Author: John Paulsen (Page 596 of 937)

Gatorade “unleashes new attitude, enhanced beverages”

The folks at Gatorade asked us to review a few of their new products and we were happy to oblige.

Why is Gatorade rolling out these new products? Chief marketing officer Sarah Robb O’Hagan explains:

“Just like any good athlete, Gatorade is taking it to the next level. Whether you’re in it for the win, for the thrill or for better health, if your body is moving, Gatorade sees you as an athlete, and we’re inviting you into the brand.”

(Click here to see the press release.)

Including yours truly, we had three different taste-testers give their thoughts about each drink’s taste and effectiveness.

Gatorade (lemon-lime)

Dan: “Tastes like a good lemonade…refreshing.”

John P.: “Light and tasty…not too strong of an aftertaste.”

John D.: “Good taste, refreshing and replenishing…it was a little sweet, too much sugar…used during training, weight lifting program.”

G2 (low-calorie grape)

Dan: “Very good…nice aftertaste…I’d definitely buy that one, especially since it’s low calorie.”

John P.: “Very smooth taste for a grape drink…not too sugary.”

John D.: “Love the grape flavored G2, and its idea of low carbohydrate drink…a top 3 pick for taste, and effectiveness…enjoyed the blend of vitamins and low sugar after weight training and cardio training…was equally useful in both applications.”

“Rain” is now “No Excuses” (berry)

Dan: “I could drink this when I’m not playing sports…no aftertaste…good stuff.”

John P.: “Crisp…clean…doesn’t have an overpowering taste like some sports drinks. I liked the taste of this one the best.”

John D.: “Odd fruit tasting blend, not as sweet tasting for all the flavors in it…was not the worst of the pack, but was not one of the better ones either…average taste, flavor.”

“X-factor” is now “Be Tough” (fruit punch + berry)

Dan: “I would prefer to drink this when I’m sweating…not crazy about this one.”

John P.: “Strong taste…definitely well-described as fruit punch.”

John D: “Very good taste, nice blend of two flavors and did not have any after taste from the extra vitamins…drank at night for healing and recovery, woke up less sore than usual after cardio training.”

“Fierce” is now “Bring It” (grape)

Dan: “Better to drink during a workout…I prefer this to the X-factor fruit punch.”

John P.: “Sugary but tasty…good to drink during a work out. ”

John D.: “This is the best-tasting drink, and was very good during sparring work out…felt very energized both during and after the intense session. Felt the extra B vitamins, and their boost in energy…grape was my favorite flavor of the set.”

“AM” is now “Shine On” (orange)

Dan: “Bitter aftertaste…I don’t really like this one.”

John P.: “Well marketed as a morning drink, though I’d rather have orange juice with my eggs.”

John D.: “Worst flavor of the bunch, not terrible, just nothing special…did not taste like a breakfast replacement beverage, but more like a syrup filled juice…added vitamin C, did not show any effect negative or positive.”

“Tiger” is now “Tiger Focus” (“True Force”)

Dan: “It has kind of an odd taste and aftertaste…not too crazy about this one”

John P.: “Nice if you want something a little different…it doesn’t have a typical ‘Gatorade’ taste.”

John D.: “Tasted pretty refreshing and no after taste…took after a two hour workout to put back in all the electrolytes lost during long strenuous workout…felt very replenished and definitely like the lower sugar intake at night.”

Week 17 fantasy football “free-for-all” picks

Most fantasy leagues (wisely) wrapped up their playoffs last week, so we’re not going to do our traditional fantasy football posts — waiver wire watch, love ’em & leave ’em, Q&A — this week. Instead, since a few online leagues do a “free-for-all” contest in Week 17, I thought I’d list a few players to consider.

The last week of the season is pretty dicey for fantasy owners since some teams have wrapped up playoff spots and/or positions and are resting their players. Other teams are out of the hunt and are thinking about where they want to spend their vacation this spring. So what I’m looking for when putting together a “free-for-all” lineup are players/teams that still have something to play for. It helps if they are playing for a playoff spot, a new contract or if they’re just trying to play spoiler against a rival. Of course, favorable matchups are important too.

I’ll list my top five players at each position (three for TEs, kickers and defenses) along with a brief explanation of why I think they’ll perform well this week.

Quarterbacks

1. Jay Cutler
His date with the Chargers is essentially a playoff game, so the Broncos will be focused on a much-needed win. San Diego owns the 31st-ranked pass defense and has allowed 1.6 pass TD per game this season. Plus, the weather should be pretty nice.

2. Phillip Rivers
“The Blockhead” — my new nickname for him — has a great matchup with Denver’s #27 pass defense. The Broncos are a little better in pass TD allowed per game (1.2 per game) and they are playing better of late, which is why he trails Cutler on this list.

3. Drew Brees
Overall, the Panthers have a pretty good pass defense, but they’ve been pretty generous to QBs over the last month and a half. Brees is chasing Dan Marino’s single-season yardage record and the Saints proved last week that they are still trying to win football games. As an added bonus, the game is indoors.

