Tag: Daily Trends Hunter

2019 Draft Grades for Every NFL Team

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    Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images

    The 2019 NFL draft is over. While this means football fans now face the long lull between the draft and training camps, it also means anticipation of rookie-year impact has begun.

    Every team looks better on paper after the draft than it did before, but some look more improved than others. Kyler Murray brings an immediate sense of excitement to the Arizona Cardinals. Though he plays the exact same position, the selection of Daniel Jones does not scream excitement.

    Does this mean that the Cardinals nailed the draft while the New York Giants failed it? It’s not exactly that simple. Football fans know classes have to be evaluated as a whole, not as a single selection.

    Of course, nothing separates the good classes from questionable one like good old-fashioned letter grades. That’s precisely what you’ll find here, along with analysis of each class and some of the most significant selections.

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    Grading players who have yet to take an NFL field isn’t entirely fair. Therefore, these grades aren’t based on individual players specifically, but rather on the perceived draft value of selections and draft classes as a whole.

    Did a team navigate the draft well, add players who will immediately help the team or land talent later than expected? That will reflect positively on its draft grade. Did a team ignore needs, reach in order to fill them or otherwise make head-scratching decisions? Well, things are going the other way.

    Let’s dig in.

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    Kyler Murray

    Kyler MurrayChristian Petersen/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Kyler Murray, QB, Oklahoma (No. 1)

    Whether the rest of the world believes quarterback Kyler Murray has a brighter future than Josh Rosen, the Arizona Cardinals do. They drafted the Oklahoma quarterback first overall and then moved Rosen for a second-round pick and a 2020 fifth-rounder.

    “I’m not scared to make a mistake,” Cardinals general manager Steve Keim said, per Peter King of ProFootballTalk.com. “That could cost me my career but at the same time, to be great and to have success you gotta be willing to take chances—ones that you believe in.”

    The Cardinals got their guy at quarterback, and that can’t be understated.

    In addition, they got him some weapons in the form of Andy Isabella (No. 62), Hakeem Butler (No. 103) and KeeSean Johnson (No. 174). They also landed potential defensive starters in cornerback Byron Murphy (No. 33) and safety Deionte Thompson (No. 139).

    This draft will largely be defined by the selection of Murray, but it has the potential to provide Arizona’s foundation on both sides of the ball for the next several years. If Murray is able to have the kind of rookie impact Baker Mayfield did in 2018, this class would be nothing short of a home run.

    Overall Grade: A+

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    Kaleb McGary

    Kaleb McGaryMichael Hickey/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Kaleb McGary, OT, Washington (No. 31)

    It certainly wasn’t a flashy draft for the Atlanta Falcons, but it wasn’t a complete disaster, either.

    Yes, Atlanta reached a bit for first-round guard Chris Lindstrom (No. 14). But if he solidifies a spot on the offensive line for the next decade, who cares?

    The same can be said of first-round tackle Kaleb McGary, who has the tools needed to play either guard or right tackle. His potential pro versatility makes trading back into Round 1 for him a fine move.

    Protecting quarterback Matt Ryan was a significant issue in 2018; he was sacked 42 times. Grabbing two linemen with starting potential was smart, even if Atlanta overdrafted to do so. The roster features enough talent that reaching to fill a massive need isn’t going to doom the Falcons.

    The rest of Atlanta’s draft class consists primarily of projects and depth players, though former Ohio State cornerback Kendall Sheffield (No. 111) has enough athletic upside to eventually develop into a star.

    Overall Grade: C

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    Frederick Breedon/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Marquise Brown, WR, Oklahoma (No. 25)

    Quarterback Lamar Jackson brought a lot of speed to the Baltimore Ravens offense as a rookie. It allowed them to operate with a run-oriented attack that still kept opposing defenses off guard. Adding more speed to the offense will make Jackson even more dangerous, and that’s precisely what Baltimore did in the draft.

    First-round pick Marquise Brown is a big play waiting to happen. While he may not get a heavy target load in Baltimore’s offense, he’ll be a threat to take it to the house every time Jackson gets him the ball. The young quarterback is an accurate deep-ball thrower, so Brown will be much more than a decoy.

    In the fourth round, the Ravens added Justice Hill (No. 113), a scatback with legit 4.4 speed. He should immediately become the top complement to bruising running back Mark Ingram II. Wideout Miles Boykin is another 4.4 guy who will help the track-team offense explode.

    Baltimore also added small-school edge-rusher Jaylon Ferguson (No. 85), who may become the heir apparent to longtime defensive star Terrell Suggs. If he can make a quick transition to the pro game, he’ll be a steal in Round 3.

    Overall Grade: B+

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    Frederick Breedon/Getty Images

    Most Notable: Ed Oliver, DT, Houston (No. 9)

    The Buffalo Bills may have gotten the steal of the draft when they scooped up defensive tackle Ed Oliver. Once regarded as a possible candidate to go first overall, Oliver both fills a need along Buffalo’s defensive front and also brings legitimate All-Pro potential.

    “The Bills just got my favorite player in this draft class,” Doug Farrar of USA Today tweeted. “Make him a 3-tech and get the hell out of the way, Bills. You just drafted John Randle.”

    Oliver wasn’t the only steal of the Bills draft, though. They also grabbed offensive lineman Cody Ford (No. 38) early in Round 2. He was widely viewed as a potential first-round pick and, again, fills a notable need.

    In Round 3, Buffalo added Devin Singletary (No. 74), a speedy, shifty back who could replace LeSean McCoy sooner than later. Dawson Knox (No. 96) is a tight end who can contribute in both the running and passing games.

    Along with some good depth selections on Day 3 of the draft, these picks give Buffalo one of the year’s best classes.

    Overall Grade: A+

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    Brian Burns

    Brian BurnsJoe Robbins/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Brian Burns, EDGE, Florida State (No. 16)

    The Carolina Panthers’ draft has received a lot of attention due to the third-round selection of quarterback Will Grier (No. 100). It shouldn’t. Grier isn’t going to threaten Cam Newton for the starting job unless Newton’s surgically repaired shoulder fails him.

    The addition of Grier was about insurance. The addition of first-round pick Brian Burns, meanwhile, was about adding an immediate boost to the pass rush, which generated a mere 35 sacks in 2018 and lost Julius Peppers to retirement in the offseason.

    Burns should be an instant starter. Second-round tackle Greg Little (No. 37) might be, as well. Though Little didn’t test well at the combine, he has the size (6’5″, 310 lbs) and the instincts to play tackle in the NFL.

    Former Alabama edge-rusher Christian Miller (No. 115) could prove a steal in the fourth round. Though Miller only produced 11 sacks during his career with the Crimson Tide, he has the athletic traits to be a situational sacker at the pro level.

    Overall Grade: C+

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    David K Purdy/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: David Montgomery, RB, Iowa State (No. 73)

    The Chicago Bears get a decidedly average draft grade—not because the team made poor picks, but because it didn’t pick early or often.

    Chicago only made five selections in the 2019 draft and only one before Day 3. That pick could prove to be a good one, though, as former Iowa State running back David Montgomery should immediately take over the early-down role previously held by Jordan Howard.

    The Bears didn’t have many glaring needs coming into the draft, so it comes as no surprise the rest of the weekend was spent filling out roster depth.

    The trade for Khalil Mack that cost Chicago its first-round pick isn’t being factored into the draft grade because he was a 2018 addition, not a new one. Considering the impact Mack has already had for Chicago’s defense, Bears fans should be just fine with an average 2019 draft class.

    Overall Grade: C

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    Jonah Williams

    Jonah WilliamsAndy Lyons/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Jonah Williams, OT, Alabama (No. 11)

    The Cincinnati Bengals did the smart, obvious thing and took the top offensive lineman on their board with the 11th overall pick. Alabama’s Jonah Williams is a polished technician and a solid, safe choice. If he doesn’t prove to be one of best tackles in this class, though, Cincinnati’s draft is going to look very, very bad.

    Williams’ selection was a safe one. Cincinnati’s pick of run-blocking tight end Drew Sample (No. 52) in Round 2 was a baffling one. Sample is underrated as a pass-catcher and could prove a good player, but the Bengals didn’t need to pull the trigger on him so high. 

    “You will obviously have a hard time finding somebody with a 2nd round grade on Drew Sample,” Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer said, via Twitter. Sample was almost universally pegged as a Day 3 talent.

    The Bengals also used a fourth-round pick on developmental quarterback Ryan Finley (No. 104). Maybe they see him as a future starter, but the presence of Jeff Driskel negated the need for a backup quarterback.

    Cincinnati desperately needed to add players who could start and contribute significantly in Week 1. Williams is the only player likely to do so.

    Overall Grade: D

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    Greedy Williams

    Greedy WilliamsSteve Helber/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Greedy Williams, CB, LSU (No. 46)

    The Cleveland Browns didn’t have a first-round pick in this draft, but they still managed to land LSU cornerback Greedy Williams—the top corner on the big board of Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller. Williams should be a Day 1 starter and will quickly forge a tremendous young tandem with 2018 Pro Bowler Denzel Ward.

    This was a defensive draft for the Browns, who also added linebackers Sione Takitaki (No. 80) and Mack Wilson (No. 155), along with safety Sheldrick Redwine (No. 119). One of the linebackers is likely to be on the field as a starter in Week 1, while Redwine helps replace Jabril Peppers, who was traded in the offseason.

    The selection of Oklahoma kicker Austin Seibert (No. 170) shouldn’t be overlooked. Poor kicking cost the Browns at least two wins in 2018, and Cleveland will come one step closer to being a complete team if Seibert proves reliable.

    Of course, the coup of the draft is the trade that turned Peppers and the 17th overall pick into Pro Bowl wideout Odell Beckham Jr. If Beckham and Williams are viewed as Cleveland’s first two draft selections—a perspective the Browns should obviously take—then this is a second consecutive strong draft by general manager John Dorsey.

    Overall Grade: A

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    Trysten Hill

    Trysten HillDarron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Trysten Hill, DT, Central Florida (No. 58)

    Even without a first-round pick—it was traded for Amari Cooper during the 2018 season—the Dallas Cowboys managed to make several solid but unexciting moves.

