NERDS AROUND TOWN

Nerds Around Town: The Mandalorian, Thanksgiving and Undercity Tales

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!

GOOD DEED OF THE DAY

This is one of the best charity ideas I've heard yet. It's called "Let's Bring 'Em Home" and the charity buys tickets for soldiers in the Armed Forces and flies them home from overseas. Nerd Thug Radio and The Adventure Begins Comics, Games and More will be holding an event to benefit these guys on December 13th. The Nerd Thug Takeover of Adventure Begins will happen starting at 6pm and on December 13th and all proceeds from sales will go to benefit "Let's Bring 'Em Home".

UNDERCITY TALES

Undercity Tales is a great Kickstarter success story. Mike Tener is a guy I found when he was running a crowdfunder for Black Jackets earlier this year. At the time I talked about that project and had him on the radio show to talk about it, it was a success and it was also a great project overall, one of my favorite this year. Undercity Tales was his next project and I recently got my copy of it in the mail, and it only continues his successful run of work. Created and produced by him, it tales a story written by Scott Wilke with art by Brian Balonado, colors by Bryan Arfel Magnaye and Letters by Matt Krotzer. Everyone does a great job and it's a great single issue story to introduce you to the world Tener's created. The story is a single issue murder mystery and it doesn't disappoint, tons of great characters with an interesting story, there's a bit of a pacing issue in the beginning as they rush you through the early details of a murder mystery that in a regular Law and Order episode would take a little longer, but overall it uses the saved pages to give a better finale to the story. Very much worth the read and whatever is coming next from Mike Tener is worth reading, because in my book he's 2/2 on awesome first issues.

THE HOLIDAYS

This time of year for a lot of people brings up complicated feelings and bad memories. Not everyone loves the holidays as much as they could and that's because of things that might've been out of their control as well. Check on your people, say nice things and be there for each other because as unexcited as you are for the in-laws to visit, they're even more unexcited for even the day on the calendar and all the focus on holidays and family and all of that. No matter what they turn off or tune out, something else is rubbing this time of year into their faces and that's a problem for them, so just make sure your people are ok for the holidays.

THE MANDALORIAN

Honestly, this show is great. This is what I've always talked about when I talked about how interesting the Star Wars Universe was but it was being crowded with conversations about Luke Skywalker kissing his sister. There was more to this universe than just the Skywalker family and this is exactly the kind of story I'm talking about. A mercenary trying to do right by his people finds a higher calling when asked to do the unaskable, kill a baby. You have to check this show out if you haven't and it's worth the $12.99 for Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+.

NOT THAT YOU ASKED

This week I got to do something SUPER cool and had my first event as Cory de la Guardia the comic book creator. It was a signing at Space Cadets Collection Collection on local comic shop day and it was very cool. I made a few new friends/fans and helped them sale a couple copies of my book, it was a very cool experience and I would like to thank Jen King for helping make it happen.

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.

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Could Tank Dell record over 1,000 yards as a rookie? Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images.

The cuts have been made. The roster is still being shaped by the front office and scouting department. The main players are in place. The coaching staff is hard at work prepping game plans for week one against the Baltimore Ravens. The players are studying film and perfecting their crafts. Opponents are probably licking their chops looking at this team.

I think the over on 6.5 wins this season may be a stretch. If they reach seven wins, it'll be because they won some games most didn't think they could win. My expectations are much higher than the previous few seasons. One thing for sure, this team will be a LOT more exciting to watch. Here are some of my statistical forecasts for a few pivotal players:

C.J. Stroud: 3,417 yards; 23 touchdowns; 11 interceptions- I think Stroud will benefit this year from a good run game. Pass protection may be shaky to start with injuries, but I think the offensive line will get better as the season progresses. Averaging just over 200 yards per game isn't outrageous. I feel he'll stay at or just above a 2:1 TD to pick ratio. While not ideal, it's better than some Hall of Fame QBs did in their rookie seasons. It would rank him in PFF's top 10 all time rookie QB seasons if he's at or around 65% completion percentage.

Tank Dell: 68 catches, 1,105 yards and 6 touchdowns- Dell will be a really good slot, but has some outside skills. Namely, his speed. He's more slippery than if Mick had greased that chicken before Rocky tried catching it. I could see his production going up as the season gets longer because Stroud will begin to look for him more and more as they build chemistry. Yes, I know I only have him with six scores. Keep in mind this is a run first offense. At least that's what we can deduce from looking at where it came from in San Francisco. Speaking of run first…

Damien Pierce: 1,388 yards on 322 carries with 362 receiving yards on 44 catches and 18 total touchdowns- Pierce will be the focal point of the offense. He averaged 4.3 yards per carry last season, so I can see him hitting around that mark again. Difference is, this season, he'll get more carries and have more receptions. This will lead to much more production.

Jalen Pitre: 131 tackles, 6 picks, 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumbles recoveries, 2 defensive touchdowns- While he'll have less tackles, look for an uptick in his playmaking. Jalen will have better guys in front of him, which will take away from his tackle production. That's why I think he'll make more plays. Bottom line, he'll be an All-Pro this year, like he should have been last year!

Will Anderson Jr: 79 tackles, 11.5 sacks, 18 TFLs, 2 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries- I'm trying to be modest here. This guy reminds me of the prototypical edge rushers of today's game. A long, lean frame that converts his speed into power and has a lightening quick get off when the ball is snapped. Teams will need to account for him on every play. Discount him as a run stuffer if you want, and you'll be sorry. First Team All Rookie Defense is a lock! DROY? I wouldn't be shocked since he's the second betting favorite.

This was just me and my brain trying to figure out what some prominent players will look like statistically at season's end. I took it as they're going to play all 17 games. I didn't use any cheat sheets or any projections. My search history is more college football, car parts, and Amazon purchases (I blame JDG; this person knows who they are). I can't wait to see how accurate or inaccurate I am.

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