4. Aaron Rodgers
Barring horrible weather, I’d expect a big game from Rodgers and Co. as they take out a season of frustration on the hapless Lions, who are too busy booking their vacation accommodations to worry about playing a football game.

5. Matt Cassel
The Bills would love to play spoiler, but Cassel is rolling right now and Buffalo has been weak against the pass of late. Keep an eye on the weather though.

Running Backs

1. DeAngelo Williams
The Saints are playing better run defense lately, but how can you NOT go with the hot hand? Williams is absolutely on fire right now – he has 11 TD over the last four games and 16 TD over the last eight.

2. Michael Turner
Atlanta still has a chance at the #2 seed, so a lot is on the line for the Falcons. Turner faces the league’s 28th-ranked rush defense, one that has allowed 23 rush TD in 15 games. Tuner is bound to score at least once.

3. Pierre Thomas
Surprisingly, Thomas carried two of my fantasy teams to championships this season. He has scored nine TD in the last six games and has been averaging almost 19 touches a game during that span. Sunday’s game against the Panthers should be a good one, and with Reggie Bush out, I expect Thomas to excel.

4. LaDainian Tomlinson
LT2 hasn’t been himself of late, but he’s still the #10 RB this season. He has a great matchup with a Denver defense that is 27th in the league in rushing yards allowed and has allowed the fourth-most rush TD per game (1.4). This is a must-win for the Chargers, so I expect LT2 to bring his “A” game.

5. Matt Forte
He missed some time in Monday’s game against the Packers, but was the difference in the second half for the Bears. They’re still in the hunt while the Texans are coming off a bad loss in Oakland. Houston has been playing better defense of late, but the Bears simply need this one more.

Wide Receivers

1. Steve Smith
The Saints have struggled all year against the pass and I’d expect Smith to have a great game in a shootout.

2. Brandon Marshall
The Chargers 31st-ranked pass defense won’t know what to do with Marshall, who torched them with 18 catches for 166 yards and a TD in Week 2.

3. Andre Johnson
After last week’s humbling performance against standout corner Nnamdi Asomugha, I think AJ will have a bounce back game against a very suspect Bears’ secondary.

4. Marques Colston
Colston has 15 catches and three TD over the last two weeks and I think this game against the Panthers will be a shootout. He’s the New Orleans receiver likely to benefit the most.

5. Roddy White
White was quiet last week against the Vikings, but St. Louis shouldn’t be able to stop him from catching passes all over the field. My only concern is that the Falcons put this one away early and don’t have to pass.

Tight Ends

1. Tony Gonzalez
Simply put – Gonzo has been the best TE all year and I think he’ll finish strong in a meaningless game against a mediocre Bengals defense.

2. Antonio Gates
Gates has 11 catches for 121 yards and two TD over the last two weeks and the Chargers really need a win. His matchup with a bad Broncos pass defense is promising.

3. Owen Daniels
Philly is excellent against TEs, or I’d otherwise pick Witten here. Daniels has 17 catches over the last three weeks and Chicago can be had in the passing game.

Kickers

1. Stephen Gostkowski
Barring terrible weather, fantasy football’s top kicker should have a field day against the Bills.

2. Jason Elam
If the weather is bad in Buffalo, look for Elam to have a nice day against a bad Rams defense.

3. Matt Bryant
The Bucs need a win and with Oakland coming to town, Bryant should have several opportunities to score.

Defenses

1. Baltimore
The Ravens can lock up a wild card berth against the Jags. They’re the #1 defense and they’re at home.

2. Pittsburgh
They were embarrassed against the Titans, and even though they could rest their starters, I think they’ll take out their frustrations on the hapless Browns.

3. Green Bay
With Detroit coming to town and freezing temperatures likely, I don’t expect that the Lions will be able to do much against an angry Packer defense.

Couch Potato Alert: 12/22

NFL
Mon, 8:30 PM: Packers @ Bears – ESPN

College Football
Tues, 8 PM: #9 Boise St. vs. #11 TCU – ESPN

NBA
Mon, 9 PM: Blazers @ Nuggets
Tues, 7 PM: Rockets @ Cavaliers
Tues, 8 PM: Lakers @ Hornets – NBA TV
Tues, 10 PM: Nuggets @ Blazers
Thurs, 12 PM: Hornets @ Magic – ESPN
Thurs, 2:30 PM: Spurs @ Suns – ABC
Thurs, 5 PM: Celtics @ Lakers – ABC
Thurs, 10:30 PM: Mavericks @ Blazers – TNT

College Hoops
Tues, 7 PM: Butler @ #12 Xavier
Tues, 9:30 PM: #8 Texas @ Wisconsin – ESPN2

NHL
Mon, 7 PM: Pittsburgh @ Buffalo – Versus
Tues, 7 PM: Boston @ New Jersey – Versus
Tues, 10 PM: Vancouver @ San Jose – TSN

What makes a fantasy football championship week goat?

Yesterday was a big day in fantasy football. Most leagues held their title games, and barring a tight contest with a player or two in tonight’s Bears/Packers matchup, the champions have been crowned.

