From Disability Scoop..
A commercial that aired during the Super bowl featured a group of children with disabilities hyping a product geared toward them.
Microsoft ran an advertisement during the fourth quarter of last Sunday's big game on CBS promoting its Xbox Adaptive Controller.
A version of the spot is available online shows children with various disabilities and their parents talking about how the adaptive device has helped level the playing field. During the Super Bowl, a condensed, 60-second version aired.
The customized controller, which debuted last year, is designed to enable gamers with disabilities to play with whatever abilities they have through their hands, feet, mouth, head or otherwise.
In the ad, the kids describe how the $00.99 adaptive controller has allowed them to play faster and experience games more similarly to their friends without disabilities.
"Our intent with our ads is to illustrate a product and a human truth and deliver on our mission of empowering every person and organization on the planet to achieve more,' said Kathleen Hall, corporate vice president of brand, advertising and research at Microsoft. "In this instance, the Xbox Adaptive Controller helps the children enhance their gaming experience and compete in new ways. What better message for a premier sporting event?"
The commercial dubbed "We All Win" is not the first to push the adaptive controller. Microsoft also opted to highlight the device in its holiday advertising campaign leading up to Christmas.
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
PHILLY SPORTS CORNER- FLYERS, EAGLES
- The Flyers won their eighth game in a row last night, beating vancouver 2-1. The Orange and Black are now only five points out of a playoff spot. Several weeks ago they were 14 points behind the second wild card slot.
Rookie goalie Carter Hart is the differnce. He has confidence in goal and has made the defense and the entire team play with confidence.
I love winning streaks. The Flyers approach 10 games, which will start to get serious. They can get nine on Thursday night vs the Kings. 10 would be Saturday afternoon against Anaheim. That would set up a titanic match-up with the visiting Penguins next Monday night. It will be Pittsburgh's first time in the Wells Fargo Center this season.
- I really don't care about this continuing story of Carson Wentz and the locker room. All I really care about is how Wentz plays on game day and that he remains healthy.
If the Eagles can get somethingfor Nick Foles, why not? I appreciate everything St. Nick did for the birds and wish they could keep him. Hopefully he does'ntend up with the Giants, otherwise I wish him luck wherever he goes. So I don't blame the Eagles were picking up his contract option. If they can get a first or even a second round draft pick in a trade, they should. They get a third rounder as a compensatory pick if Foles walks as a free agent.
The 2019 NFL schedule will be out in mid April. For now we know who the Eagles will play at home and on the road this fall. Coming to the Linc will be:
* New England- Will be a tough ticket to get. Tom Brady makes a rare- and maybe final- appearance in Philadelphia. A rematch of Super Bowl LII, a face-off between the last two world champions. Will probably be a prime-time Sunday Night affair.
* Seattle- The Seahawks are a playoff team and have QB Russell Wilson in his prime. Better to play the Seahawks in Philly other than out in noisy Seattle. Could be a prime-time game, but most likely a late Fox or CBS game.
* Chicago- a rematch of the playoff game between the Eagles and Bears. Will kicker Cody Parke still be on the team?
* New York Jets- A rare regular season game against the Jets. Plenty of New Yorkers will make the trip down the turnpike.
* Detroit- Getting the mediocre Lions outdoors should be advantage Eagles.
Plus the usual home game against division rivals New York Giants, Washington and Dallas.
On the road the Eagles visit:
* Buffalo- Will the game be in fall or near icy Christmas? Will Shady McCoy still be on the bills?
* Miami- Will Foles be playing in sunny Miami when the Eagles come to call?
* Green Bay-Hopefully it's not a night game in frigid weather in Lambeau Field.
* Minnesota- Yet another match-up with the Vikings, this time in Minnesota. Another cold weather city, this one with a dome.
* Atlanta- Another match-up with QB Matt Ryan
Plus the road games at New York, Washington and Dallas.
Not bad. Better than a first-place schedule which the Cowboys must endure. Games against New Orleans, Los Angeles and Chicago.