    Dallas is a team built to win in the trenches. Therefore the additions of defensive tackle Trysten Hill and guard Connor McGovern (No. 90) are perfect for the Cowboys. Hill, in particular, could prove a stellar pick. He’s a disruptive interior defender who racked up 10.5 tackles for loss in 2018 despite only playing a rotational role.

    The Cowboys also added secondary depth in the form of defensive backs Michael Jackson (No. 158) and Donovan Wilson (No. 213). If either Tony Pollard (No. 128) or Mike Weber (No. 218) emerges as a consistent complement to running back Ezekiel Elliott, it would go a long way toward extending the two-time rushing champion’s career.

    Overall Grade: C+

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    Noah Fant

    Noah FantDavid Zalubowski/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Noah Fant, TE, Iowa (No. 20)

    Give the Denver Broncos some credit. They could have panicked and grabbed a quarterback with the 10th overall selection, but they didn’t. Instead, they traded down, added more draft capital and still landed a premier tight end prospect in Noah Fant. That’s big because quarterback Joe Flacco will benefit from having a security blanket in the offense.

    Denver still came back and got a developmental quarterback by grabbing Drew Lock (No. 42) in the second round. He’ll likely sit behind Flacco for a season or two, but he could be the team’s future at the position.

    The Broncos got a lineman capable of starting early in Kansas State’s Dalton Risner (No. 41). He should slot in at guard right away. Dre’Mont Jones (No. 71) is an underrated defensive addition who should contribute as a rotational defensive tackle during his rookie season.

    If Lock proves Denver’s quarterback of the future, then this grade will shoot up to a strong “A+”. Even with his future unknown, this was still a strong draft for the Broncos.

    Overall Grade: B+

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    T.J. Hockenson

    T.J. HockensonCarlos Osorio/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: T.J. Hockenson, TE, Iowa (No. 8)

    The Detroit Lions may take a little flak for drafting a tight end eighth overall. They shouldn’t. Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson has legitimate All-Pro potential and should immediately become one of Matthew Stafford‘s favorite targets.

    Hockenson isn’t just a pass-catching tight end, though. He’s an all-around polished product who will also help spring Kerryon Johnson in the running game. Could the Lions have used a pass-rusher? Sure, but head coach Matt Patricia knows firsthand just how big a mismatch a standout tight end can be. Detroit added Jesse James in free agency, but he’s an average receiving tight end. He’s not a special talent like Hockenson.

    Detroit spent the rest of the draft getting Patricia pieces for his defense. While no immediate starter may emerge from the bunch, guys like linebacker Jahlani Tavai (No. 43), safety Will Harris (No. 81) and cornerback Amani Oruwariye (No. 146) will give Patricia a ton of flexibility. In his multi-look defensive scheme, that’s real value.

    Former Clemson defensive end Austin Bryant (No. 117) could also emerge as a situational pass-rusher.

    Overall Grade: B-

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    Darnell Savage

    Darnell SavageDarron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Darnell Savage, S, Maryland (No. 21)

    The Green Bay Packers’ draft wasn’t flashy, but it was good. The Packers probably aren’t getting enough attention for the two defensive playmakers they added in Round 1—Rashan Gary (No. 12) and Darnell Savage.

    Gary has the skill set to be a double-digit sack artist out of the gate. Savage is a fast, physical and versatile defensive back—the type of player defensive coordinator Mike Pettine is going to love.

    “His sticky cover skills and ability to close on throws from all areas of the field are valuable commodities that should not be undervalued,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote of Savage.

    By adding those two first-rounders, the Packers have completely transformed the identity of their defense. Pettine’s unit is going to have some nastiness to it in 2019.

    Elgton Jenkins (No. 44), meanwhile, is a future starter at center. Jace Sternberger (No. 75) is the same at tight end. While Sternberger may not make the immediate impact Hockenson and Fant do, he has enough pass-catching ability to replace Jimmy Graham in the starting lineup by the end of his first season.

    Thanks to this draft—and some savvy free-agency moves—Aaron Rodgers finally has something resembling a complete team around him.

    Overall Grade: A-

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    Lonnie Johnson

    Lonnie JohnsonJoe Robbins/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Lonnie Johnson, CB, Kentucky (No. 54)

    On Day 2, the Houston Texans grabbed cornerback Lonnie Johnson from Kentucky. As a 6’2″ corner with 4.52 speed, he has the physical traits to potentially start as a rookie if he can fix some consistency issues in coverage. This was a solid pick, if not an exciting one.

    Where the Texans faltered in the draft was in the selections of offensive tackles Tytus Howard (No. 23) and Max Scharping (No. 53). Both carry tremendous upside, but both are small-school prospects who could take time to develop.

    This is a problem because Houston cannot afford to have pass-blockers learning on the job in 2019. Quarterback Deshaun Watson was sacked a league-high 62 times in 2018, and it’s not like he has a Ben Roethlisberger body type that can absorb all those hits.

    Houston needed to get players who can either protect Watson or take some of the offensive pressure off his shoulders right away. Tight end Kahale Warring (No. 86) may be the only player who actually does so as a rookie.

    Overall Grade: D

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    Rock Ya-Sin

    Rock Ya-SinDarron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Rock Ya-Sin, CB, Temple (No. 34)

    The Browns have widely been pegged as this year’s up-and-coming team, but that distinction really should belong to the Indianapolis Colts. Indianapolis is already a playoff squad and is thriving with drafted talents such as Darius Leonard, Quenton Nelson and Marlon Mack.

    Even after he traded out of the first round, general manager Chris Ballard managed to nail another draft in 2019.

    Cornerback Rock Ya-Sin has the potential to step right in and start from Day 1. His addition immediately improves the back end of the Indianapolis defense. Ben Banogu (No. 49) will add some teeth to the Colts’ pass rush, while Bobby Okereke (No. 89) brings depth to the linebacker corps.

    Adding the speedy Parris Campbell (No. 59) to the receiving corps was a brilliant move. Though Campbell is an unfinished product, he has the speed and explosiveness to stretch the field at the pro level. Opposing defenses will have a difficult time deciding whether to focus on him or fellow speedster T.Y. Hilton in passing situations.

    He also instantly increases the value of offseason acquisition Devin Funchess, who will serve as the team’s big-bodied possession receiver.

    Overall Grade: A-

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    Jawaan Taylor

    Jawaan TaylorSteve Luciano/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Jawaan Taylor, OT, Florida (No. 35)

    Pass-rusher was not a need for the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, when Kentucky’s Josh Allen (No. 7) slipped, it made sense to scoop him up. Getting him there provided tremendous value.

    Even more valuable was landing offensive tackle Jawaan Taylor in the second round. He has first-round talent and was likely a guy the Jaguars would have considered at the top of the draft had Allen not fallen. Tackle was a position of need heading into the event, and Taylor has an even better chance to start in Week 1 than Allen does.

    Jacksonville filled another need by selecting San Jose State tight end Josh Oliver (No. 69) in Round 3. He’s a quality pass-catcher who could eventually develop into a second-tier version of Zach Ertz in John DeFilippo’s offense. For new starting quarterback Nick Foles—who thrived with Ertz on the Philadelphia Eagles—Oliver is a huge get.

    If he develops quickly, Jacksonville could end up with three significant rookie contributors.

    Overall Grade: B+

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    Juan Thornhill

    Juan ThornhillDarron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Juan Thornhill, S, Virginia (No. 63)

    The Kansas City Chiefs traded away their first-round pick in order to acquire pass-rusher Frank Clark. That move ups their draft grade because Clark is both a proven commodity and a strong fit for Steve Spagnuolo’s defense.

    Second-round safety Juan Thornhill is also a good fit for Spagnuolo’s scheme because of his coverage skills and versatility.

    “Thornhill’s size and cover talent should allow defensive coordinators the freedom to deploy him around the field in a variety of ways depending on the matchups and his running mate at safety,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote prior to the draft.

    Thornhill will likely spend a lot of time on the field with Tyrann Mathieu, which should give Kansas City an elite tandem in passing situations.

    I’m not as high on receiver Mecole Hardman (No. 56) as most. He has the speed to replace Tyreek Hill as the Chiefs’ field-stretcher, but he’s an inconsistent catcher of the football and raw as a route-runner. In Kansas City’s track-team offense, though, he can be an asset.

    Overall Grade: B-

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    jerry Tillery

    jerry TilleryGregory Bull/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Jerry Tillery, DT, Notre Dame (No. 28)

    The Los Angeles Chargers had few needs heading into draft week, but defensive tackle was one of them. By grabbing Notre Dame’s Jerry Tillery in Round 1, they filled that need while also adding a player with huge upside.

    Tillery was one of my personal favorites in the draft. He’s a high-IQ player with the physical skill set to be a disruptive force from Day 1. He had seven sacks in 2018, and that’s the kind of production the Chargers can expect to get from his pressures up the middle.

    Los Angeles got another defensive standout in Round 2 by scooping up safety Nasir Adderley (No. 60). The Delaware product isn’t as polished as some teams would like, but he has the coverage skills to immediately contribute in nickel and dime packages.

    Third-round tackle Trey Pipkins (No. 91) should compete with Sam Tevi on the right side of the Chargers line—the only truly questionable spot on the offense.

    Overall Grade: B+

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    Taylor Rapp

    Taylor RappDarron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Taylor Rapp, S, Washington (No. 61)

    The Los Angeles Rams traded out of the first round and still managed to land Washington safety Taylor Rapp. That’s a big win, as Rapp was one of the top safeties in this class. He slid because of a poor 40 time (4.76 seconds), but he is a legitimate first-round talent.

    “To get a player like Taylor Rapp who we would’ve felt comfortable with potentially taking at 31,” head coach Sean McVay told NFL Network. “A versatile playmaker, very similar in the mold of what you love about Eric Weddle and John Johnson.”

    The selection of running back Darrell Henderson (No. 70) in the third round could be seen as a warning sign about the health of Todd Gurley’s knee, but it really feels more like it’s about extending the latter’s career. Henderson has the speed and burst to be a change-of-pace back who lightens Gurley’s workload moving forward.

