Crunching Tackles

Elon Musk has led during a tumultuous time at Twitter HQ, and Meta have capitalized on this perceived weakness with their competitor app: Threads. Given the uncertainty around Twitter, we take this opportunity to reflect on how Twitter specifically has shaped the fan sports experience and the way entertainment comes into our lives. We also wonder if Threads, or any other social media app, can stee...

It's been the summer of Saudi Arabia, as the Middle Eastern oil giants continue to buy their way deeper and deeper into the worlds of both soccer and golf. With mostly wins, and one significant loss, the Public Investment Fund of the controversy-riddled country is now a major player in the international sports scene. This week we discuss: 1:36 - A brief mention of the French Open, Novak Djokovic m...

Memphis Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant will likely face a hefty suspension from the NBA after appearing in a second social media video with a firearm, not even two months after being suspended for the first one. But is that fair? Social media has been ablaze with controversy, and we try to find some answers. 2:30 - We start things off by looking at the NBA and NHL playoffs (RIP the Hurricanes). 7:2...

14 different managers have been fired in during the Premier League season this year—the most in any season ever. Why are owners and management so impatient with the results of their coaches? Does the high turnover lead to improved play on the field? This week, we discuss: 1:00—Personal news for the podcast 3:30—The first round of the NBA Playoffs is absolutely full of drama, and we discuss the hig...

March Madness is over, and the NCAA men's and women's champions have been crowned. Connecticut has cemented their men's program in the top tier of basketball, and LSU women won their first national championship. This week, we discuss: 4:50—UConn defeated San Diego State in the national championship, winning their fifth title in the past 25 years. We look at the strangeness of this year's tournamen...

Major League Soccer began a major deal with Apple TV this season, meaning that the majority of their games are behind a paywall. This move provoked disappointment for some fans who now view the league as inaccessible to casual supporters. But was this the right move for MLS? This week, we discuss: 3:15—Vanessa Bryant and her family received a $30 million payout for graphic photos being taken after...

Shows like P.T.I., First Take, and Undisputed have dominated cable television for the better part of two decades. Watching celebrities argue about sports is a cherished tradition in sporting culture. But are these shows really just harmless entertainment? Or do they cause serious damage in our society? Why are other parts of culture starting to look more like the arguments we see on ESPN? Chad and...

The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl Champions ... again! This week, we discuss: 3:30 — How did the Chiefs pull off the victory? What are our expectations going forward for both the Chiefs and the Eagles? And yes, was the holding penalty the right call? 25:15 — Why is Chad upset about the reaction to the Super Bowl Halftime Show, and what did the guys think about Rihanna's performance? 29:30 — Wh...

Last Tuesday, LeBron James passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the player with the most points in NBA history. This momentous achievement gives us the chance to discuss the significance of the record for LeBron, and his complicated relationship with the man he took the record from. This week, we discuss: 2:30 — Is the European Super League back? A new proposal has revised the original Super Leagu...

In many ways, NFL head coaches operate like military generals. They delegate to subordinates, scheme and create tactical plans, and motivate the players they lead. So who are some of the NFL head coaches that resemble specific generals? This week, we discuss: 1:30 — Tom Brady retired from the NFL again, so we say anything that we want to add from the last time we discussed this retirement...exactl...

January has been filled with headlines about domestic violence allegations against prominent sports figures. Why do we keep seeing more stories like this? Do sports have a domestic violence problem? And how should leagues and organizations punish people with these allegations? This week, we discuss: 2:30 — Netflix has released a new show about tennis, Break Point , as well as the trailer for an up...

Damar Hamlin suffered a severe and scary injury during Monday Night Football. He suffered cardiac arrest and had CPR performed on him. We are examining this story, the reaction, and the wider conversation of player health in football. This week, we discuss: 0:56: BIG STORY — Damar Hamlin's injury was scary in the moment, and in the aftermath the NFL postponed Monday Night Football. There was an ou...

On Sunday, France and Argentina will face off in the World Cup Final. The knockout rounds of the tournament were filmed with drama, and controversy, and we look back on the previous week's games, and then project forward to the upcoming final. This week, we discuss: 4:54: Brittany Griner has returned to America as part of a prisoner exchange. We discuss Griner's return to the states, who America l...