- The ratings for Super Bowl LIII were the worst in 10 years. Who wanted to see New England again? The Rams have no fan base. The game turned out to be boring, slow and low-scoring. The halftime show and commercials were mostly stupid. No wonder the TV ratings were down.
Rookie goalie Carter Hart is the differnce. He has confidence in goal and has made the defense and the entire team play with confidence.
I love winning streaks. The Flyers approach 10 games, which will start to get serious. They can get nine on Thursday night vs the Kings. 10 would be Saturday afternoon against Anaheim. That would set up a titanic match-up with the visiting Penguins next Monday night. It will be Pittsburgh's first time in the Wells Fargo Center this season.
- I really don't care about this continuing story of Carson Wentz and the locker room. All I really care about is how Wentz plays on game day and that he remains healthy.
If the Eagles can get somethingfor Nick Foles, why not? I appreciate everything St. Nick did for the birds and wish they could keep him. Hopefully he does'ntend up with the Giants, otherwise I wish him luck wherever he goes. So I don't blame the Eagles were picking up his contract option. If they can get a first or even a second round draft pick in a trade, they should. They get a third rounder as a compensatory pick if Foles walks as a free agent.
The 2019 NFL schedule will be out in mid April. For now we know who the Eagles will play at home and on the road this fall. Coming to the Linc will be:
* New England- Will be a tough ticket to get. Tom Brady makes a rare- and maybe final- appearance in Philadelphia. A rematch of Super Bowl LII, a face-off between the last two world champions. Will probably be a prime-time Sunday Night affair.
* Seattle- The Seahawks are a playoff team and have QB Russell Wilson in his prime. Better to play the Seahawks in Philly other than out in noisy Seattle. Could be a prime-time game, but most likely a late Fox or CBS game.
* Chicago- a rematch of the playoff game between the Eagles and Bears. Will kicker Cody Parke still be on the team?
* New York Jets- A rare regular season game against the Jets. Plenty of New Yorkers will make the trip down the turnpike.
* Detroit- Getting the mediocre Lions outdoors should be advantage Eagles.
Plus the usual home game against division rivals New York Giants, Washington and Dallas.
On the road the Eagles visit:
* Buffalo- Will the game be in fall or near icy Christmas? Will Shady McCoy still be on the bills?
* Miami- Will Foles be playing in sunny Miami when the Eagles come to call?
* Green Bay-Hopefully it's not a night game in frigid weather in Lambeau Field.
* Minnesota- Yet another match-up with the Vikings, this time in Minnesota. Another cold weather city, this one with a dome.
* Atlanta- Another match-up with QB Matt Ryan
Plus the road games at New York, Washington and Dallas.
Not bad. Better than a first-place schedule which the Cowboys must endure. Games against New Orleans, Los Angeles and Chicago.
- The ratings for Super Bowl LIII were the worst in 10 years. Who wanted to see New England again? The Rams have no fan base. The game turned out to be boring, slow and low-scoring. The halftime show and commercials were mostly stupid. No wonder the TV ratings were down.
THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY- FEBRUARY 5
Happy Birthday Hank!
"I have always felt that although someone may defeat me, and I strike out in a ball game, the pitcher on the particular day was the best player. Bit I know when I see him again, I'm going to be ready for his curve ball.
"Failure is a part of success. There is no such thing as a bed of roses all your life. But failure will never stand in the way of success if you learn from it."
- Hank Aaron
The Major League's all-time HR and RBI leader at one time, Henry Aaron turns 85 today. Aaron began his professional career in 1952 as an 18-year-old shortstop with the Indianapolis Clowns of the American Negro League.
"I have always felt that although someone may defeat me, and I strike out in a ball game, the pitcher on the particular day was the best player. Bit I know when I see him again, I'm going to be ready for his curve ball.
"Failure is a part of success. There is no such thing as a bed of roses all your life. But failure will never stand in the way of success if you learn from it."
- Hank Aaron
The Major League's all-time HR and RBI leader at one time, Henry Aaron turns 85 today. Aaron began his professional career in 1952 as an 18-year-old shortstop with the Indianapolis Clowns of the American Negro League.
