Super Bowl odds, over/unders and more for all 32 NFL teams

To those who may also suck at googling and trying to find what your payout would have looked like had you actually followed through on throwing down at the beginning of the season...Don’t know why I doubted Tom
Odds

This is just mock draft 1 and we're a long way from the actual draft so I'm open to criticism, position suggestions, player evaluation disagreements, etc. Let me know what you think (third round explanations deleted due to word count restraints).

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - QB Trevor Lawrence, Clemson. Lawrence is in the discussion for best QB prospect of all time and will be the pick.
   
2. New York Jets - QB Justin Fields, Ohio State. I'm working under the assumption that Deshaun Watson will not be traded. After a deep dive into analytics and spending way too much time breaking down game tape, I personally would go with Fields over Wilson. But, they have virtually the same grade and I would not be shocked by either player being picked.
   
3. Denver Broncos (from Miami via Houston) - QB Zach Wilson, BYU. With Zach Wilson still on the board at pick 3, John Elway, George Paton and the Broncos go all in to get their franchise QB. If your division rival is lining up Patrick Mahomes under center, you need to do better than Drew Lock to compete. The Broncos have a franchise left tackle to anchor their line, and a very talented young group of weapons. They've build a roster friendly to a franchise QB, so the timing is right to make this move for Denver. As the Rams have proven, you don't need first round picks to build a roster that competes for championships.
   
4. Atlanta Falcons - OT Penei Sewell, Oregon. I 'm not sure this move will be popular with Falcons fans, but here goes. With the Broncos trading up and taking the last of the top QBs in this class off the board, the Falcons suddenly have a difficult decision to make. Do you take a raw, inexperienced QB like Trey Lance, or do you take best player available? Here I have the Falcons going best player available because Matt Ryan is still a top QB, and due to his contract situation he's going to be on the roster for at least two more years. That gives them a bigger window to add more talent to the roster before selecting Ryan's replacement. And it would probably be prudent for the Falcons to build a roster then get a QB, rather than get a QB and build the roster after, when the QB prospect in question is a project. Unfortunately, there are no pass rushing prospects who really fit here, although Dean Pees' defense should help to mask that deficiency some and there are good value prospects who should be available on day 2. A.J. Terrell had a promising rookie season, but beyond him they need both depth and talent at CB so one of the top CB prospects is an option here. However, for Arthur Smith's new offense getting a prospect like Sewell is too good of an option. With his contract being easy to move on from, I'm projecting the Falcons cut James Carpenter and select Sewell to move to guard to start his career. This gives them a lot of talent on the offensive line and a lot of flexibility in the future. Should Matthews begin to decline, they can move on and slide Sewell out to left. If McGary doesn't get better in his third year, Sewell could be a long term replacement there. And the main factor that led me to making this pick is that Arthur Smith didn't take the Atlanta job to rebuild. He's got a really good QB in Matt Ryan and Sewell at guard gives the Falcons the best chance at closing out the Ryan era on a high note.
   
5. Cincinnati Bengals - OT Rashawn Slater, Northwestern. Thanks to the Broncos trading up for Wilson, the Bengals are guaranteed at least one of the top offensive line prospects in the class being on the board, and although Sewell is gone at 4 Slater is still an excellent prize at 5. As tempting as it may be to reunite Burrow and Chase, the Bengals have to protect their franchise QB. Ideally, Jonah Williams is healthy, but after two years he's had a tough time staying on the field so a guy like Slater who can play any position on the line is perfect here.
   
6. Philadelphia Eagles - WR Devonta Smith, Alabama. While I do think it would be smart for the Eagles to draft a CB here, I think Nick Sirianni's odds of surviving in Philly will go way down if he can't fix Wentz. I also think Roseman knows his job is tied to the success of Wentz, given the contract he gave to Wentz. Because of that I've decided to go with a WR here. If I'm being honest, I'm not entirely sure that Smith is the best WR prospect in this class. It's really close between the top 3. However, I think the areas in which Smith excels make him the best fit for Sirianni's offense.
   
7. Detroit Lions - WR Ja'Marr Chase, LSU. While QB was expected to be a target, thanks to the acquisition of Jared Goff the Lions do not need to draft a QB here. In fact, I think it's pretty unlikely that the Lions pick a QB here. Jared Goff has had success in the NFL and he's helped lead his team to a Super Bowl, he may not be a top QB but he's a capable starter. Given the influx of draft capital, the Lions cap situation, and the fact that Goff's contract is virtually unmovable for the next two years they are likely going to use this window to build the roster back up. While I think a CB could be a good fit here, they did just draft Okudah last year who should be given a chance to grow in a new defense, especially since the transition from college to the NFL takes longer at that position. Micah Parsons is tempting here too, as linebacker is a need for the Lions. But given the cap situation and the fact that Kenny Golladay, Marvin Jones, Mohamed Sanu, and Danny Amendola are all set to be free agents, I've decided to give the Lions a WR. Not only does this give the Lions a cheap, young, and talented option at WR (allowing them to move on from some of those would-be free agents), he's also arguably the top prospect left on the board.
   
8. Carolina Panthers - CB Patrick Surtain II, Alabama. There are a lot of options the Panthers could go with here. I debated between Micah Parsons and Surtain here because while I think the Panthers defense should improve next year, they're still missing consistent ILB play as well as a true #1 CB. Ultimately I chose Surtain over Parsons based on positional value given similar position on my board. I also chose Surtain over Farley because I think he's a better fit in Phil Snow's defense. He's physical and sticky in coverage, and I think he would be a great complement at cornerback to go with safety Chinn. I think OL could be considered here, but I'm not sure reaching for OL when there is better value at other positions of need makes sense. Trey Lance could be an option here, but I (perhaps incorrectly) think Fitterer and Rhule will pass on a QB if they can get a top defensive prospect. This would effectively buy another year for them to build up the roster if they choose to go with a QB in the first round of 2022.
   
9. Miami Dolphins (from Denver) - LB Micah Parsons, Penn State. Thanks to a number of trades, real and mocked, the Dolphins have a lot of draft capital and they can use some of that to get weapons for Tua Tagovailoa. But here, they take the best player still on the board. Brian Flores loves to blitz, and Parsons is one of the best blitzing linebacker prospects in years. Jaylen Waddle would be a good pick here too, but the fit is too perfect for me to pass here.
   
10. Dallas Cowboys - CB Caleb Farley, Virginia Tech. The Cowboys offense will not be a problem with Prescott back in the lineup. The defense needs a lot of work though, so as tempting as Kyle Pitts may be the Cowboys will almost certainly go defense here. The Cowboys have some cornerbacks set to be free agents but they are not worth re-signing. Farley is the best cornerback on the board and is a great value here for Dallas. The Cowboys could look at a couple other positions on defense, but they won't find the value they'd be getting in Caleb Farley.
    
11. Chicago Bears (from New York Giants) - QB Trey Lance, North Dakota State. With the 49ers pick looming, the Bears pull the trigger to move up and get their QB. The Bears have Nick Foles under contract for two more years but he can be cut after next season. Given that situation, the Bears can afford to sit Lance for at least a year and let him develop. He's got all of the tools to be a great QB, but due to the fact that he only played one year at the FCS level, he falls to 11.
    
12. San Francisco 49ers - CB Jaycee Horn, South Carolina. Injuries decimated a roster that is talented enough to compete for championships when healthy, so the 49ers can afford to focus on needs. Horn might be seen as a reach here by some, but the drop-off at cornerback is huge and the 49ers need to address the position in the offseason with so many impending free agents. Regardless, Horn is an excellent prospect and be a good pick for first time DC Ryans.
    
13. Los Angeles Chargers - OL Alijah Vera-Tucker, USC. Justin Herbert emerged as one of the most promising young QBs in the game despite poor offensive line play. The Chargers need to improve the line, so they can't justify reaching for a tackle because of positional value. They just need to take the best lineman on the board, and that's Vera-Tucker. There's some discussion as to whether he can make it as a tackle at the next level, but most have him projected as a guard. Wherever he plays, he should be an upgrade for the Chargers.
    
14. Minnesota Vikings - EDGE Kwity Paye, Michigan. The Vikings would love to improve their interior offensive line, but there's better value on day 2, so the Vikings go with a pass rusher here. The Vikings had one of the best defenses in 2019, and a big part of that was the pass rush. Last year however, the pass rush was ineffective and the defense fell apart. Getting Danielle Hunter back and pairing him with Paye while rotating D.J. Wonnum and Jalyn Holmes in could restore the Vikings pass rush and help get them back to the postseason.
    
15. New England Patriots - LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Notre Dame. Although he played in a different scheme at Notre Dame than Bill Belichick uses, Owusu-Koramoah is one of the most versatile defenders in the class. He has shown the ability to rush the passer, drop back in coverage, and his elite sideline to sideline speed for the position that makes him an ideal linebacker against modern offenses. The Patriots need to get younger and faster on defense. As much as I want to add a weapon like Waddle or Pitts to the Patriots, I'm just not convinced that Belichick will actually do that in the first round.
    