    Former Michigan cornerback David Long (No. 79) probably won’t start as a rookie, but he should be a valuable addition in dime packages.

    Overall Grade: B

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    Christian Wilkins

    Christian WilkinsJoel Auerbach/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Christian Wilkins, DT, Clemson (No. 13)

    If we’re including the trade for quarterback Josh Rosen as part of the Miami Dolphins’ draft—and we are—then we have to move the overall grade higher that it would be based on selections alone. Miami only surrendered a late second-round pick and a 2020 fifth-rounder for a guy who could secure the starting job by Week 1.

    “I’m excited and ready for it,” Rosen said about his new opportunity.

    Landing Rosen at a low price was a coup for this quarterback-stunted franchise.

    As far as picks go, the Dolphins nailed the selection of defensive tackle Christian Wilkins. A disruptive interior defender, he should quickly become the centerpiece of the defensive front—a role Ndamukong Suh never quite filled in Miami.

    Though the rest of Miami’s draft largely consisted of players who will provide depth out of the gate, landing a potential All-Pro defender and a possible franchise quarterback in the same draft is huge.

    Overall Grade: B

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    Garrett Bradbury

    Garrett BradburyMichael Conroy/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Garrett Bradbury, C, North Carolina State (No. 18)

    It’s rarely exciting when a team takes an interior offensive lineman in the first Round. However, the Minnesota Vikings needed to upgrade their line in a big way, and Garrett Bradbury should become an instant starter at either center or guard.

    Plug in Bradbury, worry about one fewer spot in front of Kirk Cousins. That’s a fair plan.

    While Bradbury is the player most likely to make an immediate impact, tight end Irv Smith Jr. (No. 50) should become a starter sooner than later. Kyle Rudolph has been a solid receiving tight end but has yet to develop into a true playmaker. Smith has the potential to do what he hasn’t.

    The bulk of Minnesota’s remaining draft picks were used on depth and developmental players, though sixth-round selection Armon Watts (No. 190) could be an exception. He was a one-year starter at defensive tackle for Arkansas, but he has a tremendous amount of upside. He could potentially be the piece needed to replace Sheldon Richardson, who left in free agency.

    Overall Grade: C+

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    Chase Winovich

    Chase WinovichCorey Perrine/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: N’Keal Harry, WR, Arizona State (No. 32)

    Grabbing wide receiver N’Keal Harry at the bottom of Round 1 was a brilliant decision by the New England Patriots. His addition gives Tom Brady a target with legitimate No. 1 receiver traits, as well as a potential replacement for Rob Gronkowski as the clutch go-to guy.

    However, Bill Belichick and Co. did their best work in the second and third rounds. Joejuan Williams (No. 45) is a tall (6’4″) and rangy corner who can fill a variety of roles in the secondary. Chase Winovich is a grinder who can set the edge, rush the passer, chase down ball-carriers and perform as the defensive leader from the defensive end position.

    Winovich is very much an archetypal Patriots player.

    “I’d rather just wait to dive into that further until I receive further instructions,” he said when asked about his predraft contact with New England, per Orion Sang of the Detroit Free Press.

    New England also added another utility back in Damien Harris (No. 87) and an offensive tackle with tremendous upside in Yodny Cajuste (No. 101).

    Overall Grade: A+

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    Erik McCoy

    Erik McCoyMichael Hickey/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Erik McCoy, C, Texas A&M (No. 48)

    It was a relatively uneventful draft for the New Orleans Saints, who were without a first- or a third-round pick. The majority of their additions consisted of Day 3 depth players, which isn’t a big problem for a team as complete as New Orleans.

    However, the Saints did make one standout selection: second-round center Erik McCoy. They had a need at the position because of the surprise offseason retirement of Max Unger, and McCoy has all the tools to be a Day 1 starter in the middle.

    “Teams typically hunt for centers with the traits to withstand power or athleticism depending on their divisional competition,” NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein wrote. “McCoy comes gift-wrapped in a thick, strong frame and proved he could hold up to both power (Dexter Lawrence) and athleticism (Quinnen Williams).”

    With McCoy in tow, the Saints should pick up right where they left off in 2018—as legitimate Super Bowl contenders.

    Overall Grade: C

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    Deandre Baker

    Deandre BakerAndy Lyons/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Daniel Jones, QB, Duke (No. 6)

    The New York Giants’ draft wasn’t a complete disaster. Getting cornerback Deandre Baker at the bottom of Round 1 was a great move, assuming the first cornerback taken in the draft is also the best corner in the draft. Baker is a great man-cover corner—something the Giants need opposite Janoris Jenkins.

    Fellow first-round pick Dexter Lawrence (No. 17) should also be a big contributor in the near future, though the Giants may have been better served grabbing an edge-rusher.

    New York’s big mistake was actually bypassing a pass-rusher such as Kentucky’s Josh Allen in order to reach for Duke quarterback Daniel Jones (No. 6). Giants general manager Dave Gettleman insists that pulling the trigger on Jones was the right move, though that’s debatable, to say the least.

    “Gettleman told me he ‘knows for a fact’ there were two teams that wanted Jones between six and 17.’ I could not find them, though I certainly can’t say with certainty that two do not exist.” Peter King of ProFootballTalk.com wrote.

    Essentially, the Giants traded away Odell Backham Jr., Damon Harrison and Eli Apple over the last year and only managed to grab a second-tier quarterback prospect and replacements for Harrison and Apple. That is not maximizing capital.

    Overall Grade: D

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    Quinnen Williams

    Quinnen WilliamsMark Humphrey/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Quinnen Williams, DT, Alabama (No. 3)

    While edge-rusher was a greater need for the New York Jets, general manager Mike Maccagnan did the smart thing and pounced on defensive tackle Quinnen Williams with the third overall pick. The Alabama product is a playmaker on the interior and could become the best overall player in the 2019 draft.

    The Jets still managed to get an edge-rusher, scooping up Florida’s Jachai Polite (No. 68) in the third round. Questions exist about his speed—he ran a 4.84-second 40 at the combine—which is problematic for a guy who wins with quickness more than strength. However, it’s hard to believe his 11 sacks in 2018 came by accident.

    If Polite develops into even an average pass-rusher, this was a successful draft for New York. The rest of it was about finding depth, not including the second-round pick that was part of last year’s trade to acquire quarterback Sam Darnold.

    Overall Grade: B

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    Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: Josh Jacobs, RB, Alabama (No. 24)

    Say what you will about the surprise selection of Clelin Ferrell (No. 4), but he has the potential to give the Oakland Raiders a top-tier edge-rusher for the next decade.

    The selection of running back Josh Jacobs should be less scrutinized. He was generally perceived as the top running back in this class, and he immediately gives the Raiders a three-down weapon in the backfield.

    Grabbing safety Johnathan Abram (No. 27) with a third first-round pick was an underrated move. The Mississippi State product is a thumper who should add a bit of bite on the back end of the Raiders defense.

    Oakland got another potential defensive starter in second-round cornerback Trayvon Mullen (No. 40), while tight end Foster Moreau (No. 137) and wideout Hunter Renfrow (No. 149) could prove Day 3 steals. Moreau, specifically, could move into the starting lineup early on as a rookie.

    While it’s fair to question the Ferrell pick with talents such as Josh Allen and Ed Oliver still on the board, this draft should provide a solid foundation for the Raiders as they make the transition from Oakland to Las Vegas.

    Overall Grade: B+

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    Andre Dillard

    Andre DillardFrederick Breedon/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Andre Dillard, OT, Washington State (No. 22)

    Were the Philadelphia Eagles in dire need of a left tackle? No. Was moving up to snatch Washington State’s Andre Dillard away from the Texans still a brilliant move? Yes.

    Dillard has the potential to be a true franchise left tackle. The Eagles currently have Jason Peters in that role, but he’s 37 and won’t be around forever. This move was about planning for the future and protecting Carson Wentz over the long haul.

    While Dillard may not start from Day 1, second-round running back Miles Sanders (No. 53) could. He’s a legitimate every-down back who could quickly force offseason acquisition Jordan Howard into a complementary role for obvious rushing situations.

    Third-round receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside (No. 57) should also be an early contributor. He gives Wentz another big-bodied (6’2″, 225 lbs) target to go along with Zach Ertz and Alshon Jeffery.

    The Eagles didn’t have a ton of needs heading into the draft, but they’re still better off after it.

    Overall Grade: A-

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    Devin Bush

    Devin BushJoe Robbins/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Devin Bush, LB, Michigan (No. 10)

    The Pittsburgh Steelers have needed a sideline-to-sideline linebacker in the middle of their defense ever since Ryan Shazier’s injury in 2017. They finally got one by landing Michigan’s Devin Bush at No. 10. It required Pittsburgh trading up 10 spots in the first round, but the move was worth it.

    “He’s an all-situations, every-down player,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said of Bush, per Ron Cook of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

    Pittsburgh jumped in front of Cincinnati to grab Bush—a cold and calculated move that will impact the AFC North for years to come.

    The Steelers also grabbed speedy wideout Diontae Johnson (No. 66), another MAC product who at least has the potential to eventually replace Antonio Brown. At least that will be the goal, fair or not. Justin Layne (No. 83) should compete for a starting job at cornerback, while Benny Snell Jr. (No. 122) will provide more depth in the backfield.

    Even though the Steelers lost Brown and running back Le’Veon Bell during the offseason, their overall roster may be even better this year than it was in 2018, thanks in no small part to a strong draft.

    Overall Grade: B+

29 of 33

    Nick Bosa

    Nick BosaJoe Robbins/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Nick Bosa, EDGE, Ohio State (No. 2)

    The San Francisco 49ers made the obvious choice at No. 2 and grabbed the top defender on their draft board. While this selection was more about opportunity than draft savvy, it will be a great pick if Bosa becomes the same kind of disruptive force his brother Joey already is for the Los Angeles Chargers.

