Michael David Smith
@michaeldavidsmith.bsky.social
Football writer, physical fitness enthusiast, adoring husband.
I think some of the Hall of Fame voters who didn't vote for Bill Belichick voted strategically. They thought, "Belichick is a lock and I can only vote for 3, so I'll vote for 3 other candidates and not use one of my votes on the shoo-in. And I'll assume 10 other voters won't do the same thing."
January 28, 2026 at 4:18 PM
I think some of the Hall of Fame voters who didn't vote for Bill Belichick voted strategically. They thought, "Belichick is a lock and I can only vote for 3, so I'll vote for 3 other candidates and not use one of my votes on the shoo-in. And I'll assume 10 other voters won't do the same thing."
I don't think I've ever seen a player hurt his team quite like Riq Woolen just did. The Rams were about to punt when Woolen decided to taunt their sideline, giving them an automatic first down. Very next play, Woolen is burned for a touchdown pass. Incredible.
January 26, 2026 at 2:00 AM
I don't think I've ever seen a player hurt his team quite like Riq Woolen just did. The Rams were about to punt when Woolen decided to taunt their sideline, giving them an automatic first down. Very next play, Woolen is burned for a touchdown pass. Incredible.
Miami just standing there, running all that time off the clock and calling timeout on fourth-and-2 is dumb. At least line up your offense and see if you can draw Indiana offside before the timeout.
January 20, 2026 at 2:12 AM
Miami just standing there, running all that time off the clock and calling timeout on fourth-and-2 is dumb. At least line up your offense and see if you can draw Indiana offside before the timeout.
If you have so little faith in your QB getting a first down that you feel the need to punt while down by 12 with 4 minutes left, then you should have benched your QB a long time ago.
January 18, 2026 at 11:09 PM
If you have so little faith in your QB getting a first down that you feel the need to punt while down by 12 with 4 minutes left, then you should have benched your QB a long time ago.
I'm guessing the model doesn't consider Denver's altitude?
January 17, 2026 at 11:49 PM
I'm guessing the model doesn't consider Denver's altitude?
Punting for 25 yards instead of trying a 58-yard field goal at Denver's altitude (with a kicker who has made a 60-yarder at sea level) is a shockingly bad decision by Sean Payton.
January 17, 2026 at 11:48 PM
Punting for 25 yards instead of trying a 58-yard field goal at Denver's altitude (with a kicker who has made a 60-yarder at sea level) is a shockingly bad decision by Sean Payton.
I thought so on first view but re-watched the play and Broncos had an offensive lineman several yards downfield so I don't think it was going to be a pass.
January 17, 2026 at 11:23 PM
I thought so on first view but re-watched the play and Broncos had an offensive lineman several yards downfield so I don't think it was going to be a pass.
CBS has the Bills' field goal target line at Matt Prater’s career long, which he made in Denver when he was 29 years old. That’s not his range at sea level and 41 years old.
January 11, 2026 at 7:23 PM
CBS has the Bills' field goal target line at Matt Prater’s career long, which he made in Denver when he was 29 years old. That’s not his range at sea level and 41 years old.
Always funny to see a guy run off the field celebrating after an interception on a deep pass on fourth down. You're celebrating that you just cost your team 27 yards of field position.
January 11, 2026 at 1:47 AM
Always funny to see a guy run off the field celebrating after an interception on a deep pass on fourth down. You're celebrating that you just cost your team 27 yards of field position.
Newsflash: Curt Cignetti is better at evaluating talent than the people who decide if high school football players deserve 4 or 5 stars.
January 10, 2026 at 2:04 AM
Newsflash: Curt Cignetti is better at evaluating talent than the people who decide if high school football players deserve 4 or 5 stars.
The Packers getting Malik Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the best personnel moves in the NFL in recent years.
The Titans giving up Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the dumbest moves in recent years.
If you can get a talented QB, get him. If you have one, keep him.
The Titans giving up Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the dumbest moves in recent years.
If you can get a talented QB, get him. If you have one, keep him.
December 21, 2025 at 2:22 AM
The Packers getting Malik Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the best personnel moves in the NFL in recent years.
The Titans giving up Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the dumbest moves in recent years.
If you can get a talented QB, get him. If you have one, keep him.
The Titans giving up Willis for a seventh-round pick was one of the dumbest moves in recent years.
If you can get a talented QB, get him. If you have one, keep him.
Dan Campbell has turned into a different coach. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
---> DET (24) @ LA (34) <---
DET has 4th & 7 at the DET 38, Q4 14:08
Recommendation (STRONG): 👉 Go for it (+1.2 WP)
Actual play: 🏈🦵 J.Fox punts 62 yards to end zone, Center-H.Hatten, Touchback.
DET has 4th & 7 at the DET 38, Q4 14:08
Recommendation (STRONG): 👉 Go for it (+1.2 WP)
Actual play: 🏈🦵 J.Fox punts 62 yards to end zone, Center-H.Hatten, Touchback.
December 14, 2025 at 11:52 PM
Dan Campbell has turned into a different coach. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
Seriously the difference between what the Packers' offense would be able to do if both Tucker Kraft and Christian Watson were healthy and what it will be able to do down the stretch if neither is healthy is enormous.
December 14, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Seriously the difference between what the Packers' offense would be able to do if both Tucker Kraft and Christian Watson were healthy and what it will be able to do down the stretch if neither is healthy is enormous.
