in the 1970s and since then have had a couple other heartbreaking near-misses in the playoffs.
This is a toss-up, but maybe the football gods will be kind to the Vikings.
Vikings, 27-24.
Kevin Adshade is sportswriter with The News. His column appears each Saturday.