16. Arizona Cardinals - EDGE Jaelan Phillips, Miami (FL). With Haason Reddick and Markus Golden both set to hit free agency, and Chandler Jones coming off of an injury, heading into his age 31 season, and on the final year of his contract, the Cardinals pass rush is inevitably going to look different in the next couple of years. With a prospect as good as Phillips on the board, drafting him to replace Jones and re-signing Reddick will give the Cardinals a formidable pass rush for the foreseeable future. If the Cardinals want to continue to close the gap with the Rams and Seahawks, they can't let their pass rush decline.
    
17. Las Vegas Raiders - WR Jaylen Waddle, Alabama. Every year a couple players drop farther than they should. This year, one of those players is Jaylen Waddle. The Raiders need to improve their defense, and there are some tempting players on the board for the Raiders to take, such as Gregory Rousseau. But the Raiders outside threats could have been better this year, and Jon Gruden will jump at the opportunity to put Waddle with Waller and Ruggs. Waddle is up there with the best weapons in this class, so this is a great value for the Raiders at 17.
    
18. Miami Dolphins - WR Kadarius Toney, Florida. Having already landed one of the best defensive players, Miami now turns its attention to surrounding Tagovailoa with the talent to thrive. The Dolphins got good production from DeVante Parker and Mike Gesicki, but could upgrade the rest of their receiving corps. Toney is electric and gives the Dolphins a playmaker over the middle of the field, which is exactly what Miami could use to help Tagovailoa grow.
    
19. Washington Football Team - TE Kyle Pitts, Florida. Washington didn't get their QB in this draft, but they get incredible value at 19 in Pitts. Besides Terry McLaurin, Washington doesn't really have a true playmaker at receiver so Pitts would immediately upgrade the offense. Given how good Washington's defense is, if they can't get a QB by trading up their main goal should be to improve their weapons and Pitts would be the ideal scenario.
    
20. New York Giants (from Chicago) - EDGE Gregory Rousseau, Miami (FL). The Giants biggest need is probably their wide receiver room, but with the top prospect on the board being a pass rusher, the Giants go with one of the highest upside defensive prospects in the class in Rousseau. The Giants don't have a lot of talent on the edge, so they fill a need here.
    
21. Indianapolis Colts - OT Christian Darrisaw, Virginia Tech. The Colts have boasted one of the best offensive lines in the NFL in recent years, and with Anthony Castonzo retiring, the Colts will want to keep their line in top shape by drafting his replacement. His length, athleticism, and intelligence make him the preferred tackle target for the Colts here.
    
22. Tennessee Titans - EDGE Joseph Ossai, Texas. The Titans are a very good team, and most improvements that could be made would be to improve depth. But the one area the Titans desperately need to improve if they want to legitimately compete for championships is their pass rush and defensive line. Ossai is the most explosive pass rush prospect left on the board who can fit with their defensive scheme.
    
23. San Francisco 49ers (from New York Jets via Seattle) – QB Mac Jones, Alabama. The 49ers move up to get the guy they believe can be their next franchise QB. In this scenario, the 49ers were targeting Trey Lance at 12, but because of the Chicago trade, they opted instead to take Horn, who is higher on the draft board and can help their secondary which will be losing some pieces to free agency. When Mac Jones gets past Washington at 19, they believe they can move up into the mid-20s for a reasonable value and get their QB. The best value in terms of trading draft capital is at 23, and they have to make this move to get ahead of Pittsburgh who could potentially take Jones to replace Ben Roethlisberger. The 49ers are now without a pick until the 5th round, but it's worth it to secure their QB of the future.
    
24. Pittsburgh Steelers - OT Jalen Mayfield, Michigan. The Steelers cap space isn't great right now, although Roethlisberger restructuring his contract will help. In any case, the Steelers are going to have to move on from some players, and one that makes sense is Alejandro Villanueva. He's played well, but he's going to be 33 next year, and rather than paying a veteran LT salary with tight cap space, it makes sense to draft his replacement. Mayfield is very technically sound and is nasty, two things that have defined Pittsburgh offensive line play over the years. There may be concern about him playing right tackle at Michigan, but as Jedrick Wills proved for the Browns, a move to left tackle is possible for a top prospect. Running back is also a possibility here, but there's better value in later rounds.
    
25. Jacksonville Jaguars (from Los Angeles Rams) - S Trevon Moehrig, TCU. The Jaguars weren't accidentally the number one pick. They were terrible on both offense and defense, and with so much early draft capital they don't have to reach on players in the name of protecting Lawrence at all costs. The Jaguars have some nice weapons on offense, and there will be good offensive line prospects on the board in the second round. They need to improve their secondary badly, and Moehrig is an immediate impact player with good versatility, and would be an instant upgrade over Josh Jones, who should not return to the team in 2021. Moehrig is arguably the highest graded prospect left on the board, he has a high floor, he's ready to play right away, and he fills a need.
    
26. Cleveland Browns - LB Zaven Collins, Tulsa. The Browns have a lot of holes on defense, and linebacker in particular is an area that they need to address. Despite being massive for a linebacker, Collins is quick and athletic and can play in coverage. He also has good pass rushing ability, which is an area that Cleveland needs to improve opposite of Myles Garrett. His versatility makes him valuable in multiple packages which should help him get on the field early, something that Cleveland should value at the end of the first round given that their competitive window is open.
    
27. Baltimore Ravens - EDGE Azeez Ojulari, Georgia. The Ravens need to give Lamar Jackson better weapons on the outside, but with such a good, deep running attack, the Ravens can afford to wait until the second round. The Ravens have several pass rushers set to become free agents, and they won't be able to bring all of them back. In any case, the Ravens could use an upgrade at the position anyway. Although Ojulari played in 4 man fronts, his size, speed, and athleticism make him a natural fit as an edge rusher in a 3 man front defense. His energy is also a great fit for the Ravens defense.
    
28. New Orleans Saints - EDGE Jayson Oweh, Penn State. The Saints have the worst cap situation in the NFL and because of that they're going to lose some key free agents. One guy that they almost certainly will not be able to retain is breakout DE Trey Hendrickson, who registered 13.5 sacks in 2020 and should be in line for a nice raise on the free agent market. Oweh has tremendous upside due to his freakish athleticism, explosiveness, and length. He's a bit raw, and will need some time to develop, but with Cameron Jordan on the opposite side of the line Oweh is the type of player the Saints can afford to target.
    
29. Green Bay Packers - WR Tutu Atwell, Louisville. Aaron Rodgers covers the deficiencies of the wide receiver room well, but the Packers do need to improve their weapons. Adams and Tonyan are good pieces, but St. Brown, Lazard, and Valdez-Scantling can't be the secondary options at wide receiver. Adding an electric slot receiver in Atwell makes sense given the profile of the rest of the receivers on the roster.
    
30. Buffalo Bills - EDGE Joe Tryon, Washington. The Bills have a very complete roster, but they could definitely improve their pass rush. Getting to the quarterback, namely Patrick Mahomes, will be the Bills best chance of getting over the hump and into the Super Bowl. Tryon is a nice scheme fit, and should be able to see the field instantly, something a contender like Buffalo will be looking for here. I was tempted to mock a running back here, as there's great talent left on the board, but I think the Bills are more likely to ride with their 3rd round picks from 2019 and 2020, Singletary and Moss.
    
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - DT Levi Onwuzurike, Washington. The Buccaneers have a loaded offense, so the focus should be on the defense, specifically the defensive line. With Gholston having only one more year on his contract, and Suh set to be a free agent, a high upside 3-tech like Onwuzurike makes a lot of sense here. Not to mention, a team that is good enough to make the super bowl can afford to draft BPA, and Onwuzurike is among the best players still on the board here.
    
32. Kansas City Chiefs - OL Alex Leatherwood, Alabama. Kansas City needs to start getting younger on the offensive line. Both Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz are under contract for 2021, but after that they're free agents. Leatherwood has shown the versatility to slide in anywhere on the line, and could be a day one starter for the Chiefs wherever they need him. This pick could also be used on another weapon or a defensive player, but the value here is too good for Leatherwood.
    

Round 2

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - DL Dayvion Nixon, Iowa. One of the hallmarks of Urban Meyer's Florida and Ohio State teams were deep, talented defensive lines. The Jaguars have a few nice pieces in Josh Allen and Doug Costin, but overall the unit needs to improve. Nixon is one of only a few interior defensive line prospects who offers high upside impact, and getting him here at the start of the second round is good value.
   
2. New York Jets - CB Greg Newsome II, Northwestern. The Jets have problems with their cornerbacks. Their best cornerback is set to be a free agent, but even if he returns he's only a slot corner. Bryce Hall has shown a lot of promise, but there's not much on the roster behind him. Newsome is a smart, instinctive corner who will fit into Saleh's scheme nicely, and should be ready to compete for a starting role early.
   