BASEBALL TRIVIA
Hall of Fame
Name the Astros who have had their numbers retired and are in the hall of fame:
A. Mike Scott
B. Don Wilson
C. Jeff Bagwell
D. Craig Biggio
E. Nolan Ryan
Answers: 1-E (uniform number 34); 2-D (7); 3-C (5)
Baseball Birthdays
Hank Aaron
Roberto Alomar
Max Flack
Name the Astros who have had their numbers retired and are in the hall of fame:
A. Mike Scott
B. Don Wilson
C. Jeff Bagwell
D. Craig Biggio
E. Nolan Ryan
Answers: 1-E (uniform number 34); 2-D (7); 3-C (5)
Baseball Birthdays
Hank Aaron
Roberto Alomar
Max Flack
Monday, February 4, 2019
THIS DAY IN SPORTS HISTORY- FEBRUARY 4
"Without failure, who would you be?"
- Nick Foles (Super Bowl MVP)
One year ago tonight, the Eagles win their first Super Bowl.
Final score: Pjiladelphia 41, New England 33.
- Nick Foles (Super Bowl MVP)
One year ago tonight, the Eagles win their first Super Bowl.
Final score: Pjiladelphia 41, New England 33.
BASEBALL TRIVIA
Baseball Quotes
"Army life was rough. Would you believe it, they actually wanted me to pitch three times a week."
- Whitey Ford describing his militry service in 1951 and 1952 in his autobiography Slick.
Baseball Birthdays
Dan Plesac
Chris Bando
Rob Picciolo
Steve Brye
"Army life was rough. Would you believe it, they actually wanted me to pitch three times a week."
- Whitey Ford describing his militry service in 1951 and 1952 in his autobiography Slick.
Baseball Birthdays
Dan Plesac
Chris Bando
Rob Picciolo
Steve Brye
SUPER BOWL REVIEW
My review of the awful, boring Super Bowl LIII..
- Since the Eagles didn't make it back to the Super bowl, anything less would've sucked big time. But I never expected Super bowl LIII to be the sleepy, boring piece of garbage that it was.Several times i caught myself nodding off. You know it's a bad game when the punters were highlights.
New England ties Pittsburgh for most Super Bowl victories at six. New Orleans and Saint fans must be going crazy again, knowing they should've been in the game, knowing Drew Brees would've most likely fared better against a beatable Tom Brady and the Pats.
New England keeps winning, even though its clear they are not the juggernaut of before. They lost five game this season, did not have home field advantage in the playoffs, and only scored 13 points in the big game. Yet they won..again.
- Ram fans didn't show up last night. L.A. has no fan base. Imagine if Eagle fans were in Atlanta instead. How are they going to sell out that 70,000-plus new stadium they are building out west? How many times do we have to realize that Los Angeles doesn't care about pro football?
- Gladys Knight sang the national Anthem and just did OK. She dragged out the ending, which caused the Over to win in the prop bet of the Anthem going over 1:53. the final tally time of the Anthem last night was 2:01.Knight sang live but the orchestra was taped. You almost waited for her to mess up. A big sigh of relief when it was over.
- Meanwhile the halftime show sucked. Maroon 5 is so yesterday. Too much rap, trying to cater to the millinials and the hip-hop generation. A screaming gospel lady and a huge black guy wearing a mink coat for some reason, and another rapper using profanity almost every other word. That's what we call American entertainment these days.
The Rolling Stones are all in their seventies yet I would've rather seen them before at halftime.
- The coin toss was Tails. The Rams won it yet deferred to the Patriots, almost a costly mistake when Brady took the offense down the field but tossed an interception near the L.A. 20-yard line. nice to see Martin Luther King's daughter preside over the Coin Toss ceremony.
- Not only were Saint fans sick watching that game, thinking they would've gave the Pats a better game, but the Eagles had to feel we easily could've won back-to-back championships. The Birds beat the Rams in the regular season, and New England was there for the taking last night.
That Alshon Jeffery dropped pass at the end of the New Orleans game was even bigger.