    San Francisco used its second- and third-round picks to get new weapons for quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. South Carolina wideout Deebo Samuel (No. 36) won’t be the biggest receiver on the field, but he has the toughness to develop into a No. 1 option in the Steve Smith mold. Jalen Hurd (No. 67) has the size (6’5″, 226 lbs) to be Samuel’s possession complement for years to come.

    The rest of San Francisco’s draft was about filling in depth—and adding punter Mitch Wishnowsky at No. 110! If Bosa and Samuel emerge as early playmakers, though, this will be seen as a solid draft class.

    Overall Grade: C+

30 of 33

    D.K. Metcalf

    D.K. MetcalfThomas Graning/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: D.K. Metcalf, WR, Mississippi (No. 64)

    Landing wideout D.K. Metcalf at the bottom of Round 2 was huge for the Seattle Seahawks. Though Metcalf is relatively unpolished, he has the physical attributes needed to dominate defenses at the next level. His upside is tremendous, and he also potentially fills a big need.

    Per Adam Schefter, No. 1 wideout Doug Baldwin may be forced to retire because of multiple injuries.

    The Seahawks bolstered their pass defense by adding edge-rusher L.J. Collier (No. 29) in Round 1 and safety Marquise Blair (No. 47) in Round 2. Collier should help replace Frank Clark, who was traded to the Chiefs just before the draft. Blair has the potential to start at free safety sooner than later.

    In addition to getting some good players, general manager John Schneider did a terrific job trading down and acquiring additional picks. Seattle only had four draft picks before the Clark trade and finished with 11 selections.

    Overall Grade: B

31 of 33

    Devin White

    Devin WhiteAndy Lyons/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Devin White, LB, LSU (No. 5)

    The Tampa Bay Buccaneers couldn’t have hoped for a better scenario than having linebacker Devin White still sitting there at No. 5. White is a versatile defender who can help Tampa’s woeful defense—allowed 383.4 yards per game last year (No. 27 overall)—in all phases.

    “White is the ideal modern NFL linebacker. He can stack up against the run, chase down outside plays, spy mobile quarterbacks or cover the middle of the field on pass plays,” Bleacher Report’s Matt Miller wrote.

    While White was the only home-run pick of the Buccaneers’ draft, Tampa did a nice job addressing its biggest need in volume. The pass defense was atrocious in 2018 (259.4 yards allowed per game), and the Buccaneers spent second- and third-round picks on defensive backs Sean Bunting (No. 39), Jamel Dean (No. 94) and Mike Edwards (No. 99).

    If even one of these three pass-defenders emerges as a Day 1 starter, the Buccaneers defense will have a chance to improve significantly in 2019.

    Overall Grade: C+

32 of 33

    Darron Cummings/Associated Press

    Most Notable Pick: A.J. Brown, WR, Mississippi (No. 51)

    Defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (No. 19) has All-Pro potential, but he’s also coming off a torn ACL suffered while training for the combine. The Tennessee Titans took a chance on him in Round 1, and their draft grade will jump considerably if he returns to 100 percent. He’s unlikely, however, to contribute at all during his rookie season.

    This doesn’t mean Tennessee failed to add any immediate starters.

    Wideout A.J. Brown should immediately become the No. 2 receiver opposite budding star Corey Davis. With offseason acquisition Adam Humphries manning the slot, the Titans now have the kind of receiving corps that can allow quarterback Marcus Mariota to thrive as a passer.

    Guard Nate Davis (No. 82) is a future starter along the offensive line, while safety Amani Hooker (No. 116) should immediately contribute in sub packages.

    A lot will hinge on Simmons’ recovery, but the Titans had an above-average draft even if he’s only 90 percent of what he once was.

    Overall Grade: C+

33 of 33

    Dwayne Haskins

    Dwayne HaskinsJoe Robbins/Getty Images

    Most Notable Pick: Dwayne Haskins, QB, Ohio State (No. 15)

    Whenever a team lands a franchise-caliber quarterback without overpaying to get him, it has to be considered a huge win. That’s what the Washington Redskins accomplished by staying put at No. 15 overall and allowing Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins to come to them.

    Yes, Haskins only has one year of starting experience—the same is true of Kyler Murray—but he shined in that season, throwing for 4,831 yards and 50 touchdowns. He is also familiar with the area because he played his high school ball in Potomac, Maryland.

    Haskins isn’t the only win for Washington, though.

    The Redskins traded back into the first round to grab Mississippi State pass-rusher Montez Sweat (No. 26), who was one of the top defensive prospects in the entire class. They also grabbed former Ohio State receiver Terry McLaurin (No. 76)—a target with whom Haskins is quite familiar. Former Stanford running back Bryce Love (No. 112) provides injury insurance in case 2018 second-round pick Derrius Guice (ACL) doesn’t get back to 100 percent.

    The Redskins only gave up the 46th overall pick and next year’s second-rounder to go up and get Sweat. This means they landed two blue-chip prospects at a fair value while also adding needed pieces and depth.

    Overall Grade: A+

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Champions League Hype Tuesday 30 April

  • Ajax’s Hype Tape ❌❌❌

    ‘We have trust in our philosophy’

    AFC Ajax @AFCAjax

    Thank you!
    But we’re not done yet… 🐾

    #OurJourney #UCL #totaja https://t.co/uEUFE9xgbh

    • Ajax Drop a Rap Ahead of SF 🎧

    ‘Do it for my team’

  • It’s Here

    B/R Football @brfootball

  • Don’t Sleep on Ajax Fans

    Ryo @ryokyler

    @brfootball https://t.co/aLzVOhG3ba

  • Champions Lg Semis Start Today 🔥

    One wildcard makes the final. Who you got?

  • Tottenham’s Journey So Far

    Can they go all the way?

    Tottenham Hotspur @SpursOfficial

    What. A. Journey.

    The story of our @ChampionsLeague campaign so far…

    #UCL ⚪ #COYS https://t.co/v7v08c4wvj

  • Tottenham vs. Ajax: UCL Semi-Final Preview

    via Bleacher Report

  • Rising Star: Ajax’s David Neres 🌟

    Get ready, Tottenham

    via Bleacher Report

  • Best Champions League SF Goals 😍

    Messi, Ronaldo, Salah…these are ridiculous

    UEFA Champions League @ChampionsLeague

  • Ajax’s Squad Cost Compared to Europe’s Giants 😳

    via Goal

  • Quiz! Name the Last 48 Scorers in UCL Semis?

    via FourFourTwo

    • No Filter UCL

    Spurs prepare for once in a lifetime opportunity

  • Tottenham vs. Ajax Betting: Dutch Can Deliver Again

    via Betfair

    • Ajax’s Erik ten Hag on ‘unfair advantage’ in Champions Leg semi-final at Spurs

  • How to Get Ajax Firing on FIFA 19

    B/R tutorial for the UCL semi-finalists 🎮

  • David Neres Almost Left for China, Now He’s Going for UCL Glory

    via Bleacher Report

    • Tottenham vs. Ajax: Goal Preview Show

    Kicking off Tuesday 3pm ET

  • Will Young Ajax Make History vs. Spurs?

    via The Independent

  • 4 Teams Left, 2 Can Make the Final 🤩

    Tottenham vs. Ajax – Tuesday 3pm ET
    Barca vs. Liverpool – Wednesday 3pm ET

    UEFA Champions League @ChampionsLeague

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    Venezuela’s defence minister rejects ‘coup attempt’ by Guaido

    Diosdado Cabello, the head of Venezuela‘s pro-government constituent assembly, has called on supporters of President Nicolas Maduro to rally at the presidential palace after opposition leader Juan Guaido said troops had joined him to oust Maduro.

    Guaido, speaking earlier on Tuesday near the La Carlota air force base in Caracas surrounded by a group of men in military uniform, said the “final phase” to end Maduro’s presidency had begun.

    Guaido, in a video posted on his Twitter account, was speaking in the company of men in military uniform and opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez, who had been under house arrest after he was found guilty of inciting violence during anti-government protests in 2014. He said he was at the La Carlota airbase in Caracas. 

    “The national armed forces have taken the correct decision, and they are counting on the support of the Venezuelan people,” Guaido said.

    He also called on people to go out to the streets and asked them to go to La Carlota.

    En el marco de nuestra constitución. Y por el cese definitivo de la usurpación. https://t.co/3RD2bnQhxt

    — Juan Guaidó (@jguaido) April 30, 2019

    Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino said in a Tweet that the armed forces remained “firmly in defence of the contstitutional order”.

    Son unos cobardes!! Nos mantendremos firmes en defensa del orden constitucional y de la paz de la República, asistidos como estamos por la ley, la razón y la historia. ¡Leales Siempre, Traidores nunca!

    — Vladimir Padrino L. (@vladimirpadrino) April 30, 2019

    Venezuela’s Information Minister Jorge Rodriguez on Twitter said the government is “confronting a small group of military traitors” that are seeking to promote a coup.

    Tear gas was fired on a highway near the airbase where Guaido appeared with the military men.

    Informamos al pueblo de Venezuela que en estos momentos estamos enfrentando y desactivando a un reducido grupo de efectivos militares traidores que se posicionaron en el Distribuidor Altamira para promover un Golpe de Estado contra la Constitución y la paz de la República… 1/2

    — Jorge Rodríguez (@jorgerpsuv) April 30, 2019

    Guaido has been traveling outside the capital, Caracas, more and more in recent weeks to try to put pressure on Maduro to step down.

    Protests are planned for Wednesday, May 1, including what Guaido has said will be “the largest march in Venezuela‘s history”, part of what he calls the “definitive phase” of his effort to take office in order to call fresh elections.

    Maduro calls Guaido a US-backed puppet who seeks to oust him in a coup. The government has arrested his top aide, stripped Guaido of his parliamentary immunity and opened multiple probes. It has also barred him from leaving the country, a ban Guaido openly violated earlier this year.

    Last week, Guaido said his congressional ally – opposition lawmaker Gilber Caro – had been arrested, and that 11 members of his team had been summoned to appear before the Sebin intelligence agency.