3. Atlanta Falcons - RB Najee Harris, Alabama. While it may be unlikely that there are no running backs in the first round (hasn't happened since 2014), I think this draft is so talented that it could happen. As I said earlier, I think the Arthur Smith will try to make win now moves and having a power running game is an important part of Arthur Smith's offensive philosophy. Najee Harris is the top running back on the board and the top prospect left on the board, so everything from fit to value is excellent here for Atlanta.
   
4. Miami Dolphins (from Houston) - RB Travis Etienne, Clemson. Another running back off the board, this time it's the electric back from Clemson. Having already added Toney, now the Miami offense gets arguably the top receiving back in the class. This move makes the offense one of the fastest in the league, and the combination of Etienne and Gaskin gives the Dolphins one of the best young running back rooms in the league.
   
5. Philadelphia Eagles - CB Eric Stokes, Georgia. I nearly went with a CB in round 1 for the Eagles, but it was too hard to pass up on a receiver. The Eagles have a nice CB1 in Slay, but he's getting older and the rest of the CB group needs to be upgraded. Stokes has the ideal size, speed, and length that teams are looking for on the outside and has the experience to challenge for a starting spot early.
   
6. Cincinnati Bengals - EDGE Patrick Jones II, Pittsburgh. The Bengals already added a top offensive lineman for Burrow, but they have to address the defense early on. Even if the Bengals re-sign Lawson, they need to have more talent on the defensive line to get pressure on opposing QBs. Jones is a good scheme fit and his versatility makes him an attractive option here in the 2nd round.
   
7. Carolina Panthers - LB Nick Bolton, Missouri. The Panthers add another impact playmaker for Phil Snow's defense, a guy who could fill the void that they were unable to fill after Keuchly's retirement. There are several options here, but Bolton at 39 is incredible value and the Panthers jump all over a guy with first round upside.
   
8. Miami Dolphins (from Denver) - C Landon Dickerson, Alabama. Ted Karras is set to be a free agent, but Miami can upgrade the center position here and get the best prospect at the position in the draft. Dickerson has positional versatility and is well respected for his leadership so this is a great value and culture pick for Miami.
   
9. Detroit Lions - CB Aaron Robinson, UCF. Robinson has the ideal size and length that NFL teams look for, and he's got a lot of experience both inside and outside. The production from the Lions CB room was abysmal in 2020, so more talent needs to be added, even if Jeff Okudah makes the expected year two leap.
   
10. New York Giants - WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, USC. Dave Gettleman is a meat and potatoes guy, and he got his high upside defensive lineman in the first round. But he's going to have to start giving Daniel Jones weapons if they really believe he's the future. Obviously getting Saquon Barkley back will help, but the wide receiver room is aging, and Amon-Ra St. Brown is an outside receiver with WR1 potential who can inject youth and talent into that position group for the Giants.
    
11. New York Jets (from San Francisco) - OG Wyatt Davis, Ohio State. The fact that the Jets have a weak offensive line is no secret. Mekhi Becton was a home run draft pick at left tackle last season, but the Jets need to continue adding offensive line talent to avoid their next franchise QB getting killed. Despite another All-American season, Davis' 2020 tape is not as good as his 2019 tape, so he falls to the mid-2nd here. While there are some concerns, he's the best interior offensive line prospect left on the board and he does have upside.
    
12. Dallas Cowboys - DT Christian Barmore, Alabama. The Cowboys defense needs to improve, especially in the run game. Neville Gallimore showed promise, but adding Barmore gives the defensive line a lot more depth and talent. Barmore has the experience to step in right away and produce, something that will be important for the Cowboys who should be looking to win a down NFC East with a healthy Prescott.
    
13. Jacksonville Jaguars (from Minnesota) - TE Pat Freiermuth, Penn State. Friermuth is an excellent pass catching TE, but he's also one of the better blocking tight ends in this class. This versatility addresses two needs for Jaguars on offense. There's a lot of upside in the Jaguars WR room, so adding a playmaker at TE makes sense, especially because their top tight ends are getting older.
    
14. New England Patriots - WR Terrace Marshall Jr., LSU. The Patriots need to address the wide receiver position, and after passing on a WR in the first round they land a falling Marshall with the 46th pick, so the Patriots end up with a great value in the 2nd round.
    
15. Los Angeles Chargers - OT Teven Jenkins, Oklahoma State. The Chargers line was so bad, and the value at 47 is so good, that I'm going to mock the Chargers double dipping at offensive line with their first two picks. Sam Tevi's contract is up, and he was not good enough to re-sign. The Chargers have to upgrade this spot, and getting a guy like Jenkins here is an easy decision.
    
16. Las Vegas Raiders - DT Marlon Tuipulotu, USC. The Raiders need to upgrade the defensive line, especially on the interior where Maliek Collins and Johnathan Hankins were not high impact players. Tuipulotu has great strength and technique, and has three years of starting experience so he should be ready to start right away for the Raiders.
    
17. Arizona Cardinals - CB Asante Samuel Jr., Florida State. Arguably the biggest need for Arizona is cornerback, but with the way the board fell in the first the value was better for other positions of need. Here in the 2nd, they get one of the stickiest corners in the draft. He's a bit undersized, but he's great in man coverage and will be a good scheme fit for Vance Joseph's defense.
    
18. Miami Dolphins - EDGE Ronnie Perkins, Oklahoma. The Dolphins pick for the fifth time in this mock already, and have addressed a lot of needs so far. One area where they could get better is pass rush depth. While Perkins doesn't jump out as an ideal fit in Flores' defensive scheme, he's got the size, strength, and athleticism should allow him to transition to a standup edge rusher, or rotate in on pass rush situations with his hand on the dirt. He's got all the tools to create pressure in the NFL, and would give Flores a weapon that would allow him to get creative with his defensive play calls.
    
19. Washington Football Team - OT Samuel Cosmi, Texas. Washington has an aging line, so getting some youth in the building would be a good strategy. Cornelius Lucas played well enough to have a chance to win the starting LT job in 2021, but he'll be 30 and in a contract year and Morgan Moses will have two years left on his contract. Financially it would make sense to get a long term solution at tackle early in the draft. Cosmi's strengths are a good fit for Scott Turner's blocking schemes.
    
20. New York Giants (from Chicago) - CB Tyson Campbell, Georgia. Using this additional pick acquired from Chicago, the Giants address three of their biggest needs in the first two rounds by taking Campbell to go with Rousseau and St. Brown. There are definitely issues on Campbell's tape, but his assignment's in Graham's defense should minimize those weaknesses while maximizing his strength in man coverage. Campbell has elite size, length, and athleticism, so he has tremendous upside.
    
21. Tennessee Titans - WR Rondale Moore, Purdue. The Titans have a very good offense, but are likely going to move on from Corey Davis after the emergence of A.J. Brown. Adding arguably the most electric playmaker in the draft, Rondale Moore, would help keep the Titans offense among the most potent in the NFL.
    
22. New York Jets (from Indianapolis) - RB Javonte Williams, UNC. The Jets need to add some weapons, and with Jamison Crowder and Denzel Mims on the roster, and better free agent options such as Allen Robinson, Corey Davis, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Kenny Golladay potentially hitting the market, the Jets can add the best weapon on the board, Javonte Williams. He's excellent in the passing game and should fit nicely with the new running scheme.
    
23. Kansas City Chiefs (from Pittsburgh) - WR Rashod Bateman, Minnesota. With one of the top WR prospects still on the board, and a number of teams ahead of them who could look for a WR, the Chiefs pull the trigger and move up. The Steelers, who have a lot of players headed to free agency, are happy to move down and get more draft picks to try to rebuild the roster with cheaper contracts. Bateman is a good route runner with excellent high point skills, so he's a perfect fit in the offense to replace Watkins.
    
24. Seattle Seahawks - OT Dillon Radunz, North Dakota State. The Seahawks need to make a move on the offensive line at some point, and Radunz is a good prospect here. Cedric Ogbuehi is a free agent, but they could upgrade at RT anyway, and Duane Brown is 35 and only has one year left on his contract. The Seahawks could possibly look at a pass rusher or cornerback here, but the best value on the board is at tackle.
    
25. Los Angeles Rams - LB Baron Browning, Ohio State. There are rumblings that some teams view Browning as a potential first round talent. The athleticism is off the charts, and he's got the speed, explosiveness, length, and motor that NFL teams covet. The upside is undeniable and he's lauded for his character and leadership. Combine that with his experience and versatility, and he's the kind of guy who can come in right away and upgrade the Rams inside linebacker spot, one of the few positions that needs a major upgrade for a team that's going all in to win a Super Bowl.
    