- New England comes to the Linc next fall. Tough ticket to get. So do the bears and Seahawks. The Patriot game won't be in the first two games of the season, as New England will host the Thursday Night Opener, and the Birds should be on the road for Game Two. I'm sure the new England- Philly rematch will be in prime time, probably a Sunday Night attraction.
- Jered Goff, the Ram coach, and really, almost everyone else associated with the Rams, choked and were scared last night. As the pre-game ceremonies were going on, Goff looked terrified on the sidelines. The spotlight was too big and the Rams knew they didn't belong. Still, they hung with the Patriots a long time, maybe because the declining Pats were no bed of roses either.
- Tony Romo, this great football color guy and prognosticator, wasn't much better than the game either. He couldn't really comment on the offense because there was hardly any offense on both sides. His goofy grin doesn't help matter. He's better than fellow ex-Cowboy Jason Whitten, but that's not saying much. Romo still isn't quite as good as another ex- Cowboy, Troy Aiken.
Overall, the entire CBS production was weak. The opening between Peyton manning and John Malkowitz was stupid and not funny. Tracy Wolfson almost got trampled on after the game, trying to get a few words from Brady. Jim Nance was anything special as the lead announcer. The pre and post game crew, predicting and analyzing, were just OK. As much as I hate the declining Fox football coverage anymore I'm looking forward to their Super Bowl coverage next season.
- The Super Bowl ads aren't the same anymore either. most are played a week before the game, so no surprise anymore. Most of the car commercials, or soda ads, or mobile device ads were pretty stupid to the point that it is a crime that someone got paid for thinking up such awful advertising ads.
The Microsoft ad with disabled kids using the special adaptable devices to play video games, was touching and meaningful. One of the funny ads was a guy being brought back from the dead after experiencing a new car with his late father in heaven. ( you had to see it to appreciate it).
Familar faces such as Jeff Bridges and Steve Carell were seen in the commercials but no celebrity made an ad better or more memorable. That's the key. Ads come and go, just like Super Bowls. If an ad touches you so much that you can't forget it, the ad did it's job. I didn't get any of that last night.
Carson Wentz can recapture his rightful place as one of the game's great young quarterbacks next season and surpass Goff. He gave an interview recently with Eagle beat writers and acknowledged that some of which was in a recent article about Wentz being" selfish" was true. I'm glad he took it upon himself to be honest and seems determined and focused to turn things around next season.
- All in all, the Rams looked like fish out of water. They played well defensively, but their vaunted high-scoring offense looked stagnant. Seemed like Goff was throwing off his back foot all game. They used running back Todd Gurley sparingly. No plays down field to their speedy wide receivers cooks and Woods. Bill Belichek simply out coached Sean McVeigh.
- And just like that the football season is over. What will we do on Sundays now? No worries. Free agency starts in march. The NFL Draft is in late April. The schedule is released. OTAs begin after the draft. The NFL is a 12-month league now. but it does seem like a long way until Labor Day and beyond.
- Since the Eagles didn't make it back to the Super bowl, anything less would've sucked big time. But I never expected Super bowl LIII to be the sleepy, boring piece of garbage that it was.Several times i caught myself nodding off. You know it's a bad game when the punters were highlights.
New England ties Pittsburgh for most Super Bowl victories at six. New Orleans and Saint fans must be going crazy again, knowing they should've been in the game, knowing Drew Brees would've most likely fared better against a beatable Tom Brady and the Pats.
New England keeps winning, even though its clear they are not the juggernaut of before. They lost five game this season, did not have home field advantage in the playoffs, and only scored 13 points in the big game. Yet they won..again.
- Ram fans didn't show up last night. L.A. has no fan base. Imagine if Eagle fans were in Atlanta instead. How are they going to sell out that 70,000-plus new stadium they are building out west? How many times do we have to realize that Los Angeles doesn't care about pro football?
