Green Bay Packers VS Atlanta Falcons HIGHLIGHTS 1/22/2017| NFC Championship game (REACTION)
Green Bay Packers fans want the first half of Sunday"s NFC title game erased from human memory. Can you blame them?
Instead of surging into the Georgia Dome to go punch-for-punch with the high-flying Falcons, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers simply couldn"t get out of their own way.
Let"s examine the wreckage from the ugliest first half we"ve ever seen from a Rodgers-led team, who lost 44-21 to the Falcons to send Atlanta to their first Super Bowl since 1998:
That"s no exaggeration, by the way, with NFL Research noting that Sunday marks the first time the Packers have trailed by 24-plus points at the break during the Rodgers era, dating back to 2008.
The blame begins on defense, where green bay could only watch as otherworldly Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan ripped through the secondary for 20 first downs and a whopping 325 total yards of offense. Ryan connected with eight separate targets, overcoming a handful of drops to author one massive chunk play after the next.
After the Falcons took the opening possession 80 yards off 13 plays -- capped by Ryan"s touchdown strike to Mohamed Sanu -- it was time for the Packers to do their part. Instead, Green Bay"s Mason Crosby botched a 41-yard field goal try, becoming the first kicker to miss in this year"s playoffs. Doh!
On their following drive, trailing 10-0, Green Bay saw the series blown to bits when fullback Aaron Ripkowski barreled to the Atlanta 11-yard line only to fumble the ball away to the Falcons at the goal line for what was ultimately ruled a touchback.
On their following possession, trailing 17-0, Green Bay went three-and-out. One drive later, Rodgers unfurled a deep shot downfield on third-and-long -- right into the hands of Falcons safety Ricardo Allen. Scary stuff.
Beyond the inability to score -- or stop the Falcons on any level -- Green Bay"s lauded pass protection crumbled in the first half, allowing a sack and four rugged hits on Rodgers.
Toyota Motor Corp. is adding its name to a long list of automotive companies expected to join the advertising parade on Super Bowl Sunday.
The auto maker said it intends to air a 30-second spot during the big game that will promote Lexus new LC 500 coupe and its LS 500 luxury sedan. Lexus won"t only be seeking to bolster overall Lexus sales after vehicle sales for the brand fell 3.9% in 2016, but it will also be trying to do something broader: bring some cool factor to a brand that some see as boring.
Lexus is looking to bring a bigger sense of modernity to the brand, said Brian Bolain, general manager of Lexus marketing. The company introduced the LC 500 in an effort to give the overall brand a halo affect and help improve how consumers view the entire lineup of Lexus cars. The LC 500 starts at $92,000.
We are still known for customer service, safety and quality, but at the same time we are becoming known for performance, appearance and fun to drive, mr. Bolain added.
To help drive up the cool factor, Lexus has enlisted jookin dancing phenomenon Charles Lil Buck Riley to appear in its big game spot. He will be shown dancing and flexing his body to match the curves and the design of the cars, as music from recording artist Sia plays in the background. Actress Minnie Driver has been tapped to do the voice-over in the ad.
Toyota is releasing a 60-second version of the ad today but will air a 30-second cut down of the spot, called Man and Machine, during the second quarter of Super Bowl. The ad was crafted by Team One, an agency owed by Publicis Groupe.
Fox is still selling ad time for the Super Bowl broadcast and has been asking advertisers to fork over roughly $5 million for 30 seconds worth of time, ad buyer said.
Lexus points out that enlisting well-known celebrities and performers is critical when it comes to Super Bowl commercials because viewers expect ads in the game to be entertaining.
Moreover, the title game typically has more automobile traffic than the 405 freeway in California during rush hour.
Car companies have dominated the ad load during the big game for almost a decade.
Automakers have had the largest footprint each year since 2010, a stretch that coincides with increasing sales of new vehicles and a steady stream of marketing launches for new or redesigned models, according to ad tracker Kantar Media.
Last year, nine auto manufacturers were part of the game, accounting for 23% of all ad spending in the broadcast. Combined, the companies shelled out $89.4 million on Super Bowl ad time in 2016, Kantar estimates. That figure only includes the airtime and not the millions each auto company pours into creating each commercial.
Lexus will have plenty of competition this year. A long list of car brands including Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Buick, Honda and Kia are set to peddle their products during the game.
Its definitely a challenge and we dont take it on without a lot of thought, added Mr. Bolain.
Write to Suzanne Vranica at suzanne.vranica@wsj.com
박재범 Jay Park - "DRIVE (Feat. GRAY)" Official Music Video
The biggest market driver in the first weeks of the Trump administration will be just how efficiently it implements its plans, some strategists say.