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    Blackwater founder’s plan for mercenaries to Venezuela: Report

    Erik Prince – the founder of the controversial private security firm Blackwater and a prominent supporter of US President Donald Trump – has been pushing a plan to deploy a private army to help topple Venezuela‘s socialist president, Nicholas Maduro, four sources with knowledge of the effort told Reuters.

    Over the last several months, the sources said, Prince has sought investment and political support for such an operation from influential Trump supporters and wealthy Venezuelan exiles.

    In private meetings in the United States and Europe, Prince sketched out a plan to field up to 5,000 soldiers-for-hire on behalf of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, according to two sources with direct knowledge of Prince’s pitch.

    One source said Prince has conducted meetings about the issue as recently as mid-April.

    White House National Security Council Spokesman Garrett Marquis declined to comment when asked whether Prince had proposed his plan to the government and whether it would be considered.

    A person familiar with the administration’s thinking said the White House would not support such a plan.

    Venezuela opposition officials have not discussed security operations with Prince, said Guaido spokesman Edward Rodriguez, who did not answer additional questions from Reuters.

    Politically far-fetched 

    The Maduro government did not respond to a request for comment.

    Some US and Venezuelan security experts, told of the plan by Reuters, called it politically far-fetched and potentially dangerous because it could set off a civil war.

    A Venezuelan exile close to the opposition agreed but said private contractors might prove useful, in the event Maduro’s government collapses, by providing security for a new administration in the aftermath.

    A spokesman for Prince, Marc Cohen, said this month that Prince “has no plans to operate or implement an operation in Venezuela” and declined to answer further questions.

    Lital Leshem – the director of investor relations at Prince’s private equity firm, Frontier Resource Group – earlier confirmed Prince’s interest in Venezuela security operations.

    “He does have a solution for Venezuela, just as he has a solution for many other places,” she said, declining to elaborate on his proposal.

    The two sources with direct knowledge of Prince’s pitch said it calls for starting with intelligence operations and later deploying 4,000 to 5,000 soldiers-for-hire from Colombia and other Latin American nations to conduct combat and stabilisation operations.

    ‘Dynamic event’ 

    For Prince, the unlikely gambit represents the latest effort in a long campaign to privatise warfare. The wealthy son of an auto-parts tycoon has fielded private security contractors in conflict zones from Central Asia to Africa to the Middle East.

    One of Prince’s key arguments, one source said, is that Venezuela needs what Prince calls a “dynamic event” to break the stalemate that has existed since January, when Guaido – the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly – declared Maduro’s 2018 re-election illegitimate and invoked the constitution to assume the interim presidency.

    Maduro has denounced Guaido, who has been backed by most western nations, as a US puppet who is seeking to foment a coup.

    Key government institutions – including the military – have not shifted their loyalty to Guaido despite increasing international pressure from sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies.

    Guaido has stressed that he wants a peaceful resolution, and Latin American governments recognising his authority have urged against outside military action. Senior US officials, without ruling out armed intervention, have also emphasised economic and diplomatic measures to pressure Maduro.

    Close ties to Trump 

    Prince was a pioneer in private military contracting during the Iraq war, when the US government hired Blackwater primarily to provide security for State Department operations there.

    In 2007, Blackwater employees shot and killed 17 Iraqi civilians at Nisour Square in Baghdad, sparking international outrage. One of the Blackwater employees involved was convicted of murder in December and three others have been convicted of manslaughter.

    Prince renamed the Blackwater security company and sold it in 2010, but he recently opened a company called Blackwater USA, which sells ammunition, silencers and knives.

    Over the past two years, he has led an unsuccessful campaign to convince the Trump administration to replace US soldiers in Afghanistan with security contractors.

    Since 2014, Prince has run the Hong Kong-based Frontier Services Group, which has close ties to the state-owned Chinese investment company CITIC and helps Chinese firms operating in Africa with security, aviation and logistics services.

    Prince donated $100,000 to a political action committee that supported Trump’s election. His sister, Betsy DeVos, is the administration’s education secretary.

    Prince’s role in Trump’s campaign was highlighted in the report by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller, released this month, on alleged ties between the Trump campaign and Russian efforts to influence the 2016 presidential election.

    The report outlined how Prince financed an effort to authenticate purported Hillary Clinton emails and how in 2016 he met in the Seychelles islands, off east Africa, with a wealthy Russian financial official on behalf of Trump’s presidential transition team.

    Prince spokesman Cohen declined to comment on the Mueller report.

    Targeting frozen assets 

    The two sources with direct knowledge of Prince’s Venezuela plan said he is seeking $40 million from private investors.

    He also aims to get funding from the billions of dollars in Venezuelan assets that have been seized by governments around the world imposing sanctions on the OPEC nation, a major oil exporter.

    It’s unclear, however, how the Venezuelan opposition could legally access those assets. Prince told people in pitch meetings, the sources said, that he believes that Guaido has the authority to form his own military force because he has been recognised internationally as Venezuela’s rightful leader.

    Prince envisions a force made up of “Peruvians, Ecuadoreans, Colombians, Spanish speakers,” one of the sources said, adding that Prince argued that such soldiers would be more politically palatable than American contractors.

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    Joe Biden Actually Is a Dealmaker. And That Could Be a Problem in 2020

    President Barack Obama was elected during an economic cataclysm, and his first major task was passing an economic stimulus bill. But Republican leaders were determined to stop him, and he needed to persuade three GOP senators to support his bill and break the filibuster. He assigned the job to his Senate whisperer, his chief dealmaker, his aide with the best bipartisan relationships: Vice President Joe Biden.

    To nail down those Republican votes, Biden went into legislative stalker mode, schmoozing his old Senate colleagues into submission. He called Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania 14 times during the presidential transition, repeatedly asking: Whaddya want? He kept tracking down Susan Collins of Maine in her hometown of Caribou, and when spotty cell service kept cutting off their chats, he kept calling back. Bob Bennett of Utah and Richard Lugar of Indiana told him they couldn’t help, but Biden constantly checked in anyway, pleading with them to break with their party to save the country. “Look, man, we really need this to be bipartisan,” he appealed to Mel Martinez of Florida.

    Story Continued Below

    In the end, Biden won over three Republicans: Specter, Collins, and Olympia Snowe of Maine. The deal got done, and it helped end the Great Recession within months.

    Now that Biden is running to unseat President Donald Trump, he’s touting himself as a true master of the art of the deal, a son of a car salesman who knows how to get to yes, a relentless consensus-builder who can work across the aisle to bring Americans together. And as the stimulus showed, his bipartisan friendships, Washington experience and genial Uncle Joe approach really can help produce results that produce change; he also helped persuade his buddy Specter to defect to the Democratic Party, which provided the 60th vote for Obamacare.

    But in the hyperpartisan atmosphere of 2020, that skill may be a deal killer. It’s not clear whether Biden’s message of adult-in-the-room civility and pragmatic compromise will resonate in the Democratic primary — one in which many Democrats, and especially motivated primary voters, are looking for an ideological warrior. They see his rhetoric about common ground and good-faith negotiations to be dangerously naïve at a time when Republicans have shown little interest in meeting them halfway.

    Even Biden’s stimulus success has drawn a decade of fire on the left. The Republicans who signed on, as well as several moderate Democrats, all insisted the cost had to be less than $800 billion, even though the hole in the economy was much bigger than that, and Snowe demanded a $70 billion tax fix that further diluted its power. Many liberals have argued the recovery would have been stronger if Biden had held out for a better deal rather than brokered a compromise.

    “Give me a break,” Biden told me several years later. “I’ve been doing this my entire career. I’m going to say something outrageous: I don’t know anybody who counts votes better than me in the Senate. … I love the left saying, ‘Well, we could’ve gotten more.’ OK, you go get it! You tell me how to get the 60 votes!”

    Biden did cut several key deals as vice president, but it’s understandable that many Democrats doubt the value of compromise after the results of the last decade. Republicans waged all-out war against Obama’s legislative agenda and even blocked his nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court; voters responded to their obstructionism by giving them control of the House, Senate, White House and Court. And Trump hasn’t even pretended to care about bipartisanship, trashing Democrats as radical traitors, filling the courts with right-wing judges and ramming through a sweeping and controversial $2 trillion tax cut with only 50 Republican votes. Biden has boasted in the past about his strong working relationship with the arch-partisan Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who at times refused to negotiate with anyone else from the Obama White House, but these days that’s not much of a selling point among Democrats.

    Jeff Hauser, executive director of the left-leaning Revolving Door Project, says Biden spent decades operating in a world where media and political elites valued dealmaking for its own sake, but that world no longer exists.

    “Washington is in post-dealmaking mode,” says Hauser. “The last tiny remaining vestiges of that world ended with the rise of social media and Trump, and skill at ‘grand bargains’ is about as relevant to modern politics as skill with a physical Rolodex.”

    In the past, polls have found that Democrats want their leaders to seek compromise, while Republicans do not, and Biden’s backers don’t think the clamor against compromise among Twitter liberals reflects the sentiment of actual voters. They believe his Middle-Class Joe persona as a down-to-earth Scranton guy who can work with anyone will appeal to Democrats more interested in results than rhetoric, as well as independents alienated by Trump’s obsessive focus on his base. Biden campaign spokesman Andrew Bates says there’s already proof his approach works in the laws he helped pass—including the Violence Against Women Act, the assault weapons ban included in the 1994 crime bill, and the stimulus bill, which not only helped avert a depression but included record investments in clean energy.

    “Joe Biden has an unparalleled record of achieving progressive change, because he knows how to fight for our values and bring people together,” Bates said.

    ***

    Many Biden skeptics on the left never liked those bipartisan achievements; for example, they believe the crime bill produced racially biased mass incarceration. But in any case, they argue that the world in which those bipartisan achievements were possible no longer exists, that Democrats will never change the status quo by playing nice with Republicans, that McConnell will block any progressive change as long as the filibuster and other obstruction-friendly Senate traditions remain in place. And Biden is an old-school institutionalist who has always supported those traditions; he has called the Senate “the greatest institution man has ever created,” while liberals have come to fear it as a place their big ideas go to die.