- Gladys Knight sang the national Anthem and just did OK. She dragged out the ending, which caused the Over to win in the prop bet of the Anthem going over 1:53. the final tally time of the Anthem last night was 2:01.Knight sang live but the orchestra was taped. You almost waited for her to mess up. A big sigh of relief when it was over.
- Meanwhile the halftime show sucked. Maroon 5 is so yesterday. Too much rap, trying to cater to the millinials and the hip-hop generation. A screaming gospel lady and a huge black guy wearing a mink coat for some reason, and another rapper using profanity almost every other word. That's what we call American entertainment these days.
The Rolling Stones are all in their seventies yet I would've rather seen them before at halftime.
- The coin toss was Tails. The Rams won it yet deferred to the Patriots, almost a costly mistake when Brady took the offense down the field but tossed an interception near the L.A. 20-yard line. nice to see Martin Luther King's daughter preside over the Coin Toss ceremony.
- Not only were Saint fans sick watching that game, thinking they would've gave the Pats a better game, but the Eagles had to feel we easily could've won back-to-back championships. The Birds beat the Rams in the regular season, and New England was there for the taking last night.
That Alshon Jeffery dropped pass at the end of the New Orleans game was even bigger.
- New England comes to the Linc next fall. Tough ticket to get. So do the bears and Seahawks. The Patriot game won't be in the first two games of the season, as New England will host the Thursday Night Opener, and the Birds should be on the road for Game Two. I'm sure the new England- Philly rematch will be in prime time, probably a Sunday Night attraction.
- Jered Goff, the Ram coach, and really, almost everyone else associated with the Rams, choked and were scared last night. As the pre-game ceremonies were going on, Goff looked terrified on the sidelines. The spotlight was too big and the Rams knew they didn't belong. Still, they hung with the Patriots a long time, maybe because the declining Pats were no bed of roses either.
- Tony Romo, this great football color guy and prognosticator, wasn't much better than the game either. He couldn't really comment on the offense because there was hardly any offense on both sides. His goofy grin doesn't help matter. He's better than fellow ex-Cowboy Jason Whitten, but that's not saying much. Romo still isn't quite as good as another ex- Cowboy, Troy Aiken.
Overall, the entire CBS production was weak. The opening between Peyton manning and John Malkowitz was stupid and not funny. Tracy Wolfson almost got trampled on after the game, trying to get a few words from Brady. Jim Nance was anything special as the lead announcer. The pre and post game crew, predicting and analyzing, were just OK. As much as I hate the declining Fox football coverage anymore I'm looking forward to their Super Bowl coverage next season.
- The Super Bowl ads aren't the same anymore either. most are played a week before the game, so no surprise anymore. Most of the car commercials, or soda ads, or mobile device ads were pretty stupid to the point that it is a crime that someone got paid for thinking up such awful advertising ads.
The Microsoft ad with disabled kids using the special adaptable devices to play video games, was touching and meaningful. One of the funny ads was a guy being brought back from the dead after experiencing a new car with his late father in heaven. ( you had to see it to appreciate it).
Familar faces such as Jeff Bridges and Steve Carell were seen in the commercials but no celebrity made an ad better or more memorable. That's the key. Ads come and go, just like Super Bowls. If an ad touches you so much that you can't forget it, the ad did it's job. I didn't get any of that last night.
Carson Wentz can recapture his rightful place as one of the game's great young quarterbacks next season and surpass Goff. He gave an interview recently with Eagle beat writers and acknowledged that some of which was in a recent article about Wentz being" selfish" was true. I'm glad he took it upon himself to be honest and seems determined and focused to turn things around next season.
- All in all, the Rams looked like fish out of water. They played well defensively, but their vaunted high-scoring offense looked stagnant. Seemed like Goff was throwing off his back foot all game. They used running back Todd Gurley sparingly. No plays down field to their speedy wide receivers cooks and Woods. Bill Belichek simply out coached Sean McVeigh.
- And just like that the football season is over. What will we do on Sundays now? No worries. Free agency starts in march. The NFL Draft is in late April. The schedule is released. OTAs begin after the draft. The NFL is a 12-month league now. but it does seem like a long way until Labor Day and beyond.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)