The markets vacillated Friday around President Donald Trump"s inauguration. Major U.S. equity markets opened and closed in the green but endured choppy trading throughout the session, falling during the inauguration speech. Trump struck an isolationist tone, declaring "America first" and saying "protection will lead to great prosperity and strength."
At approximately 20 minutes past noon, in the middle of Trump"s speech, an investor appeared to sell 55,000 S&P 500 E-mini futures contracts (about $6 billion). Stocks neared lows of the trading session. The price of gold edged higher, at one point piercing the $1,214 level. And it appeared the rally U.S. equities had seen since Election Day the "Trump rally" was on shaky ground.
Over the next few weeks, the markets" performance will hinge on the Trump administration"s success in carrying out promises like tax cuts and the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, according to Gina Sanchez, CEO of Chantico Global.
"After having a pretty strong rally, they"ve started to move sideways and are questioning what"s going to happen, and so at this point we have to see Trump come in and start to execute on his plan," she said Friday on CNBC"s "Trading Nation." "Now whether or not that"s a good plan or not; I"m setting that aside. The point is that anything short of perfect execution is likely going to be a disappointment to the markets."
She added: "I think the first part of this year is going to be entirely emotionally driven and determined on execution whether that execution is done quickly." Sanchez said the market has more room for downside because investors have priced in "a lot of expectation."
Much of investors" optimism surrounding Trump grew from his call for infrastructure spending, a notion Citigroup"s head of North America economics William Lee in December largely dismissed as "fairy dust," suggesting the rally had gone too far, too fast. Trump on Friday did in fact promise infrastructure spending again. The S&P 500 materials sector closed the day as the best-performing sector.
The markets" expectations are high, said Larry McDonald, head of global macro strategy at ACG Analytics and editor of the Bear Traps Report financial newsletter.
"There"s disconnect between [Fed Chair] Janet Yellen and the Fed and Trump. This past week we saw something very interesting. Yellen was talking the dollar up and Trump was talking the dollar down. That"s highly unusual, so the market"s going to be looking if there"s a continuation of that disconnect," McDonald told "Trading Nation."
The U.S. dollar was weaker Friday against a basket of foreign currencies as investors took in Trump"s remarks. The move was quite different than the dollar"s rally after the election, rising nearly 4 percent in the month following Election Day.
McDonald believes there is also disagreement between Trump and congressional leadership on the timing of the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and the implementation of a new tax policy. He said the market will be looking for "cracks" in Trump"s agenda over the next 60 days.
That could pose a problem for the markets, he said, "but most of all I think the market"s just been moving toward expectation of information on trade, on health-care reform, and so far, we haven"t had a disappointment."
LONDON Britain"s government on Monday unveiled a new interventionist approach to rebalance its heavily services-based economy for the post-Brexit era, in a break with traditional Conservative laissez-faire economic policy.
Prime Minister Theresa May"s "Modern Industrial Strategy"demands closer collaboration in key industries in exchange for government support, aiming to increase productivity, reinvigorate industrial production and stimulate investment in technology and R&D.
The focus on industry and the shift to a governmental hands-on approach challenges the laissez-faire ideology championed by former prime minister Margaret Thatcher.
"Underpinning this strategy is a new approach to government, not just stepping back and leaving business to get on with the job, but stepping up to a new, active role that backs business," May wrote in a consultation document on the policy.
May asked businesses to work together to tackle industry-specific challenges, citing examples of successful collaboration that have helped attract overseas investment from the likes of carmaker Nissan (7201.T), and enabled aerospace firms such as BAE Systems (BAES.L) to develop a competitive edge.
In return she pledged to reciprocate with "Sector Deals" that address regulatory barriers, look at how trade and investment deals can be used to increase exports, and support the creation of new institutions to provide leadership, drive innovation or boost skills.
The government said early work had been done on deals for a number of industries: life sciences, ultra-low emission vehicles, nuclear and creative industries. But it said it would work with any sector that could "organize behind strong leadership to address shared challenges and opportunities".
PRODUCTIVITY PUZZLE
The plan aspires to distribute wealth more evenly, following decades of industrial decay in parts of Britain. The economy"s narrow base has been blamed for a mood of disenfranchisement that drove many voters to back Brexit.
It aims to boost Britain"s productivity, which has long lagged European rivals Germany and France. It cited the success of targeted government intervention in countries including the United States and South Korea.
The outline of was set out in a "Green Paper" inviting views from industry on the government"s objectives.
The government listed 10 strategic pillars behind its strategy such as skills development and improved procurement.
The publication drew positive responses from businesses looking to push their industries to the top of the government"s agenda, ranging from waste management firms to builders of new nuclear plants.
But not all sectors felt they would benefit.