26. Baltimore Ravens - WR Nico Collins, Michigan. The Ravens need to give Lamar Jackson better weapons on the outside, and Nico Collins has elite size and vertical ball skills, something the Ravens are missing at wide receiver. A lot of the best remaining day 2 caliber receivers are better suited for a slot role, so the Ravens pull the trigger on one of the best outside guys left on the board.
    
27. Cleveland Browns - EDGE Jordan Smith, UAB. The Browns desperately need to get some pass rushing help opposite of Myles Garrett. There are some red flags with Smith, but the size and athleticism of Smith make him too good to pass up here. With Collins and Smith, the Browns defense gets a lot bigger, faster, and more talented.
    
28. New Orleans Saints - LB Chazz Surratt, North Carolina. All of the Saints moves are going to be made with the salary cap in mind. One of the obvious cost saving moves is to cut Kwon Alexander. The Saints would save more than $13 million without taking on any dead money. Surratt is an excellent player who provides the Saints good value here.
    
29. Buffalo Bills - DT Jay Tufele, USC. The Bills will want to add a cornerback at some point, but with the way the board has fallen Tufele is too good of a value here to pass up on. The Bills need to get better interior defensive line play, and Tufele fits nicely into Frazier's defensive scheme, so this is a good fit as well.
    
30. Green Bay Packers - CB Ifeatu Melifonwu, Syracuse. The Packers could address a number of positions here, but Kevin King played poorly and is set to become a free agent anyway. Melifonwu has elite size, and has been climbing draft boards. He may be a bit of a project, but we're getting into the range where there are very few instant impact guys left on the board.
    
31. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - C Creed Humphrey, Oklahoma. With Donovan Smith, Ryan Jensen, and Aaron Stinnie's contracts all set to expire either this year or next year, adding some offensive line help makes sense. Jensen is the weakest of the group, and will likely walk in 2021 if the Buccaneers can acquire a top prospect through the draft. Regardless, the Buccaneers are going to have to add more depth to the center group so the talented Humphrey fills a need.
    
32. Pittsburgh Steelers (from Kansas City) - RB Michael Carter, North Carolina. James Conner is set to be a free agent, and it makes financial sense for the Steelers to move on from him. Carter is an excellent value at the bottom of the second round, and he's excellent in the passing game, so he'll be a great fit for the Steelers. Running backs also have the ability to make an impact right away, which is crucial for a team looking to make one last run with QB Ben Roethlisberger.
    

Third Round

1. Jacksonville Jaguars - OT Liam Eichenberg, Notre Dame.
   
2. New York Jets - WR Elijah Moore, Ole Miss.
   
3. Houston Texans - S Jevon Holland, Oregon.
   
4. Atlanta Falcons - EDGE, Carlos Basham Jr., Wake Forrest.
   
5. Cincinnati Bengals - WR D'Wayne Eskridge, Western Michigan.
   
6. Philadelphia Eagles - EDGE Quincy Roche, Miami (FL).
   
7. Miami Dolphins (from Denver) - S Richie Grant, UCF.
   
8. Detroit Lions - LB Cameron McGrone, Michigan.
   
9. Carolina Panthers - QB Kyle Trask, Florida.
   
10. Washington Football Team (from San Francisco) - CB Elijah Molden, Washington.
    
11. Dallas Cowboys - LB Pete Werner, Ohio State.
    
12. New York Giants - OT James Hudson, Cincinnati.
    

XX. New England Patriots - Forfeited

1. Los Angeles Chargers - DT Tommy Togiai, Ohio State.
   
2. Minnesota Vikings - OG Ben Cleveland, Georgia.
   
3. Arizona Cardinals - C Josh Myers, Ohio State.
   
4. Las Vegas Raiders - S Ar'Darius Washington, TCU.
   
5. Miami Dolphins - CB Shaun Wade, Ohio State.
   
6. Washington Football Team - WR Tylan Wallace, Oklahoma State.
   
7. Chicago Bears - OT Walker Little, Stanford.
   
8. Indianapolis Colts - EDGE Hamilcar Rashed Jr., Oregon State.
   
9. Tennessee Titans - DT Marvin Wilson, Florida State.
   
10. New York Jets (from Seattle) - LB Charles Snowden, Virginia.
    
11. Pittsburgh Steelers - WR Shi Smith, South Carolina.
    
12. Detroit Lions (from Los Angeles Rams) - S Hamsah Nasirildeen, Florida State.
    
13. Cleveland Browns - DT Jaylen Twyman, Pittsburgh.
    
14. Minnesota Vikings (from Baltimore) - WR Amari Rodgers, Clemson.
    
15. Cleveland Browns (from New Orleans) - WR Seth Williams, Auburn.
    
16. Green Bay Packers - EDGE Payton Turner, Houston.
    
17. Buffalo Bills - CB Paulson Adebo, Stanford.
    
18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers - EDGE Dayo Odeyingbo, Vanderbilt.
    
19. Pittsburgh Steelers (from Kansas City) - TE Brevin Jordan, Miami (FL).
    

Compensatory Picks

1. New England Patriots - QB Davis Mills, Stanford.
   
2. Los Angeles Chargers - TE Hunter Long, Boston College.
   
3. New Orleans Saints - RB Jermar Jefferson, Oregon State.
   
4. Dallas Cowboys - S Andre Cisco, Syracuse.
   
5. Tennessee Titans - OT Brady Christensen, BYU.
   
6. Los Angeles Rams - CB Israel Mukuamu, South Carolina.
   
7. San Francisco 49ers - EDGE Victor Dimukeje, Duke.
   
8. Los Angeles Rams - OT Spencer Brown, Northern Iowa.
   
9. Baltimore Ravens - DT Tyler Shelvin, LSU.
   
10. New Orleans Saints - CB Kary Vincent Jr., LSU.
    

Trades:
Indianapolis Colts receive: QB Sam Darnold New York Jets receive: Indianapolis 2021 2nd, 5th
This trade value is based on internet rumors and a similar trade in 1987, where the San Francisco 49ers sent a 2nd and 4th round pick to Tampa Bay for 2nd year starter Steve Young. Steve Young was 3-16, with 11 TDs, 21 INTs, a 53.3 comp% and a 63.1 QB rating in two seasons with Tampa Bay but his upside netted a nice return. I think for several reasons, such as the fact that neither Douglas nor Saleh drafted Darnold and the potential to reset the cap window by drafting a 1st round QB, the Jets will trade Darnold. The Colts have a good offensive line and much better weapons than the Jets, so Indianapolis could be a good destination for Darnold after they missed out on Stafford.
***
Denver receives: Houston 2021 1st (3) via Miami Miami receives: Denver 2021 1st (9), 2nd (40), 3rd (71), 2022 1st, 2nd, 2023 2nd
***
Chicago receives: New York Giants 2021 1st (11) New York Giants receive: Chicago 1st (20), 2nd (52), 2022 1st
***
San Francisco receives: Seattle 2021 1st (23) via New York Jets New York Jets receive: San Francisco 2021 2nd (43), 4th, 2022 2nd
***
Kansas City receives: Pittsburgh 2021 2nd (55) Pittsburgh receives: Kansas City 2021 2nd (64), 3rd (95) ***
QB Notes: New England signs Ryan Fitzpatrick Indianapolis trades for Sam Darnold from New York Jets New Orleans re-signs Jameis Winston Washington re-signs Kyle Allen

​

The only thing I can conclude from this thread is that, if TWOW does not get published soon, some of us will go mad.