    Brian Fallon, a former aide to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer who now leads a group trying to shift the courts to the left, says any 2020 Democratic candidate who supports the filibuster “either assumes good faith on McConnell’s part or is content to accomplish nothing other than take rides on Marine One.”

    “We are not going to solve the nation’s problems merely by beating Trump,” Fallon says. “The next president will also need to pursue bold reforms to restore democracy.”

    But the liberal queasiness about Biden is not just about his reverence for hidebound Senate rules; so far, among 2020 Democrats, only Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Rep. Beto O’Rourke of Texas, and Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington have opposed the filibuster. There’s a deeper suspicion of Biden’s general instinct to compromise, as well as some of his specific compromises with McConnell that progressives saw as credulous capitulations, betraying Democratic values in the vain pursuit of bipartisan cooperation.

    Biden told me in 2011 that he “never for one single instant” held out hope that Republicans would be trustworthy governing partners in the Obama era, and that seven Republican senators had told him during the presidential transition that McConnell had demanded unified resistance to every major Obama initiative. Biden has been disillusioned by the Republican Party for quite a while; I once watched him declare at a Cabinet meeting that if Democrats lost control of Congress, “We will enter a know-nothing period in American politics.” But there were times when Obama needed at least some GOP support—and in Washington, as in Westeros, peace gets made with enemies, not with friends.

    Biden’s proudest negotiation came after the Republican landslide in 2010, when George W. Bush’s tax cuts were about to expire and McConnell said he would shut down the Senate until they were extended. Obama didn’t want to extend the tax cuts for the rich, but he really didn’t want the lower-end tax cuts to expire when the economy was still fragile. Biden and McConnell hashed out a deal that extended all the Bush tax cuts until after the 2012 election, while injecting another $300 billion as an economic stimulus, including a new payroll tax cut for workers, extended unemployment benefits for victims of the recession and expanded tax credits for college students and the poor. By reopening the Senate, the deal also enabled the historic vote to repeal the ban on gays in the military.

    At the time, many progressives reacted with contempt, denouncing a provision that slashed estate taxes for the heirs of multimillionaires, accusing the Obama White House of rewarding Republican hostage takers. At a meeting of the liberal Democracy Alliance, George Soros urged the group to recruit a primary challenger to Obama in 2012. But conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer credited Biden with pulling off “the swindle of the year” despite a weak negotiating position, and the deal’s economic boost may have helped ensure Obama’s reelection.

    The larger point, Biden fans say, is that in a two-party system bipartisan deals are sometimes necessary to keep government functioning, and it’s important to have leaders capable of cutting them. Steve Schale, a Democratic operative in Florida who helped lead a Draft Biden effort in 2016, says he finds the angst about whether Biden’s consensus-building instincts are a political liability rather silly.

    “I think there’s a pretty compelling case it’s just a good thing,” he said.

    ***

    Biden’s critics on the left often point to the follow-up “fiscal cliff” negotiations after Obama’s reelection, when the Bush tax cuts were expiring again and the president had more leverage—maybe enough to kill them off this time. Obama would have preferred to extend the tax cuts on annual income below $250,000 and let the rest die, but Biden agreed to a deal that extended the tax cuts up to $400,000, avoiding another economic blow that could have derailed the recovery, but putting off fights over spending and the debt ceiling that would shadow Obama throughout his second term. Harry Reid, at the time the Democratic leader in the Senate, thought the White House should have held out for a debt-ceiling deal while the election was still fresh in the public’s mind, and told the White House he didn’t want Biden doing any more negotiating with McConnell.

    “Oof, that one was terrible,” says one former Democratic Senate aide. “Biden was so eager to do a deal, and a lot of us felt like that was the time to hold the line.”

    Ultimately, though, Obama got most of what he wanted in that deal: It raised taxes on the very wealthy, preserved tax cuts for everyone else, avoided a brutal shock to the economy, and allowed the president to move on to other issues. Biden did what his boss asked and advanced the Obama agenda. The real problem for some of his liberal critics is that they never loved the Obama agenda; they thought it was insufficiently ambitious and excessively middle-of-the-road. And while Biden is trying to make a progressive case to primary voters, he still harbors some disdain for “the professional left,” the aggressive activists he sees as ungrateful, politically unrealistic and one of the reasons Trump won in 2016.

    Biden’s friends believe that in the real world, unlike the battlefields of Twitter, most Democrats appreciate the Obama-Biden record, think three quarters of a loaf is better than none, and recognize that clear-eyed political compromise can advance progressive goals. “Thanks to Biden’s negotiating skills, the Recovery Act stopped a depression, tens of millions of Americans got health care for the first time, and the richest Americans again started to pay their fair share,” Schale says.

    But that was a decade ago. The question for Biden is whether Democrats believe they can recreate the past—and whether they even want to.

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    Allegations of mass voter exclusion cast shadow on India election

    New Delhi, India – India‘s general election, the world’s largest democratic exercise, is past its halfway mark.

    The country’s election commission says nearly 900 million voters are eligible to vote in the seven-phase voting, which started on April 11 and will go on till May 19 for 543 parliamentary constituencies.

    But nationwide reports of voters finding they were unable to vote after being deleted from or deemed ineligible for being included in the electoral rolls has raised concerns.

    Voter turnout this year has been high, particularly in the state of Assam which recorded an impressive 80 percent polling.

    But those left out of the voting process in India’s northeastern state have not been able to join in the enthusiasm.

    “I feel neglected. It’s very painful and I can’t explain it,” says Saleha Begum, a 60-year-old resident of Assam’s Baksa district.

    Saleha is one of around 125,000 ‘D’ or ‘Doubtful’ voters in Assam deemed ineligible to vote by the authorities, who say they were not provided with sufficient evidence of their Indian citizenship.

    Such people have been accused of being undocumented immigrants from the neighbouring country of Bangladesh, a long-running issue in the state.

    I feel neglected. It’s very painful and I can’t explain it.

    Saleha, resident of Assam state

    Assam has witnessed mass agitation against so-called foreigners for decades.

    Saleha Begum (L) is one of around 125,000 ‘D’ or ‘Doubtful’ voters in Assam [Abdul Gani/Al Jazeera]

    Last year, a controversial update to a citizenship list, known as the National Registry of Citizens (NRC), excluded around 4 million people, effectively stripping them of Indian citizenship.

    Many of them, including Saleha, are from Assam’s Bengali-origin minority.

    Stateless overnight

    But Saleha says she has lived in Assam her whole life and used to vote regularly until the ‘D Voter’ category was created in 1997. The last vote she cast was in India’s general election the year before.

    “Suddenly, I became ‘doubtful’. It is something I would never understand and I feel helpless,” she told Al Jazeera.

    “Everyone in my family can vote except me. I also want to vote and be counted as a citizen of India.”

    Assam’s ‘D voters’ are not the only people to have been denied voting rights in India. Around 3 million names were allegedly deleted off voter rolls in the southern state of Telangana between 2015 and 2018, leading to mass disenfranchisement in the state elections held in December.

    The deletions in Telangana took place during a process aimed at removing duplicate names from the electoral rolls and linking voter details to Aadhaar, a controversial biometric identity card.

    But people there say their names were removed from the list without proper verification, leaving them unable to cast their votes in last year’s elections.

    Similar mass deletion of names from voters’ lists have been reported from other states, such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Delhi.

    Overall, it’s hard to ascertain just how many people are not on India’s voting rolls. Research by two leading psephologists have suggested that as many as 28 million women are missing from the electoral rolls.

    An initiative called Missing Voters goes even higher, estimating that a whopping 120 million Indians are not on the voters’ lists. 

    Khalid Saifullah, founder of the Hyderabad-based initiative, told Al Jazeera that he believes around 65 million of these missing voters are women.

    Among the 120 million people Missing Voters suggests are not included on the rolls, Saifullah further estimates that around 40 million of them, like Saleh and Imran, are Muslims while 30 million are Dalits, the former untouchables.

    Saifullah’s estimates are based on discrepancies he says he found between the number of single households in census data and the election commission’s data. The numbers include those who may not have registered to vote in addition to the names that may have been deleted.

    People line up to cast their votes outside a polling station in Majuli, a large river island in Assam [Adnan Abidi/Reuters]

    Targeted voter deletions?

    There are also concerns that India’s minorities, mainly Muslims and Dalits, were the chief targets of voter suppression.

    Experts say one of the easiest tools of exclusion is Form 7, which is available on the website of the election commission. Anyone can fill out that form, requesting the poll body to remove an individual’s name.

    “There is often a mischief by political parties who fill out Form 7 in various people’s names,” says Saifullah. “That is targeting. It’s pretty easy in India.”

    Saifullah points out that no verification is done when somebody fills out Form 7. He suggests the use of OTPs (or One-Time Password) for such procedures. An OTP is a common feature in India while conducting financial transactions online.

    “In the present system, you don’t have to give any of your details,” he says. “It should at least ask for a mobile number, because I know a lot of people are misusing it. If you know which polling booth someone is registered at, you can say that person doesn’t live in the area and ask for his removal.”

    Independent researcher Srinivas Kodali, who has taken India’s election commission to court over voter deletions in Telangana, agrees there is a targeting of certain communities.

    The elections may be free but they are not fair anymore when you’re not transparent enough.

    Srinivas Kodali, Independent Researcher

    However, he says it is hard to tell because of a lack of transparency or clear information in the system, which he regards the root of the problem.

    “Their practices are weird,” he says, referring to the election authorities. “When you’re deleted from a roll, you never know which year you were deleted in? Was it 2015 or 2017? There is no way to know.”

    “They have issues with their algorithms and their systems which they don’t want to accept … They want to keep using the same system or process forever.”

    But N Gopalaswami, a former Chief Election Commissioner, defended the electoral body. He told Al Jazeera that the numbers being alleged are “absurd” and that voters have ample opportunity ahead of elections to ensure they are on the rolls.

    “One unfortunate thing that happens in this country is that voters are so pampered that they never check [the rolls] … People will talk in exaggerated tones and so that they can say hundreds of thousands of people have been removed,” he says.

    Al Jazeera reached out to the Election Commission of India for its response, but did not receive any reply.