A consumer goods industry executive, who declined to be named, said consumer goods were very far down the priority list.
"The high-skilled and high-paid, thats what drives economic spending and growth. Pharmaceuticals, heavy industry, IT all those sectors are always going to be the ones that are more favored," the executive said.
BACK IN FASHION
Since coming to office weeks after Britain"s vote to leave the EU last year, May has pushed the once-unfashionable concept of industrial strategy to the top of her agenda, creating a new government department to lead the project, and chairing a top-level cabinet committee on the subject.
Britain"s impending exit from the EU threatens to undermine the financial services sector, with several banks planning to shift thousands of jobs abroad because they fear they will lose access to the EU market.
May said last week that Britain would be withdrawing from the single market, and seeking a free trade agreement with the EU instead - a path critics have described as a "Hard Brexit" that would undermine the industrial strategy.
"Its like the manager tying their teams bootlaces together while telling them they have a plan to win the match," said Don Foster, business spokesman for the rival and pro-EU Liberal Democrat party.
May presented the full proposals, including plans to boost the teaching of technical skills and mathematics, and a 556-million pound boost for infrastructure projects, at a specially convened cabinet meeting in northwest England.
(Additional reporting by Costas Pitas, Sarah Young, Martinne Geller, Lina Saigol and Karolin Schaps; Editing by Andrew Roche)
Were Julian Edelman"s Steelers comments out of line? | UNDISPUTED
Antonio Brown might be the hardest-working wide receiver in the NFL. That"s how you go from a sixth-round pick to the league"s best pass catcher. But he also showed an inexplicable lack in judgment when he decided to Facebook Live from the Steelers locker room moments after their playoff win over the Chiefs on Sunday night.
NFL Playoffs
Exacerbating matters: As Brown was mugging for his iPhone camera for more than 15 minutes, coach Mike Tomlin was addressing the team. Brown seemed oblivious to this fact.
"When you get to this point in the journey, man, not a lot needs to be said," Tomlin said to his team -- and unbeknownst to him, the rest of Planet Earth. "Let"s say very little moving forward. Let"s start our preparations. We just spotted these a--h---- a day and a half. They played yesterday. Our game got moved to tonight. We"re going to touch down at 4 o"clock in the f---ing morning. So be it. We"ll be ready for their a--. But you ain"t got to tell them we"re coming. Keep a low profile, and let"s get ready to ball like this up again here in a few days and be right back at it. That"s our story."
You know what this means: The Patriots, renowned for their ability to turn any perceived slight into a "NO ONE BELIEVES IN US!" meme, had their bulletin-board material.
Brown apologized hours later, but by then, everybody and their brother had weighed in -- including Patriots players willing to go on the record.
"That"s how that team is run," Pats wideout Julian Edelman told WEEI on Monday. "I personally don"t think that would be something that would happen in our locker room, but hey, whatever. Some people like red and some people like blue. Some people like tulips and some people like roses. Whatever."
And Tom Brady added: "That"s against our team policy. I don"t think that would go over well with our coach."
Other anonymous Patriots players also sounded off to Bleacher Report"s Mike Freeman.
"F--- Mike Tomlin," one Patriots player reportedly said in a text response.
Another Patriots player texted Freeman this: "Why are we a--h---- when he"s doing the name-calling? ... Put the phone down, dude. That violates the trust of your teammates and coaches."
Steelers left guard Ramon Foster can answer that question: "As far as I"m concerned, everybody in this league is an a--h---, in my opinion," he told reporters. "You have to be to play this sport. Coaches don"t become head coaches by being nice guys."
In Tomlin"s defense, he wasn"t exactly stoked by Brown"s impromptu broadcast session, telling the media on Tuesday that Brown"s actions were "foolish ... selfish and inconsiderate." And he wasn"t smiling when he said it.
Meanwhile, Bill Belichick turned on the Belichick "Aw, shucks" Gomer Pyle-charm when the he was asked about the video, and we"re pretty sure Tomin"s private comments will come up in a Patriots team meeting at least once between now and Sunday.
Andrew Joseph Published 3:46 p.m. ET Jan. 22, 2017 | Updated 19 hours ago
(Photo: Getty Images)
Jordy Nelson suffered fractured ribs in the Packers" win over the Giants two weeks ago. That somehow hasn"t kept Nelson out of the NFC Championship Game in Atlanta.
Before the game, reporters were quick to point out Nelson"s rib protector under his jersey. While nearly all football players wear some sort of rib protection, Nelson took it to another level.
A broken rib is such a painful injury that it was remarkable that Nelson even played, and in the Packers" first drive, the protector seemed to do his job. He made two receptions without showing any signs of pain on the tackles.
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