Modesty Lannister, 25/3/2015
Some time ago I wrote a post recollecting Every reference and allusion to the Winds of Winter on NotABlog. I was inspired to write this post because George had just provided a juicy update on The Winds of Winter (the last one to date), and many people were reminded of that pre-ADWD period, the few (not-so-few actually) months before the publication date for ADWD was announced, during which GRRM updated his fans on his work very often.
So here is a list of every allusion, hidden or plain reference to A Dance With Dragons GRRM's ever made on his Not a Blog before he announced completion:
Keep in mind that this is only the references he made IN HIS POSTS. I am aware he gave other information on the book in comments, interviews, but I'm not taking these into account.
((And yeah if anyone wants a list of every reference to ADWD on NaB EVER, they're welcome to compile it themselves, but I doubt anyone's mad enough.))
So here we go :
2006
" I have a big chunk of a new Dunk & Egg novella that I should be able to finish with a good solid week of work... and then I've got some dragons waiting for a dance. We'll see how all that goes. " - year's end - 3/1/2006
"While our roof is being torn off in Santa Fe, I plan to be off walking the Wall with Jon Snow, or visiting Dany and her dragons in Meereen. Or so I hope...." - back from the north - 21/1/2006
" So another NFL season is now done, which means that Sunday becomes a work day for me once again. That should please everyone waiting for A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. " - Super Bowl XL - 5/2/2006
"(And no, I am NOT going to forget about A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. That's still my number one priority, and will remain so until it's done)." - Remember the Hugo - 7/3/2006
Pretty substantial update on ADWD. George talks about his current work on some Jon chapters especially - this, that, and the other thing - 28/3/2006
" Oh, and I suppose you want to know how the DANCE is coming? Work continues. I finished the revisions on the Jon Snow chapters that I was talking about last month, and moved on to Tyrion for a while, but just now I am working on a new viewpoint character, and a chapter set in steamy harbor of Old Volantis. Where I shall be returning, first thing tomorrow." George is working on the Merchant's Man, Quentyn Martell's first chapter in Dance. - Home Alone - 13/5/2006
"Meanwhile, for those who do read this page... yes, I am still working on A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, and yes, I still hope to deliver it this fall, or by the end of the year at the latest. " Ouch... - Belated Update - 30/5/2006
" I'm home again and it is time to get going on the novel once more. I have less than a month until worldcon, and I would like to get a big chunk of DANCE done before I take off for Anaheim. " - San Diego - 26/7/2006
"This will no doubt upset all those readers who want me to stay home and write, write, write, but it looks as though I will be taking to the road again in the fall. " - On the Road Again - 9/8/2006
GRRM on why last month was a generally bad month for writing - Off to Worldcon - 17/8/2006
" I have half a dozen different projects on my plate, but the big one is A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, and I am going to be pushing hard on that in the weeks and months to come, in hopes of wrapping it up by the end of the year. " Ouch... - Home for the Holidays - 17/10/2006
" Right now I'm trying to finish A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, [...] " - PayPal Thinks I'm a Terrorist - 5/11/2006
George did not, in fact, finish Dance before the end of the year. - Good News and Bad News - 5/12/2006
" When A FEAST FOR CROWS came out, I realized that something close to half the book had already been out there in one form or another [...] I am not going to do that with DANCE. - Wild Cards Returns! - 11/12/2006
2007
" Lest anyone have a heart attack, let me hasten to add that this [computer crash] has NOT affected A DANCE WITH DRAGONS or any of my other work-in-progress. " - Gleep - 5/1/2007
George had a very productive day on ADWD and explains his writing routine in days such as this one - a good day's dancing - 21/4/2007
"Unfortunately, the last two days have been less productive, at least for DANCE." - this and that and t'other thing - 27/4/2007
George will be doing a reading from ADWD on Second Life come thursday. - My Second Life - 29/5/2007
Update on ADWD, and GRRM contemplates cancelling an appearance at worldcon in Japan in order to be able to finish the book. - The Only Living Boy in New York - 25/6/2007
"I'm working on DANCE, as I've reported, but I have other projects too, and that's going to continue to be true for a long, long time." - a new deal for WILD CARDS - 28/6/2007
George reads the prologue of ADWD at InConjunction in Indianapolis, and shares the writing process of this particular chapter. - Back from Indianapolis - 11/7/2007
After a revision, the prologue is now one page shorter but much stronger - Busy Week - 17/7/2007
" I am, however, getting bloody sick of all the off-topic comments, and the trolls who use any LJ post of mine, regardless of subject, as another excuse to slam me about DANCE being late. " - Ice & Fire Miniatures - 13/8/2007
"Yes, yes, I'm still working on A DANCE WITH DRAGONS." - A Dance With Dragons - 29/8/2007
" Yeah, yeah, I know. I made the logical, adult, sensible decision, and stayed home to work on A DANCE WITH DRAGONS and my myriad other projects. " - Missing Worldcon - 1/9/2007
" DANCE WITH DRAGONS? Yes, working on that too. Lately it's been Tyrion and more Tyrion. When I finish these three chapters, I will need to double back and pick up some of the other POVs lest my devious dwarf get too far ahead. " - Highs and Lows - 22/10/2007
" And when I read the prologue of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS [at WFC], I liked it a lot better than the earlier version I read at a couple cons last summer." - Home from WFC - 16/11/2007
" Finished a Tyrion chapter yesterday, one I've been struggling with for months. " + Update on recent progress concerning Tyrion's chapters in Dance - This, That, and t'Other Thing - 12/12/2007
New Year's post (ADWD wasn't announced in 2007 after all...) - Goodbye,2007 - 31/12/2007
2008
"I've sent a new sample chapter from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS and an update on the current status of the book to my webmaster.[...] (And no, the book's not done. Didn't I just say that in yesterday's post?) " - Updates Coming - 1/1/2008
" It's been a busy few weeks for DANCE. I have been working on a Dany chapter and a Bran chapter. (The Bran chapters remain incredibly hard to write, for what it's worth, and this one is no different). " - Another Month Rushes By - 27/1/2008
"... I am pleased to be able to announce that they have just signed up artist Marc Fishman to illustrate their deluxe limited edition of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. " - And Speaking of Subterranean - 5/3/2008
George finishes a Bran chapter he's been struggling with for six years (my guess would be Bran III in ADWD) - One More Chapter Done - 15/3/2008
" The issue [of Bantam's new promotional magazine, SpectraPULSE] will include a new, never-before-seen chapter from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS." - Comicon Giveaway - 17/3/2008
"If I can deliver the book before the end of June, you'll see these [new covers] in your favorite bookstore sometime this fall. If I can't, well... you'll still see them eventually, I hope." - Dance Gets Covered - 17/3/2008
" Of course, I need to finish A DANCE WITH DRAGONS before I leave, or else my publishers will hunt me down and kill me. " - Home Again - 13/4/2008
" One day at a time. One page at a time. One word at a time. June is coming up too fast." Sounds similar? - Better - 10/5/2008
"I am getting a lot done. Finished an Arya chapter yesterday, and a Sansa chapter the day before. [...] One chapter at a time, one page at a time, one sentence at a time. " General progress on ADWD, and here, George is probably writing the Alayne I chapter that was (much) later released as a sample for TWOW. He also goes on to explain that portions of the chapters he finished have been written years ago, so he hasn't been writing one chapter per day. - Home alone - 23/5/2008
"Meanwhile, I'm still here, still holding down the fort, working on DANCE, on Vance, on WARRIORS, on WILD CARDS." - Parris Off to Ireland - 9/6/2008
"This is the major event for fans of A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE. I will be talking about the series, reading a bit from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS [...]" - Coming to Portugal - 16/6/2008
"No, I didn't finish the novel, though not for want of trying. Nothing to be done about that but push on when I return." - Made It to Europe - 25/6/2008
"There's been far too much off-topic commentary of late, however. I am perfectly aware that A DANCE WITH DRAGONS is late. There's no need to remind me, thanks, I have plenty of editors and agents and publishers to do that." - A Gentle Reminder - 19/9/2008
"In view of what's happening right now, however, I find a need to say a word or three, even if it means taking a few hours off from DANCE WITH DRAGONS [...] " - Beneath Contempt - 9/10/2008
"Purchasers will also acquire the rights to buy the same number of Subterranean's limited edition of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, somewhere down the road." - Only 30 Copies Left - 11/10/2008
" (And no, they did NOT take my computers, so the hard drive where A DANCE WITH DRAGONS lives is still there, and safe, and I haven't lost any work. [...] )" Burglars break into George's office! - Monday Morning Blues - 27/10/2008
"Now all I need to do is wrap up WARRIORS and SUICIDE KINGS and... yes... A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, and maybe I'll be able to take a week off." - Vance Book Delivered - 8/12/2008
" Damn. If only I'd finished DANCE. I might be able to afford it [a spaceship miniature]." - Hey, Santa - 11/12/2008
2009
" Alas, this does not mean my back is monkeyless. Couple more still sitting up there, including King Kong, the dragon monkey. But you guys know about him." - One Monkey Off My Back - 17/2/2009
"No, it's not done. [...] I made a lot of progress on the book in the first half of 2008.[...] I am trying to finish the book by June. I think I can do that." ADWD update - A Dance With Dragons - 19/2/2009
GRRM addresses the people who hate his other projects and think he should only focus on Dance 24/7 instead of "wasting time" on other things like football. - To My Detractors - 19/2/2009
" I am still pounding my head against that bloody keyboard daily. Today it was in service of... ah, no, you're not supposed to know about that POV character yet." A general thank you to the overflow of support comments regarding George's previous post - Thanks - 20/2/2009
"(Oh, by the way, Marc Fishman is already hard at work on the artwork for the Subterranean limited edition of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. [...] )" - And Speaking of Limited Editions - 22/2/2009
"(I wasn't going to comment anymore about DANCE, deadlines, and lateness, but a friend sent me this link, and I couldn't resist. [...])" - I Know Just How You Feel, Pat - 26/2/2009
"Me, I'm going back to DANCE. Maybe I can even finish that bloody Tyrion chapter today..." - The Calendars Are Signed - 12/3/2009
"(It's snowing, too)." Not sure if this one counts, but as you'll see below, George has been known to use the "it's snowing" prhasing to mean that he's working hard on Dance. - Tax Time - 27/3/2009
"The days and weeks and months seem to go by so quickly now... and the pages come so slowly..." - Random Thoughts at Midnight - 28/3/2009
George has found a partner to finish the series after his death !!! - A Partner for the Dance - 1/4/2009
Just kidding, it's an April Fool's. - Well, Not Really - 2/4/2009
"Before anyone has a heart attack... I write with WordStar on a DOS computer that is completely separate from the Windows machine I use for email. It doesn't even have Windows, or any internet connection. So A DANCE WITH DRAGONS and my other work is safe." - George has a "computer catastrophe" - I Hate Computers - 15/4/2009
"Much improved these last two days. I've even been writing well." - feeling feisty - 17/5/2009
" Now if I can only slash through the Meereenese knot that I've been worrying at since 2005, I may actually start to get excited. " George has just had the most productive period on Dance in a long time. - Guarded Optimism - 22/6/2009
"Parris returns to Ireland, and I head home to the cats, the green chile, and A DANCE WITH DRAGONS." - Farewell to Finland - 15/7/2009