    Saifullah believes that the onus cannot be on poor people, who either don’t have internet access or cannot afford to take time off of work to check their names on the voters’ list.

    Both Saifullah and Kodali insist that voter disenfranchisement is real, and its effect on Indian elections clear.

    “You can’t say that the elections are fair,” says Kodali. “The elections may be free but they are not fair anymore when you’re not being transparent enough.”

    Abdul Gani contributed to this report from Assam

     

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    Jimmy Butler Gives 76ers Ultimate Margin of Error in Philly’s Championship Chase

    TORONTO, CANADA - APRIL 29: Jimmy Butler #23 of the Philadelphia 76ers handles the ball against the Toronto Raptors during Game Two of the Eastern Conference Semifinals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2019 at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

    Ron Turenne/Getty Images

    And that is why the Philadelphia 76ers traded for Jimmy Butler.

    It wasn’t just because they could, or because the Markelle Fultz experiment went belly up before it ever started, or because Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons aren’t enough on their own. It was all those things and more, and then even more than that.

    After dealing for Butler in November, acquiring Tobias Harris in February and once again leaning on late-season additions to flesh out a rotation begging for substance beyond the starting five, the Sixers are as close as it gets to an NBA contender assembled on the fly. 

    They are shallow yet teeming with star power, terrifyingly talented yet unavoidably unfamiliar. That top-heavy slapdashery doesn’t always work, but it can work. It has worked—often just barely, though it’s worked all the same.

    Butler is the primary reason why. He gives the Sixers a line to potential dominance. He also affords them a margin for error. They can fall behind big, blow leads, lose the bench battle, endure struggles from their other stars and slog through Embiid’s bout with diarrhea. Some of their worst cases can still include the best outcomes.

    That identity served them well in their 94-89 Game 2 victory over the Toronto Raptors, during which Butler went for 30 points, 11 rebounds and five assists.

    The Sixers opened up a nine-point lead in the first quarter and took a 13-point advantage into halftime, skillfully distancing themselves from a Game 1 letdown despite committing nine second-quarter turnovers. They refined the nuts and bolts of their half-court offense:

    Steve Jones Jr. @stevejones20

    Little chess match here. Sixers have Redick set P&R for Simmons with FVV guarding him. Raptors try to switch Powell on him so they can switch the action. Simmons does a good job of rejecting the screen, Green has to help at rim, Bolden screens FVV in to open Ennis for the 3. https://t.co/keLRCyDosQ

    Their defense reinvented itself by tinkering with the individual matchups. Head coach Brett Brown moved Simmons onto Kawhi Leonard and moved their bigs off the low-usage Marc Gasol:

    Zach Lowe @ZachLowe_NBA

    Really nice first half minutes for Greg Monroe. Sixers adjustment of putting their centers on Siakam has worked so far, but TOR has some counters for sure. Also don’t think TOR has hunted Redick enough. Fun second half coming up.

    Those good vibes didn’t last.

    Toronto pushed the pace on both makes and misses in the second half and stretched Philly’s defensive adjustments by featuring Gasol early in the third quarter. The Sixers didn’t get nearly as much pressure on Leonard and missed all 11 of their three-point attempts. 

    Parts of the fourth quarter weren’t any different. JJ Redick missed all three of his triples, and Philly finished the final frame 2-of-9 from downtown. Embiid committed two lost-ball turnovers and didn’t shoot until almost the three-minute mark of the quarter, at which point he had already logged more than six minutes. 

    He also came up with perhaps the best assist of his career:

    NBA @NBA

    Jimmy Butler (28 PTS) connects from downtown to put the @sixers up by 7!

    #PhilaUnite 88
    #WeTheNorth 81

    2:11 left on @NBAonTNT! https://t.co/Luunp3eGju

    And he mustered the juice necessary to put Gasol through a spin cycle:

    NBA TV @NBATV

    A BIG bucket from the big fella! 👀

    #PhilaUnite | #NBAPlayoffs https://t.co/a3DHxjuKsN

    For the most part, the Sixers got by on their defense. They held the Raptors to two points in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter and just seven points until the six-minute mark.

    Butler carried them the rest of the way. He dropped 12 points and three assists while taking over point guard duties down the stretch and attacking the Raptors defense before it could get set:

    NBA @NBA

    👏 @JimmyButler scores 12 of his team-high 30 PTS in the 4th Q to help the @sixers even the series at 1-1! #PhilaUnite

    Game 3: Thursday (5/2), 8pm/et, ESPN https://t.co/H560pCZWh8

    That energy set the tone for the Sixers all game, even as they weathered Toronto’s second-half runs. Butler drilled three of his four treys in the first half and fought for rebounds wire to wire. His efforts drew grown-up praise from Brown:

    Derek Bodner @DerekBodnerNBA

    Brett Brown on Jimmy Butler’s performance: “This was James Butler. That was the adult in the room.”

    (Worth noting: James Butler does not actually play for Philly.)

    Skeptics will see this game as an anomaly for the Sixers. They didn’t prove their mettle. They narrowly escaped.

    The Raptors almost erased a 19-point deficit and are going to play better. Their starters outscored Philly by 13 points in Game 2, and head coach Nick Nurse has some obvious counters:

    Mike Zavagno @MZavagno11

    Embiid with Gasol on (19 minutes): -11
    Embiid with Gasol off (13 minutes): +14
    This simply cannot happen if you’re Nick Nurse https://t.co/P9XgLTTceA

    Remove Leonard and Pascal Siakam from the final tally, and everyone else on the Raptors is shooting 28.9 percent for the series. That won’t hold. James Ennis III and Greg Monroe combined for 23 points, and the Sixers won the second-unit battle, 26-5. That won’t hold, either.

    But so much of the same can be said for Philly. Harris will shoot better (3-of-11). Ditto for Embiid (2-of-7), and he’ll be less sickly. (Healthier is a different story. His left knee remains an issue.)

    Simmons will put up more than six shots and do a better job getting to his spots. Even if he doesn’t, and even if he cedes more ball-handling responsibilities to Butler, there’s value in knowing he can log 44-plus minutes while chasing around one of the NBA’s five best players. Leonard scrapped together 35 points, but he looked more human doing so, and Simmons coaxed him into abandoning some extra possessions.

    Monday’s win can have only so many overarching implications. The Sixers didn’t discover a recipe for this series, or for emerging from the Eastern Conference, so much as survive long enough to steal home-court advantage.

    Chris Szagola/Associated Press

    Still, these smaller, singular victories add up. And they can find comfort in knowing Butler’s crunch-time heroism isn’t new. That element of his game has persisted even as he and the Sixers grappled with the awkward combination of shallowness and relative newness.

    In the 29 clutch appearances he made with Philly during the regular season, Butler averaged 28.7 points and 4.4 assists per 36 minutes while nailing 35.3 percent of his three-point attempts. Only Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kyrie Irving and Victor Oladipo matched those benchmarks over the same span.

    Having that crunch-time crutch—that player who can take over by blending together the best of Embiid, Harris and Simmons—is huge. The Sixers are built in the hopes they can win convincingly. It won’t always be that easy, or that pretty.

    And it doesn’t need to be.

    The Sixers have Butler to help them navigate the ugly. 

    Unless otherwise noted, stats courtesy of NBA.com or Basketball Reference. Salary and cap-hold information via Basketball Insiders and RealGM.

    Dan Favale covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter (@danfavale) and listen to his Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by B/R’s Andrew Bailey.

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    Nikola Jokic Leads Nuggets to Game 1 Win vs. Blazers Despite Damian Lillard’s 39

    DENVER, CO - APRIL 29: Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets looks to pass against the Portland Trail Blazers during Game One of the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2019 NBA Playoffs on April 29, 2019 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images)

    Garrett Ellwood/Getty Images

    The Denver Nuggets won a second-round game for the first time since 2009 on Monday.

    Denver now leads its series with the Portland Trail Blazers 1-0 following a 121-113 victory in Game 1 at the Pepsi Center. Portland may have been the more rested team after the Nuggets needed seven games to dispatch of the San Antonio Spurs, but that didn’t stop the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed from holding serve at home.

    Nikola Jokic was dominant and stuffed the stat sheet with 37 points, nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks, while Paul Millsap (19 points and six boards) and Jamal Murray (23 points, eight assists and two steals) provided support.

    Damian Lillard fought through consistent double-teams and led the way for the Trail Blazers with 39 points and six assists, but his team failed to come through on the defensive end with the game hanging in the balance.

    Nuggets Frontcourt Advantage Is Big Enough to Win Series

    1. McCollum and the Blazers Snapped Postseason Losing Streak for “Jennifer”

    2. Stars Invest in Plant-Based Food as Vegetarianism Sweeps NBA

    3. The NBA Got Some Wild Techs This Season

    4. Jarrett Allen Is One of the NBA’s Hottest Rim Protectors

    5. Wade’s Jersey Swaps Created Epic Moments This Season

    6. Westbrook Makes History While Honoring Nipsey Hussle

    7. Devin Booker Makes History with Scoring Tear

    8. 29 Years Ago, Jordan Dropped Career-High 69 Points

    9. Bosh Is Getting His Jersey Raised to the Rafters in Miami

    10. Steph Returns to Houston for 1st Time Since His Moon Landing Troll

    11. Lou Williams Is Coming for a Repeat of Sixth Man of the Year

    12. Pat Beverley Has the Clippers Stealing the LA Shine

    13. LeBron Keeps Shredding NBA Record Books

    14. Young’s Hot Streak Is Heating Up the ROY Race with Luka

    15. LeBron and 2 Chainz Form a Superteam to Release a New Album

    16. Wade’s #OneLastDance Dominated February

    17. Warriors Fans Go Wild After Unforgettable Moments with Steph

    18. Eight Years Ago, the Nuggets Traded Melo to the Knicks

    19. Two Years Ago, the Kings Shipped Boogie to the Pelicans

    20. ASG Will Be Competitive Again If the NBA Raises the Stakes

    Right Arrow Icon

    On the surface, Enes Kanter had an impressive game.

