Michael Bennett had one job to do over the weekend in London, and he almost got out of it.
According to ESPN’s Mike DiRocco, Bennett, a second-year defensive tackle for the Jacksonville Jaguars, was sent to London to help announce the team’s fifth-round draft pick with one of the team’s fans in the United Kingdom. Things were going pretty well until the Jaguars traded away the fifth-round pick to move up in the second round.
Bennett thought that meant he was getting a paid vacation.
“HAHAHAHAHA Jacksonville flew me to London to announce the 146 pick,” Bennett posted on Twitter after landing. “They just traded it away. Thanks for the flight! LOL.”
His boss, however, had no clue.
“Um, oh, is that right?” Jaguars GM Dave Caldwell said. “Can he do the sixth? He got a free vacation.”
So, the Jaguars had Bennett and the fan, Hamish Shilliday, 29, announce one of the team’s sixthround picks.
Bennett was chosen to make the trip overseas because he was the player the Jaguars selected in the sixth round in 2015, which was announced by Jaguars fan George Bedford in London. That was the first time a draft pick was announced outside the United States.
Sam who?
The NFL Draft has come and gone, the Philadelphia Eagles drafted Carson Wentz as expected, and Sam Bradford — still an Eagle — isn’t happy, also as expected.
According Fox Sports’ Andre Vergara, Wentz might also be throwing a little shade Bradford’s way.
“Wentz is facing the rigors of being the Eagles’ top pick — he already got booed within minutes of arriving in Philly — and being dropped in the middle of a messy QB competition,” Vergara wrote. “And to his credit, he said the right thing about that situation.”
“It’s something that’s out of my control entirely,” Wentz told CSN Philly, “so I’m gonna just come in and earn the respect of my teammates and compete and, you know, learn.”
What caught Vergara’s attention came later in the same interview, when Wentz was asked what he knows of Bradford and his impression of him.
“Yeah I’ve seen him play a little bit. Obviously I know he was a top pick and everything, not too many years ago, and obviously I know he was with the Rams and everything, and now here.
“But you know, I haven’t watched a ton of film on him. I watched a lot of film on guys like Brady and Manning and Rodgers, those types of things. So I don’t know as much as some of the other guys.”
As Vergara wrote, “Take that however you wanna take it.”
True veteran
Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant thinks San Antonio Spurs forward Tim Duncan, an 18-year NBA veteran who turned 40 last week, could stick around for quite some time.
“Tim Duncan could play until he’s 90,” Durant told the San Antonio Express-News before Saturday’s playoff game.
To be fair, Durant doesn’t think Duncan would be quite the same after 50 more years on the court.
“It’s not about him scoring 20 and getting 10 rebounds, it’s just his presence,” Durant said.
Saturday, Durant finished with 16 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists in a 124-92 Spurs victory.
Say what?
Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times on Miami Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon and his 80-game suspension for using performance-enhancing drugs: “MLB officials figured something was amiss when he slid into second and came to a stop on the left-field warning track.”
From ESPN.com, on the Miami Dolphins No. 1 draft pick, offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil: “Where there’s smoke … there’s the Ole Miss NFL Draft Class of 2016.”
ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, to QB Jared Goff, welcoming the Rams’ No. 1 draft pick to L.A.: “Do you have a girlfriend? Can we get you a Kardashian or something like that?”