"I'm hoping to complete a few more chapters for DANCE before taking off. Still tugging, slashing, and cursing that Meereenese knot." - Home Again - 17/7/2009
"My reading is at 5pm tomorrow. Will probably read a chapter from DANCE, haven't decided which one yet." - Bubonicon - 27/8/2009
ADWD sorta-update - Dancing - 3/9/2009
"A DANCE WITH DRAGONS: I took a good hard swack at the Meereenese knot. The sword bounced off and cut my nose off. Bugger." This is probably a reference to Tyrion, meaning he's at this moment working on his last chapters in ADWD, or even his first in TWOW - Jots and Niggles - 9/9/2009
"Finishing the chapter felt good. Especially since it also completed that character's arc for the book. Admittedly, she has only two chapters in DANCE, so I am not sending up any flares." George is talking about either Cersei, or Arya in this post. - A Smidge of Progress - 11/9/2009
ADWD is now 1100 MS pages long, and longer than AGOT and AFFC. - Dance,Dance, Dance - 6/10/2009
" [...] I'll be reading a chapter from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. " - See You In Fargo - 14/10/2009
2010
"I meant to post yesterday on the weekend's games, but got busy writing instead, and finished a Tyrion chapter that I've been struggling with for six months. Nibbling away at that knot. We'll see if the finished chapter holds up to reread and polish today." - Adventures in 2010 - 5/1/2010
"(Yes, I know. King Kong is still perched up on my shoulders. He was a king in his world, but I'll teach him fear)." - Another Monkey Off My Back - 13/1/2010
"Snowing like hell in Santa Fe today. [...] The good news: finished a chapter today. The bad news: it's one I've finished at least four times before. This time, though, I think I finally got it right. We'll see. Still whacking at the Meereenese knot. [...] " - Dancing - 28/1/2010
" 'nuff said. " - A Good Day, With Snow - 29/1/2010
" Jeez, guys. Calm down. This is why I hate to do updates. I say I have good day, and immediately I have a hundred people deciding this means that DANCE is finished. " Seems like nothing's changed ten years later ! - No, No, No - 30/1/2010
" I have indeed finished that Jon Snow chapter, and I think it doesn't suck. That doesn't mean the book is done. Still more to write. Just sayin'" - Don't Go Wiggy On Me Now - 31/1/2010
"[...] I'm floating off the Isle of Cedars, or racing across the sands of Dorne. Warm places, both of them, with nary a flake to be seen. But I'd better not change horses. If I keep on keeping on, I should finish one of those chapters this week. Maybe both." - Snowing Again in Santa Fe- 3/2/2010
" Spent the day in the rainwood. 1205 pages. More to come. DANCE has now passed A CLASH OF KINGS to become the second longest volume in the series, though still three hundred pages shorter than the monster that was A STORM WITH SWORDS." George is writing Arianne II, which was pushed back into TWOW and was later released as a sample chapter - Not Done Yet - 8/2/2010
" But today was a good, productive day. Only problem is that the chapter I finished just now is going to require that I go back and rewrite one of the chapters I finished last week. Minor stuff, though. Shouldn't take more than a day. (Famous last words, I know)." - Not Done Yet - 14/2/2010
"But I've left the Isle of Cedars behind, at least. 1261 pages and counting. [...] Anyway, there we are. Back to the grindstone tomorrow." GRRM also elaborates on how the timeline of ADWD is "a bitch and a half". - Not Done Yet - 15/2/2010
"Last but not least, there's Meereen. Can I just drop a hydrogen bomb on the damn place?" - Wolves in the Night - 19/2/2010
"I'll be doing a Q&A, several signing sessions, and maybe a reading from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS." - Odds and Ends and Snow - 21/2/2010
" ... may be fraying, just a little. But don't quote me on that. " - The Meereenese Knot - 26/2/2010
" I'll be here writing, while David and Dan will be out in the center of the storm, writing the scripts and supervising pre-production. On other fronts, I hit page 1311 yesterday. No, not done yet. For some reason, got nothing written today." Game of Thrones is official. - The Green Light - 2/3/2010
"[Talking about his podcasts] I imagine I will be doing more of these when DANCE WITH DRAGONS comes out." - A Blast From the Past - 5/3/2010
"I'm going back to the DANCE. I need to kill someone. " - Grey Days - 18/3/2010
"In addition to the on-going work on DANCE, I am also trying to wrap up FORT FREAK, volume twenty-one in the Wild Cards series, and will soon need to gear up to write my season one script for HBO." - Odds and Ends - 23/3/2010
"All I have to do now is write my script for the HBO series,[...] write up my version of the last Suvudu cage match so Jaime doesn't lose to Rand al'Thor, complete A DANCE WITH DRAGONS,[...] - The Taxman Cometh - 7/4/2010
"(P.S. Had a good day writing today. Half the day on the book, half the day on the script. That's something I NEVER do. But today everything seemed to click. Taxes are done too)." - That Toddling Town - 15/4/2010
"this project will NOT take any writing time away from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS or subsequent Ice & Fire novels, even if it runs for ten years " - Homecoming - 20/4/2010
"On other fronts, I am writing on DANCE WITH DRAGONS [...] " - Coming Soon to a Theater Near You - 27/4/2010
"Hear me talk with Mike & Mike (no, not Greenberg and Golic) about WARRIORS, A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, and the HBO series. " - Can't Shut Me Up - 28/4/2010
"Other monkeys are still frolicking up there, including Kong. He was a king in his world, but we'll teach him fear... " - May Day - 1/5/2010
"Monkey front. Whacking at King Kong, making progress, but not as fast or easy as I like. " - More Odds, More Ends - 7/5/2010
"As for me... there are still a few more monkeys to wrestle into submission. Including Kong. " - Freaky Monkey Bites the Dust - 24/5/2010
"Meanwhile, I've been wrestling with Kong. For more than a week I've been pounding on the epilogue, but still can't get it to gel. [...]" - Stuff and Nonsense - 16/6/2010
"I am dancing, boys and girls, I'm dancing as fast as I can. But some days it does feel as if I am dancing in circles. " George decides to move two Arianne chapters in TWOW. - Dancing In Circles - 27/6/2010
"I just flipped over the calendar from June to July (okay, I'm a little late). And what do I find staring at me? A huge gorilla. " - A Good Omen??? - 2/7/2010
"I'll be reading a chapter from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS, [...]" - Clarion Call - 3/7/2010
" No, no, not THAT long wait, sorry... [...] And for that other long wait... I'm working on it, I'm working on it. " - The Long Wait Is Over!!! - 14/7/2010
"Snowing heavily in Santa Fe, however, and I've been on a bit of a roll. I'll get to all that other stuff when I can. Kong comes first. [...] Off I go to shovel Snow. " - Snowbound - 21/7/2010
"And here I sit at my computer, still shoveling Snow. And snow. The snow won't stop. The squids don't like it much. sigh... I'm missing all the fun, just to make more fun for you guys." - The Only Living Boy in New York - 25/7/2010
"Finally, might mention that I finished a chapter of the DANCE today. I had one last chapter about this particular character -- I will call him Fred -- to finish, and then I am done with him for the book. " - A Few Odds, Some Ends - 30/7/2010
"The good news is that I seem to have written more than a hundred pages of THE WINDS OF WINTER already. " George moves the Forsaken from ADWD to TWOW. - Dancing - 31/7/2010
"Still have that final Fred chapter to finish. Sometimes it's good to change gears, though, so I did that today, and completed the last Barney chapter." - Dancing - 1/8/2010
"I actually had a very good day today, writing about a character who wasn't originally supposed to be a POV, but has turned out to be sharpest sword I've got for slicing through the Meereenese knot. One page at a time. One sentence at a time. One word at a time. " - August - 4/8/2010
"Another chapter done. And another character. This wraps up Yogi for the book. The Meereenese knot is hanging by a thread. One more good slash and it may finally part. " - Dancing - 7/8/2010
"And, of course, I have this book to finish. " Martin cancels his trip to New York City Comicon. - Sorry, New York - 8/8/2010
"And as long as I was swapping out samples, I rotated the excerpt on the Ice & Fire sample page as well, replacing the first Tyrion chapter from DANCE with the first Jon Snow. Enjoy the reads. " - Sample, Sample - 11/8/2010
"11:00 am reading from A DANCE WITH DRAGONS " - Aussiecon IV - 19/8/2010
" No, not Kong. Sorry. " - Another monkey Off My Back - 30/9/2010
" I'll be reading a chapter from DANCE at the FFG event too. " - One Down - 11/11/2010
" And tomorrow, back in Westeros. " - 16/11/2010
" Meanwhile, in Westeros, I am wrestling with krakens. " - G-Men - 20/11/2010
" It's snowing. On Jon. On the krakens. On me. We all slog onward. Finished a chapter a few days ago. Revised another. Then re-revised it. The days go too fast, the work too slowly. But onward. " - Snow - 16/12/2010
2011
" Parris and my docs agree, no more twelve-hour days for a while. So posts here may be less frequent than before. Kong comes first. " - Home Again - 11/1/2011
"And Ty and Daniel are already halfway done with the second book [about vomit zombies], which they write on Ty's day off. I have warned him that if they finish that before I finish DANCE, I'll have to kill them. " - Zombies in Space - 26/1/2011
" Must run now. Kong is calling. " - Some Odds, Some Ends - 11/2/2011
"Wrestling with a pair of krakens. One almost subdued, t'other still writhing and twisting and slapping me alongside the head with her tenatcles. After them, I've got a wolf to face." - Snowstorm on Skull Island - 15/2/2011
"And now we return you to your regularly scheduled programming, and me to Skull Island, where Kong is staggering a little." - The Social Media - 17/2/2011
"And now we’ve off for a six-month Honeymoon trip around the world. See you when we get back. (no, no, no, just kidding. GRRM will be honeymooning on Skull Island, I promise) " - Big, Big, BIG News - 17/2/2011
" And on other fronts... it's still snowing on Skull Island, but one of the krakens is done and t'other is down to the last tentacle. Closer and closer... inch by inch, word by word, step by step... " - The Latest HBO Preview - 27/2/2011
" No. Sorry. Not done yet. I'm close, though. [...] The end is in sight, at long long last, and we're close enough so that my editors and publishers at Bantam Spectra have set an actual publication date." ADWD now has an official publication date. - DRAGON TIME - 3/3/2011
" And if the DANCE announcement wasn't enough for you (greedy bastards!), there's a brand new HBO trailer just out." - EW Exclusive - 3/3/2011
" My friends at Harper Collins Voyager have confirmed that the British edition of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS will also be released on July 12 of this year, simultaneously with the American edition. " - Good News for Old Blighty - 4/3/2011
" And, yes, yes, we are doing all we can to make sure it is Roy Dotrice who will record the audiobook for A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. " - Roy Sets a Record - 11/3/2011
" As of this morning, A DANCE WITH DRAGONS is thirty (manuscript) pages longer than A STORM OF SWORDS. And. Not. Done. Yet. " - He's STILL a king in his world - 12/3/2011
" I do my best, but Kong is a mighty foe. Back to Skull Island." - Ye Old Tie-In - 15/3/2011
" Bantam has informed me that world record holder Roy Dotrice has been signed to read the audiobook of A DANCE WITH DRAGONS. " - You Asked For It - 24/3/2011
" Two more [short] chapters done. More to come. Kong grows bigger and bigger. Past 1600 pp in manuscript now. Oy. Certainly the biggest monkey ever to climb on my back." - KONG - 27/3/2011
"I am writing as fast as I can. Finished a Meereen chapter yesterday, hope to finish another one today" - Watch the Skies! - 30/3/2011
" I've been too busy working on these last few chapters of DANCE to follow the progress of this season's Suvudu cage matches much " - 30/3/2011
" NOT a casting. NOT about the DANCE. NOT about the show. Just a bit of geeky fun. " - 30/3/2011
Bantam to split ADWD into five. - Bantam To Split DANCE Into Five - 1/4/2011
" More a little later. I have to get back to Kong. " - Tonight's the Night! - 17/4/2011
KONG IS DEAD !!! - twas beauty... - 27/4/2011
Of course, I probably missed a few of these little references, but I'm definitely not going to go through all these posts again just to check.
​
First things first: retches Fuck that was horrible... At least now I've seen every goddamned blog post he's written... But what did it cost?
Now the data:
Number of references by year:

Year:	Number of references:
2006	14
2007	15
2008	18
2009	22
2010	45 (!)
2011 (up to April)	21

Number of references every quadrimester:

Months:	Number of references:
January - April 2006	5
May - August 2006	5
September - December 2006	4
January - April 2007	3
May - August 2007	7
September - December 2007	5
January - April 2008	7
May - August 2008	5
September - December 2008	6
January - April 2009	12
May - August 2009	5
September - December 2009	5
January - April 2010	22
May - August 2010	18
September - December 2010	5
January - April 2011	21

So yeah, that's a pretty huge contrast with TWOW. I previously counted that George made 10 (add to that one or two more since 2020 wasn't over yet when the list was drawn up) TWOW references last year, which is the most he's ever made, but even that is below the lowest number of ADWD references he has made in a year. However, it's understandable: Fans have been waiting for now almost ten years for the damn book, and everytime George opens his mouth and says either "winds" or "winter", everyone gets mad and thinks it'll be released soon (me included, there's no point in denying it).
In general, GRRM also writes posts less often than he did ten years ago: the only few times he didn't post for a long period of time was because he was travelling, or at hospital, or because of some other thing that prevented him from blogging. Nowadays, especially of late, there are repeated periods of 7+ days without any blog post (He lost many friends lately, so that's certainly the main reason, but still).
It should be noted that GRRM was far less shy about giving specifics regarding progress on ADWD than he is now for TWOW. All alog the writing process of ADWD, he often stated which POVs he was working on, if he pushes chapters into the next book, how many chapters he's recently finished, and even went several times as far as giving a manuscript pages count (something that'll never happen for Winds, I'm afraid). Nowadays, the mere mentions of The Winds of Winter in a blog post is considered a benediction, for reasons explained above.
u/Words_are_TWOW also made an interesting table recollecting the partials GRRM mentioned sending to his publishers in his ADWD Post-Mortem.

Date	Pages	Number of ADWD references since last partial	GRRM Self Described Writing Speed
Jan 2006	542	None	Dealing with book split
Oct 2007	472	25	More rewriting than writing
March 2008	596	6	Good Spell
May 2008	684	5	Good Spell
Dec 2008	774	8	Good Spell
Sept 2009	998	19	Slow and Steady
Jan 2010	1038	5	Slow and Steady
June 2010	1028	25	Picking up steam again
August 2010	1332	9	Picking up steam again
Dec 2010	1412	10	Picking up steam again
March 2011	1571	8	Picking up steam again
May 2011	1512	14 (before completion announcement only)	Finished and announces publish date

So can we conclude from this list that the current situation is similar to the 10 or so months period before ADWD was announced?
Well, some have said that the wording in George's last update were also used frequently shortly before ADWD was completed. But the phrase "one page at a time, one sentence at a time, one word at a time" was also used long before, in 2008 for example.
However we can also see that George wrote 300+ pages for ADWD between June and August 2010, and we can plainly see that by the number of references he did in the first half of that year: he was apparently making great progress, and couldn't stop talking about it. Now comparatively, in 2020, George has made more substantial TWOW updates than ever before, and some of them even (somewhat?) bear resemblance to that of ADWD ( "Finished a Meereen chapter yesterday, hope to finish another one today" and "Three more chapters completed this past week. And good progress on several more.").
Personally, I want to believe that we are experiencing an equivalent of that pre-ADWD period (but we shall see soon enough, when he writes another update, whenever that is going to be).
But what do you think?
(( Let the eternal war between the Summer Children and the Winter Wolves begin ! ))
More fun/interesting/intriguing things I found while being bored :
- First ever Not a Blog post, for those who are interested - Not A Blog - 2/7/2005
- " Oh, and I've also come up with a new title for the seventh (and final, I hope, I hope, I hope) volume of the series -- A DREAM OF SPRING." - this, that, and the other thing - 28/3/2006
- " I have a big conference call tomorrow about one project that cannot yet be announced" Birth of Game of Thrones? - This, That, and The Other Thing - 14/7/2006
- Game of Thrones is officially born - HBO options A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE - 17/1/2007
- " Maybe once I finish A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE, I will do a legal thriller set in the Seven Kingdoms next." - I'm Not a Lawyer... - 18/12/2007
- After a solved computer crash, George gives details on his DOS machine and his backup in case there is any accident. - Back In Business- 16/4/2009
- Someone made a song titled "George R.R.Martin Is Not Your Bitch" - Your Hit Parade - 13/8/2009
- Tyrion helps Jaime in figuring out how to defeat Cthulhu - Suvudu Cage Matches, Round Two - 17/3/2010
- Jaime fights Patrick Rothfuss's singing innkeeper Kvothe - Suvudu Final Four - 2/4/2010
- After Kvothe's defeat, Jaime prepares for his next challenge: a Trial of Seven. - Rand al'Thor Talks Trash - 5/4/2010
- Jaime's effing awesome Trial of Seven. - Trial of Seven - 10/4/2010
- George was hospitalized for a week. - Nightmare Before Christmas - 5/1/2011
- GRRM's Marriage - Big, Big, BIG News - 17/2/2011
- A prophecy threatens to come true! - Watch the Skies!- 30/3/2011
- April Fool's joke - Bantam To Split DANCE Into Five - 1/4/2011
- ADWD post-mortem - Talking About the Dance - 19/5/2011
TLDR: A list of every ADWD reference and allusion GRRM's made on NaB before he announced completion.