With that in mind, Epic Carnival put together a list of the Top 10 Fantasy Football Championship Week Goats.

Here are a few of the more interesting blurbs:

10. Brett Favre. What could be better than the gunslinger facing his old coach, needing the win, against a secondary that’s been generous even by NFC West standards this year? Well, let’s just say that 18 for 31 for 187 with 2 picks wasn’t on the menu. Those Favre 4 jerseys are going to come cheap this off-season. He’d rank higher, but the fact is that if he was on your roster, you probably weren’t playing for much this week anyway.

9. Steve Breaston. The Arizona #3 WR moved up to #2 this week with the injury to Anquan Boldin. Against the Patriots secondary — note: normally horrible — this was a sneaky great play, and one that you had to feel good about. He wound up with 6 more yards than Boldin, thanks to our #1 retard. Heckuva job, Cardinals.

7. Matt Schaub. More or less a must start against the usually comical Raiders, especially after the recent Texans surge. I’m thinking you weren’t expecting the Raiders to more or less dominate the game, even if you were thinking that Nmandi Asomugha was going to make Andre Johnson disappear. Schaub’s 255 yards, no touchdowns, 1 pick and 10 yards rushing day probably didn’t make you lose, but it sure as hell wasn’t what you were hoping for, either.

1. Kurt Warner. Licking your chops for that Patriot secondary, were you? That must have been before you saw the snow, and the entire Cardinals team look like they were melting from the exposure to it. Your season savior had 30 yards today, got pulled due to the utter lack of competitiveness, and more or less reminded you why the Cardinals are the worst playoff team in the history of the world.

I expected that all four of these players would have big days, but once the snow hit in New England, I thought the Cardinals might struggle. Heck, I was so worried about the weather that I even benched Matt Cassel in one title game, but was (thankfully) still able to pull out the win, due in no small part to the fact that my opponent started several goats.

There are a few names on the list — Marion Barber, Willie Parker, DeShaun Foster — that I doubt anyone was starting in their title games. For a “championship goats” list, it’s helpful to look at players that were great all season (or especially productive in Week 15) that turned in pathetic performances in Week 16. Kurt Warner and Matt Schaub are perfect examples, but who else fits the bill?

I personally know two guys who are none too pleased with Andre Johnson (2 catches, 19 yards), who led many fantasy owners to their championship games with a huge 11-catch, 207-yard, one-TD performance in Week 15 against the Titans. Steve Smith also had a huge Week 15 (9 catches, 165 yards, TD) only to come up small — 68 total yards, 0 TD — in Week 16. To a lesser extent, Dwayne Bowe had a nice Week 15 (6 catches, 44 yards, TD) but posted substandard numbers (3 catches, 28 yards) in the Chiefs’ shootout with Miami. Deion Branch caught nine passes for 164 yards and two TD in Week 14 and Week 15, but mustered only two catches for six yards against a weak Jets pass defense on Sunday. In the same game, Thomas Jones gained 96 yards but failed to score a TD for only the second time in nine games. Roddy White came up small (3 catches, 24 yards) after a great season and a so-so Week 15. In non-PPR leagues, Brian Westbrook only scored 11 fantasy points, and my guess is that his owners needed more. Santana Moss (5 catches, 28 yards) failed to follow up a strong Week 15 performance (7 catches, 72 yards, TD) against the Bengals.

It’s interesting that most of the guys I mention here are wide receivers. It seems like most of the key QBs, RBs and TEs performed pretty well in Week 16, though I’m sure I’m forgetting a few guys.

LeBron says he’ll consider re-signing this summer

Maybe he’s serious, or maybe he just wants to get the press off his back, but LeBron James told the Cleveland Plain Dealer that if the Cavs’ keep up their winning ways, he’ll consider re-signing this summer.

“You play out this season of course; I will consider it,” James said Saturday before the Cavs practiced at the Pepsi Center.

“The direction we are headed is everything I expected and more.”

This is the first time James has publicly talked about signing this summer instead of waiting until 2010. It is an indication of how pleased James is with the progress the Cavaliers have made this season as they are off to a 22-4 start, the second-best record in the NBA.

“I definitely want to keep an open mind, I will look at everything,” James said. “[The extension] is a good point. I think me and my group have pretty much made good decisions so far and we’ll look at the options and go from there.”

James isn’t committing to anything here other than to “consider” re-signing if the Cavs continue to win. And pledging to consider something is very nebulous thing. No one can actually proved you considered it (or didn’t consider it), so you don’t actually have to.

Regardless, the Cavs have one of the best records in the league and if they make another Finals appearance this year, it’s going to be tough for James to fly the coop in the summer of 2010. The key is not to get swept like they did against the Spurs. Those Finals showed just how far the Cavs (and the whole Eastern Conference, really) were from truly competing for a title. Now that there’s a legitimate contender (favorite?) in the East — the Celtics — a playoff matchup between the C’s and Cavs could have a major impact on the future landscape of the NBA.

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