It wasn't easy, and it certainly wasn't stress-free, but the USA have advanced to the knockout rounds of the World Cup. Chad and John discuss what we can be confident about the team, and where we should be nervous. This week, we discuss: 4:05: The USA navigated their group stage and advanced. We look at the best games, the standout players, and how we match up against our next opponent: the Nether...

The 2022 World Cup starts in just a few short days, and Chad and John are here to prepare you for the biggest event in the world. Before talking about the games themselves, we first look at the controversies surrounding this World Cup, and the issues fans might face in Qatar. This week, we discuss: 2:40: Reacting to Brittany Griner and the beginning of her prison sentence in a Russian penal colony...

Kyrie Irving posted a dangerous, antisemitic "documentary" on his Twitter account, and defiantly stood behind his decision for several days. When punishment finally came, he offered an apology, but the damage was already done. What should the Brooklyn Nets do about this situation, and has player empowerment finally gone too far? This week, we discuss: 4:20: Recap of the first four games of the Wor...

The NFL season is only seven weeks in, but there have already been plenty of drama and controversy. Three teams have risen to the top of the power rankings, while both teams from New York have exceeded expectations. But speaking of expectations, both the Packers and the Buccaneers have underperformed so far. This week, we discuss: 3:45: Chad previews the 2022 World Series between the Astros and th...

The National Women's Soccer League published a 300-page investigation into sexual abuse allegations throughout the league. The document accuses owners, managers, and coaches or abusing or enabling the abuse of soccer players for a decade. This week, we discuss: 4:14: We open with a conversation about why the NFL's primetime games aren't living up to the hype, and speak again about the league's con...

Aaron Judge recently tied Roger Maris for fifth on the MLB single-season home run record. But his accomplishment has sparked a wider debate about how we should view this record? Should we think of Judge as fighting for fifth, or fighting for first? This week, we discuss: 2:20: Tua Tagovailoa suffered a scary injury on Thursday Night Football, which brought into question the health and safety proto...

After a year-long investigation into racist, sexist, and toxic workplace behavior, the NBA has suspended Phoenix Suns' owner Robert Sarver for one year and have fined him $10 million. But for many people inside and outside of the league, this punishment hasn't gone far enough. This week, we discuss: 3:02: Roger Federer has retired from men's tennis. We reflect on his career and the timing of his d...

VAR, or Video Assistant Referee, has been a controversial subject since its introduction to world football, and other sports have a version of video replay as well. Why is video replay such a controversial thing? What does it make better? And is there anything video replay makes worse? This week, we discuss: The US Open has been an amazing tennis tournament, and Chad and John catch up on all the h...

After some technical difficulties, we are finally able to release what was supposed to be our 100th episode of Crunching Tackles. To celebrate, we are talking about the most entertaining athletes in sports—the ones you should be watching every chance you get.  We begin with a reaction to the Deshaun Watson settlement (2:45), that will force him to miss 11 games of the 2022 regular season. Was this...

Serena's legendary tennis career has come to an end. Chad and John recorded an episode before Williams' third-round loss (please forgive Chad for predicting she would make it to the semi-finals), but there still are a lot of insights to be gained from the way she went out and competed in this final US Open of her career. On today's show: John talks a bit about the new face of world soccer, and why...

In the buildup to the U.S. Open this year, Serena Williams announced that her career is soon coming to an end. That gives us an opportunity to reflect on her life and legacy, and discuss if she has the chance to leave the sport with a final triumphant win. This week, we discuss: Chad recommends Light & Magic , the documentary telling the story of the visual effects team behind Star Wars and ot...

On Monday, the independent arbiter for the NFL suspended Deshaun Watson for 6 games for violating the league's personal conduct policy. The NFL has appealed, demanding he get a much more severe punishment. This week, we discuss: First up, John recently watched the hit Netflix film Hustle on Chad's recommendation (2:00). Starring Adam Sandler, Hustle is one of the more pure and delightful films of...