Dan Campbell has looked gun shy the last few weeks. Kicking on a play when the analytics say you should go for it is unusual for him. The fact that they missed the field goal makes it worse for the Lions, but the issue is the decision, not the result. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
---> DET (0) @ LA (0) <---
DET has 4th & 4 at the LAR 25, Q1 11:16
Recommendation (STRONG): 👉 Go for it (+2.4 WP)
Actual play: 👟🏈 J.Bates 43 yard field goal is No Good, Wide Left, Center-H.Hatten, Holder-J.Fox.
DET has 4th & 4 at the LAR 25, Q1 11:16
Recommendation (STRONG): 👉 Go for it (+2.4 WP)
Actual play: 👟🏈 J.Bates 43 yard field goal is No Good, Wide Left, Center-H.Hatten, Holder-J.Fox.
December 14, 2025 at 9:34 PM
Dan Campbell has looked gun shy the last few weeks. Kicking on a play when the analytics say you should go for it is unusual for him. The fact that they missed the field goal makes it worse for the Lions, but the issue is the decision, not the result. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
I would love to be proven wrong because it would be fun to see Philip Rivers play a great game today, but I just do not believe a 44-year-old coming off a five-year layoff can walk back into the NFL and play at a high level.
December 14, 2025 at 5:28 PM
I would love to be proven wrong because it would be fun to see Philip Rivers play a great game today, but I just do not believe a 44-year-old coming off a five-year layoff can walk back into the NFL and play at a high level.
It's not just you, RedZone Channel's audio is out all over the place. Don't worry, I'm sure they'll fix it in time to show lots of commercials.
It really sucks what the NFL has done to this once-great product.
It really sucks what the NFL has done to this once-great product.
December 7, 2025 at 6:13 PM
It's not just you, RedZone Channel's audio is out all over the place. Don't worry, I'm sure they'll fix it in time to show lots of commercials.
It really sucks what the NFL has done to this once-great product.
It really sucks what the NFL has done to this once-great product.
"A Mississippi man will coach Mississippi."
November 30, 2025 at 8:07 PM
"A Mississippi man will coach Mississippi."
Red Barber kept a three-minute hourglass next to him that he turned over every time he said the score. He would never let all the grains of sand fall into one end.
November 29, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Red Barber kept a three-minute hourglass next to him that he turned over every time he said the score. He would never let all the grains of sand fall into one end.
That was not an Ohio State touchdown. He lost possession for a split-second and that was the only split-second he was in the end zone. Replay process basically concluded, "We hate to overturn such a great play for such a stupid reason so we'll pretend he had possession across the goal line."
November 29, 2025 at 6:14 PM
That was not an Ohio State touchdown. He lost possession for a split-second and that was the only split-second he was in the end zone. Replay process basically concluded, "We hate to overturn such a great play for such a stupid reason so we'll pretend he had possession across the goal line."
Mike Kafka with the rare "Go for it when the analytics say to kick" call. Coaches often kick when the analytics say to go for it. They virtually never go for it when the analytics say to kick. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
---> NYG (27) @ DET (24) <---
NYG has 4th & 6 at the DET 6, Q4 02:59
Recommendation (VERY STRONG): 👟🏈 Field goal attempt (+6.5 WP)
Actual play: 👉 (Shotgun) J.Winston pass incomplete short middle to T.Johnson (R.Ya-Sin).
NYG has 4th & 6 at the DET 6, Q4 02:59
Recommendation (VERY STRONG): 👟🏈 Field goal attempt (+6.5 WP)
Actual play: 👉 (Shotgun) J.Winston pass incomplete short middle to T.Johnson (R.Ya-Sin).
November 23, 2025 at 8:57 PM
Mike Kafka with the rare "Go for it when the analytics say to kick" call. Coaches often kick when the analytics say to go for it. They virtually never go for it when the analytics say to kick. bsky.app/profile/nfl4...
Yes, completely agree. It was just kind of a lucky break for the NFL and an unlucky break for MLB that data analysis showed the optimal strategies for winning in the NFL are also the strategies fans find exciting, but in MLB it's strategies fans find boring. (NBA is a bit of a mixed bag.)
November 21, 2025 at 1:33 AM
Yes, completely agree. It was just kind of a lucky break for the NFL and an unlucky break for MLB that data analysis showed the optimal strategies for winning in the NFL are also the strategies fans find exciting, but in MLB it's strategies fans find boring. (NBA is a bit of a mixed bag.)
Football is so much more fun thanks to the nerds teaching the coaches how to coach. A team going for it on fourth-and-1 is just a fundamentally more exciting play than a punt.
November 21, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Football is so much more fun thanks to the nerds teaching the coaches how to coach. A team going for it on fourth-and-1 is just a fundamentally more exciting play than a punt.
I watch NFL games on my iPad using the apps for ESPN, Peacock, Prime Video and YouTube. ESPN is by far the worst. Constant glitches.
November 18, 2025 at 2:05 AM
I watch NFL games on my iPad using the apps for ESPN, Peacock, Prime Video and YouTube. ESPN is by far the worst. Constant glitches.
Teams with bad kickers on windy days should go for two as the default.
November 16, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Teams with bad kickers on windy days should go for two as the default.
The Titans gave Malik Willis to the Packers for a seventh-round pick just before last season. Since then Willis has played well every time the Packers have needed him, and the Titans' offense has been a disaster. A talented QB for a seventh-round pick is such an obvious steal of a trade.
November 16, 2025 at 6:43 PM
The Titans gave Malik Willis to the Packers for a seventh-round pick just before last season. Since then Willis has played well every time the Packers have needed him, and the Titans' offense has been a disaster. A talented QB for a seventh-round pick is such an obvious steal of a trade.