NERDS AROUND TOWN

Nerds Around Town: Andrew Luck, Disney and growing older

Aug 26, 2019, 5:42 am

ART BY JESUS RODRIGUEZ

Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio and Sports. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!

What's up Monday! Let's conquer this week.

GOOD DEED OF THE DAY

In honor of college kids going back to school, I want you to look on Facebook find one of your teacher friends and click on their Amazon wishlist. They're all doing it this year, they all should be doing it this year except that education is the most important thing in the world for children and we as a society should care more to educate them, poor or rich, white, black or brown. We should be teaching them how to think and ask questions and let them make this world a better place since obviously we don't know how.

FALL OF THE COLTS

What did Andrew Luck just do? Did he seriously just leave the Colts in a massive lurch? I'll be honest, I don't blame him at all. They have been risking his life and health every season he's been in the NFL, they haven't gotten better at blocking one bit, they haven't protected him at all. I totally understand his position, he's a very wealthy guy at this point and I promise he's looking around every off season after another surgery and another injury and another rough year, checking his bank account and trying to figure out why he's so miserable when he's "living the dream." The truth is, it isn't fun when you don't know if you can ever even throw again which he was wondering in 2017. It isn't fun when you've literally had injured internal organs like he did in 2016. There's no way this is the life he wanted to live when he was drafted number one overall. The Colts had a chance to build with him, they could have just cleared the deck after Peyton left and built a team around Andrew Luck and yet, here we are in 2019 and he's retiring to avoid another year of running for his life, literally wondering if he'll ever be pain free. He deserves a little happiness and a little peace of mind, good luck Luck.

I HAVE QUESTIONS

One thing that came out of the Luck retiring episode is the Vegas odds have all changed, but seriously, I have questions. The oddsmakers had the Titans at 7.7 wins this year and now after Luck leaving they have them at 8 wins this year… the Titans don't think Mariota is even going to finish the year. So they got another quarterback, Ryan Tannehill just in case and to quote Madden, "when you got two quarterbacks you really have none." How was this team supposed to win seven games? Or even eight? They are a good tough minded team but in this era of scoring points, they can't. So what are they going to do, punt their way to a win?

D23 NEWS

Tons of great Disney news came out this weekend, they announced several streaming shows such as Moon Knight, Ms Marvel and She Hulk. They showed a trailer for The Mandalorian which looked great and they made some Marvel movie news announcements particularly Black Panther 2. So there is a ton going on in the cool column, but there is one glaring giant mark in the negative column, Spider-Man. Rumors were swirling all weekend and it was very confusing is there a deal, is there no deal, are they working on a deal, are they not working on a deal? It all got very confusing. Disney came strong to the table, wanting to expand their control of the "Spider universe" and yet Sony stood strong, perhaps to the detriment of movie fans and specifically me.

NOT THAT YOU ASKED

This coming weekend is basically my birthday, September 3^rd. Thirty-five has been the weirdest year of my life. It's been both exciting and awful. I started a business with a buddy, we basically sprinted and failed but from that failure came the writing and while life isn't great yet success is slowly creeping in and I'm making good steps every day and every month. My Dad died November of last year unexpectedly, it was an odd holidays, and a weird and hard year, this will be first birthday without him and I'm not sure how to feel yet. I'm the oldest and I feel like I need to be there for everyone else and sometimes I just want someone else to just be there for me. It's an odd situation, but this year I am determined to make the changes to make this my year, I'm too damn good to be where I'm at. So look out world.

Feel free to check out my brand new comic book Another Day at the Office or buy a shirt from Side Hustle Ts where some proceeds help people struggling with cancer or listen to Nerd Thug Radio. Thoughts, complaints, events and comments can be sent to corydlg@gmail.com.

andrew luck nerds around town

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EVERY-THING SPORTS

Here's why Deshaun Watson should be getting more love

Should Watson be in the MVP conversation? Composite image by Jack Brame.

The 2020 NFL season has a lot going on. Even if we take the coronavirus out of it, there's still a lot to digest. There are so many great performances being put up, one can make an argument for several players to win league MVP. The quarterback position typically gets more credit than others. If I restrict the argument to quarterbacks only, we're looking at Russell Wilson, Patrick Mahomes, and Aaron Rodgers. Dalvin Cook, Alvin Kamara, and Derrick Henry are the leading contenders at running back. On defense, there really isn't a standout defender. The defense gets no love, but there are several guys in the running for NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Deshaun Watson has been putting up numbers that have matched or rivaled some of the top MVP candidates over his last seven games. That stretch has coincided with the firing of head coach/general manager Bill O'Brien. Coincidence? I think not. Taking the reigns off a wild horse can often lead to said horse running free and flourishing! So question: Should Watson be getting league MVP considerations? I think so.

For starters, he's been one of the best players in the league over the course of the last seven games. 18 passing touchdowns and only two interceptions. The only quarterback with a better touchdown to interception ratio over that same span is Mahomes (19 and 2, as opposed to Watson's 18 & 2). Factoring in total season stats, of course Mahomes is doing much better. He's on a better team with a much better coach and general manager. The same could be said for Wilson and Rodgers. Put Watson on any of those teams and their records wouldn't be any worse than what they are now.

The Texans are 4-3 since firing O'Brien. While that isn't a great record, consider the fact they started the season 0-4 and looked like a total disaster. Watson looked like he was caged and couldn't wait to be freed. The team's record could be even better if the defense had a pulse. The proper supporting cast has a lot to do with a player's MVP candidate's chances. Now that one of his favorite weapons, Will Fuller, and the team's best corner, Bradley Roby, are both suspended for the rest of the season by the league for violating the substance abuse/PED policy, things will get much tougher for Watson.

If he continues to put up these cartoon like numbers, I don't see why he wouldn't be in the MVP conversation. He's currently fopurth in passing yards, sixth in completion percentage, tied for fifth in passing touchdowns, eighth in QBR, and third in quarterback rating. Watson is emerging as the star he was projected to be coming into the 2017 draft. I'm not saying Watson deserves to be the league MVP, but he deserves to be in the conversation. His MVP candidacy should be treated like the family gathering hierarchy: once you reach a certain age and/or status, you're no longer resigned to the kiddie table. Now you get to sit with all the adults, engage in their conversations, and gain access to things you couldn't previously. Watson won't win the MVP award, but I strongly believe he could finish top five. Especially if he keeps making lemonade with the lemons he's been given.

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