    He finished with 26 points and seven rebounds, providing much of the secondary offense for the Trail Blazers when Lillard was double-teamed. However, the defensive issues that have haunted him for much of his career reared their ugly head in Monday’s contest and proved costly for the visitors.

    Opponents shot 3.9 percent better than their normal averages when he defended them during the regular season, per NBA.com, and he was unable to contain Jokic anywhere on the floor.

    Hardwood Paroxysm @HPbasketball

    Kanter legit isn’t even trying on Jokic. He’s matching him in production but he can’t do anything whenever he engages him.

    Jokic is a matchup problem for almost every big in the league, but the advantage is canyon-sized against Portland with Jusuf Nurkic sidelined with an injury and Kanter as a defensive liability who is fighting through a shoulder injury.

    What’s more, Zach Collins and Meyers Leonard are not talented enough to consistently contain the All-Star even though they are capable backups for stretches.

    It was one thing for the shorthanded Trail Blazers frontcourt to deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round, as their offense typically runs through Russell Westbrook or Paul George. Steven Adams is a formidable matchup, but it is easier to defend a big waiting for a dump pass in the post from a ball-dominant guard than someone like Jokic who can act like a center or point guard and generate offense in different ways.

    Stats By STATS @StatsBySTATS

    Through eight playoff games, the @nuggets’ Nikola Jokic is averaging 24.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game.

    The only player in NBA history to post those numbers over an entire postseason was the Cincinnati Royals’ Oscar Robertson in 1962-63. #MileHighBasketball

    Jeremy Woo @JeremyWoo

    Whenever I watch the Nuggets I tend to forget where the ball is and just end up Jokic-watching the entire time.

    Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    THE JOKER!!

    25 points with just under 4 minutes left in the third! https://t.co/9gYCwUiobG

    Jokic posted up, worked in pick-and-pops, threaded passes from the high elbow and top of the key and even found Gary Harris with a bounce pass for the game’s best highlight:

    1. McCollum and the Blazers Snapped Postseason Losing Streak for “Jennifer”

    2. Stars Invest in Plant-Based Food as Vegetarianism Sweeps NBA

    3. The NBA Got Some Wild Techs This Season

    4. Jarrett Allen Is One of the NBA’s Hottest Rim Protectors

    5. Wade’s Jersey Swaps Created Epic Moments This Season

    6. Westbrook Makes History While Honoring Nipsey Hussle

    7. Devin Booker Makes History with Scoring Tear

    8. 29 Years Ago, Jordan Dropped Career-High 69 Points

    9. Bosh Is Getting His Jersey Raised to the Rafters in Miami

    10. Steph Returns to Houston for 1st Time Since His Moon Landing Troll

    11. Lou Williams Is Coming for a Repeat of Sixth Man of the Year

    12. Pat Beverley Has the Clippers Stealing the LA Shine

    13. LeBron Keeps Shredding NBA Record Books

    14. Young’s Hot Streak Is Heating Up the ROY Race with Luka

    15. LeBron and 2 Chainz Form a Superteam to Release a New Album

    16. Wade’s #OneLastDance Dominated February

    17. Warriors Fans Go Wild After Unforgettable Moments with Steph

    18. Eight Years Ago, the Nuggets Traded Melo to the Knicks

    19. Two Years Ago, the Kings Shipped Boogie to the Pelicans

    20. ASG Will Be Competitive Again If the NBA Raises the Stakes

    Right Arrow Icon

    It wasn’t just Jokic, though, who exploited Portland’s frontcourt. Mason Plumlee was an X-factor and did many of the little things to create separation throughout the game with six rebounds, five steals and a block. He battled Kanter on the glass and created havoc with his steals whenever Portland would come at him in the paint.

    Millsap also demonstrated veteran guile by seeking out his shot when Jokic drew additional attention and going after matchups with Al-Farouq Aminu and Maurice Harkless on the blocks when opportunities presented themselves.

    Much like Kanter cannot stop Jokic, those stretch forwards can’t handle Millsap in one-on-one situations.

    Portland didn’t miss Nurkic much in the first round against the Thunder, but it surely will in this matchup.

    What’s Next?

    Denver will host Game 2 on Wednesday.

    This article will be updated to provide more information soon.

    Get the best sports content from the web and social in the new B/R app. Get the app and get the game.

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    Live: Nuggets vs. Blazers

    1. Yaya Dubin @JADubin5

    2. Millsap Almost Had the Play of the Night 😅

    3. Lillard with a DEEP Heat Check 🔥

    4. Rodney Hood Pulls Up from Deep

    6. Kanter Beats the Shot Clock

    7. Mark Kiszla @markkiszla

    8. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    9. Katy Winge @katywinge

    10. Dame Step-Back on Jokic 😳

    12. McCollum with the Heat Check

    13. Enes Kanter Tweaks Shoulder on Dunk

    14. Ball Don’t Stop @balldontstop

    15. NBA @NBA

    16. NBA TV @NBATV

    18. BLAZERS READY

      Bleacher Report NBA @BR_NBA

      Dame Dolla ready for Game 1 ⌚

      (via @NBA)
      https://t.co/Sfh1j5JeMu

    19. McCollum Has Some Good GoT Takes ⚔

      Binge Mode @binge_mode

      You’re going to love this.

      @trailblazers guard @CJMcCollum was asked about last night’s episode of #GameOfThrones during today’s media availability and he did not disappoint. (via @NBCSNorthwest) https://t.co/Bwb8dp4k7i

    20. Enes Kanter Is Available for Game 1

      Casey Holdahl @CHold

      Enes Kanter (left shoulder) is available to Game 1.

    21. Trail Blazers @trailblazers

    22. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    24. NBA on TNT @NBAonTNT

    25. 👀

      Bleacher Report NBA @BR_NBA

      🐸

      (via @bruceely) https://t.co/pYABDXO3jH

    26. Snow Blazers ❄

      Trail Blazers @trailblazers

      ❄❄❄ https://t.co/8IoLxXWaBH

    27. Mark Kiszla @markkiszla

    28. Mike Tokito @mtokito

    30. InsideHoops.com NBA @InsideHoops

    31. Royce Young @royceyoung

    32. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    33. Nick Kosmider @NickKosmider

    34. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    36. David Deckard @DaveDeckard

    37. Danny Marang @DMarang

    38. Danny Marang @DMarang

    39. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    40. Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind

    42. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    43. SLAM @SLAMonline

    44. Katy Winge @katywinge

    45. Dime @DimeUPROXX

    46. NBA @NBA

    48. Trail Blazers @trailblazers

    49. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    50. Dane Delgado @danegado

    51. Lamar Hurd @L_Hurd

    52. Nick Kosmider @NickKosmider

    54. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

    55. Mike Tokito @mtokito

    56. Danny Marang @DMarang

    57. Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind

    58. Joel Rush @JoelRushNBA

    60. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    61. Katy Winge @katywinge

    62. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

    63. Chris Dempsey @chrisadempsey

    64. Danny Marang @DMarang

    66. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    67. David Deckard @DaveDeckard

    68. Mike Singer @msinger

    69. NBA on ESPN @ESPNNBA

    70. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    72. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

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    Live: Nuggets vs. Blazers

    1. Yaya Dubin @JADubin5

    2. Millsap Almost Had the Play of the Night 😅

    3. Lillard with a DEEP Heat Check 🔥

    4. Rodney Hood Pulls Up from Deep

    6. Kanter Beats the Shot Clock

    7. Mark Kiszla @markkiszla

    8. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    9. Katy Winge @katywinge

    10. Dame Step-Back on Jokic 😳

    12. McCollum with the Heat Check

    13. Enes Kanter Tweaks Shoulder on Dunk

    14. Ball Don’t Stop @balldontstop

    15. NBA @NBA

    16. NBA TV @NBATV

    18. BLAZERS READY

      Bleacher Report NBA @BR_NBA

      Dame Dolla ready for Game 1 ⌚

      (via @NBA)
      https://t.co/Sfh1j5JeMu

    19. McCollum Has Some Good GoT Takes ⚔

      Binge Mode @binge_mode

      You’re going to love this.

      @trailblazers guard @CJMcCollum was asked about last night’s episode of #GameOfThrones during today’s media availability and he did not disappoint. (via @NBCSNorthwest) https://t.co/Bwb8dp4k7i

    20. Enes Kanter Is Available for Game 1

      Casey Holdahl @CHold

      Enes Kanter (left shoulder) is available to Game 1.

    21. Trail Blazers @trailblazers

    22. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    24. NBA on TNT @NBAonTNT

    25. 👀

      Bleacher Report NBA @BR_NBA

      🐸

      (via @bruceely) https://t.co/pYABDXO3jH

    26. Snow Blazers ❄

      Trail Blazers @trailblazers

      ❄❄❄ https://t.co/8IoLxXWaBH

    27. Mark Kiszla @markkiszla

    28. Mike Tokito @mtokito

    30. InsideHoops.com NBA @InsideHoops

    31. Royce Young @royceyoung

    32. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    33. Nick Kosmider @NickKosmider

    34. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    36. David Deckard @DaveDeckard

    37. Danny Marang @DMarang

    38. Danny Marang @DMarang

    39. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    40. Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind

    42. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    43. SLAM @SLAMonline

    44. Katy Winge @katywinge

    45. Dime @DimeUPROXX

    46. NBA @NBA

    48. Trail Blazers @trailblazers

    49. Denver Nuggets @nuggets

    50. Dane Delgado @danegado

    51. Lamar Hurd @L_Hurd

    52. Nick Kosmider @NickKosmider

    54. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

    55. Mike Tokito @mtokito

    56. Danny Marang @DMarang

    57. Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind

    58. Joel Rush @JoelRushNBA

    60. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    61. Katy Winge @katywinge

    62. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

    63. Chris Dempsey @chrisadempsey

    64. Danny Marang @DMarang

    66. T.J. McBride @TJMcBrideNBA

    67. David Deckard @DaveDeckard

    68. Mike Singer @msinger

    69. NBA on ESPN @ESPNNBA

    70. Casey Holdahl @CHold

    72. kerry eggers @kerryeggers

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