I am 33 years old, make $180,000, live in Los Angeles, and am self employed
Intro: I hope this gives people an idea of what finances look like while self-employed. I have included the Ref29 questions at the beginning to give you some more context. I am really nervous and excited to share this and appreciate being part of this community. Please be easy on me as this was not easy for me to share.
Ref29 questions:
Was there an expectation for you to attend higher education? Did you participate in any form of higher education? If yes, how did you pay for it?
Yes. Neither of my parents had college degrees. They didn’t really emphasize needing to go to college but the pressure came from the environment I was in. At my high school, it was assumed that everyone would go to a 4-year college. Community College was not even talked about as an option. Even though I am a first generation college student, it is not as much part of my identity as I think it plays for others. My dad was extremely successful in starting his own business as was my step dad, who also did not go to college. Now with a PhD, I almost feel like I took the easy route.
Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent/guardian(s) educate you about finances?
Yes. My father passed away extremely suddenly when I was 13 and my mom was put in the position of figuring out what we were going to do since she did not work outside of helping my dad with his company. I grew up in a wealthy neighborhood (TV shows are made about the neighborhood I grew up in), went to private school, got a BMW as my first car, and went on international vacations every year (both to visit our family in our home country--my mom and I are the only ones in the U.S.-- but also to visit family friends in places like South Africa). It was an extremely privileged upbringing.
When my dad passed away, my mother started emphasizing the need to cut down on expenses. I was extremely lucky that I did not have to change schools when my father passed away and that I could maintain a stable environment.
As I got a little bit older there was a huge emphasis from my mother on women needing to take care of themselves and men not needing to know everything that they had. I am in my 30s and unmarried and this has definitely influenced my financial expectations and goals.
Did you worry about money growing up?
I would say no. Even when my dad passed away, we did not have any obvious financial struggles (or at least my mother never showed me).
Do you worry about money now?
I do not worry about money now. Half a year ago when I was ramping up my consulting business there were a few months where I didn't have any clients and I was worried about what would happen next. I am thankfully now at a point where I no longer have fears of not getting clients.
At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net?
I think there is some debate in this community of what this even means. At 21, when I graduated college and got a job, I started paying for my bills although my mom still paid for the phone bill and car insurance. I do have a safety net in terms of being able to move home if I needed to and that I can make passive income through renting my apartment (more on this later).
I do think how I grew up led to my being able to get a Ph.D. At the time I made this decision, it wasn't about finding a job that made the most money, instead, it was about what I'm really interested in.
Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain.
Yes. As I mentioned above my father passed away extremely unexpectedly when I was 13. I got a sum of money from his Social Security payout every month until I turned eighteen. This went to a college fund for me which was used to pay for college and a small portion for a down payment of the current property that I live in. My mother also contributed the rest of the down payment (totaling 20%) on the property that I live in. I purchased the property (2 apartments and a house, three units total) in 2013, which was a great time in Los Angeles to buy. I am extremely grateful to my mother for coming up with this suggestion and doing this for me.
In 2021, I am also expecting to receive my father’s portion of an inheritance from my grandparents. I will most likely keep this in our home country and will need to learn more about the tax implications.
I receive passive income from house hacking. This money goes into a separate account that the mortgage is pulled from and I do not count in my calculations. This account pretty much zeros out every year due to expenses, mortgage, and property tax.
Income Progression:
I've been working in my field for 11 years. I am counting the first year of my PhD as the first year I started working in my field.
Prior to my PhD I had a few odd jobs. I babysat as a teenager. I had a job the summer before college at a health food store in my area (I believe I was making $8 an hour plus tips) and I worked for 1 year as an admin assistant from 2009-2010.
2009-2010: I took a year off between my undergraduate and graduate degrees so I could save money before going to graduate school, pay for application fees, and take the GRE. I worked for my university at the medical school doing admin work. The salary was $32,000 a year, but a few months in, we had to take 1 day a month furlough due to the financial crisis and budget cuts. I was very lucky to even have gotten this job as many of my friends who also graduated in 2009 were not able to find jobs after graduation. I also tutored SAT and made $400 a month (which was my rent at the time! I split a 2 bedroom 1 bath with 3 other guys!). I was able to save $10,000 for grad school and go on two big trips the summer before my PhD.
2010-2015: During my PhD program I earned between $1400 and $1800 a month for 9 months (summers are not typically paid). In a given year this was less than $20,000. For some summers, I was able to find a research job. I lived in university housing and paid about $630 for my room in a 3 bedroom 2 bath student housing.
2015-2016: Upon graduating with my PhD I did a postdoc at the university where I got my undergrad degree from. This paid $59,000 a year. This is actually very high for my field. Typical postdocs in my field are closer to $40,000-$50,000 a year (for reference, my field is Education).
2016-2019: I worked at a research center on campus affiliated with my postdoc. My starting salary was $64,000 and got a 3% merit raise every year for 3 years (the merit raise was technically a cost of living raise). I think I ended up making $72,000 only because I asked for my title to be changed. I was severely underpaid (I would say by $20K) in this position compared to other colleagues, which I was able to look up because salaries at public universities are public. I brought this up to management and was put in a position where I basically needed to leave. I had applied to many jobs and was one of the last 2 candidates for many positions, but never got an offer! I did get a verbal offer from one company but the next day was told that they actually did not have the budget for that position. I was in a very low place, to say the least.
Second half of 2019: I was extremely lucky to find a startup to consult for part-time for a few months. I charged $100 an hour. That brought my total income to $80,000 in 2019.
2020: A few months later, I got another full time consulting gig making $150 an hour for 5 months. In June of this year was when I really started my own consulting business in that I was looking to build a business with multiple clients instead of being a contract employee or “full time” at one place. I am in the field of education and during COVID Edtech has blown up. It was a rough few months of no projects but in just a few months was able to build up a full roster of clients. I made $180,000 this year and am so proud of this huge jump I made! I never thought this would be possible.
Assets and Debt
*note I have rounded balances to the nearest 1,000.
Retirement Balance
$63,000 in a roll over 401K (technically 403B) from my previous job. I worked for 3 years (+1 if you count postdoc) at a university. Mandatory 7% contribution with 7% match. I additionally contributed 5%.
$41,000 in my self 401K. $1,500 in an individual Roth. My goal is to contribute $20,000 a year to my self 401K.
$22,000 iIn Roth IRA contributions from previous years contributions that I finally invested this year. Before it was sitting in CDs (how dumb of me!). Part if this was from that initial $10,000 I had saved for grad school and part with money I had saved from working.
Equity if you're a homeowner (and how much you put down and how you accumulated that payment).
Put down $225,000 (20%) on a multi family home. The house has 3 units. Most of it was from my mother. She is of the mindset that it is better to get an inheritance now that can be invested than to get it later. Some of this from a college fund that I didn’t use all of. $707,000 left to pay on the mortgage. Value is around $1.8 Million (according to my realtor last year).
Savings account balance
$20,000 in an emergency fund. This is split between my personal savings and my business account. I saved this in 2020.
$20,000 in savings for downpayment for a single family home. I am hoping to save a total of $100,000. I saved this in 2020.
$3,000 in a travel and sinking fund. Because I do not get paid on a regular schedule, I like to keep more here so that I can transfer this to my checking account when needed. I saved this in 2020.
$12,000 in my tax fund. I set aside 30% of income I receive in a separate account for taxes. For 5 months this year I worked as a contractor and received a W2 and taxes were already taken out. I have paid quarterly taxes this December and am keeping this in case I need to pay more come April.
Investment accounts (non retirement)
$6,100 in my stocks. This changes from day to day. I have amazon, uber, target, zoom, and tesla stock. I only started investing late 2019 and 2020.
$25,000 spread across a few ETFs. VTSAX FTW! $9,000 of this I had invested in 2019 and the rest was from 2020.
$2,000 in an HSA. I should have contributed all the years I was eligible but only contributed the last one at my job when I had a high deductible plan. I wish I had a high deductible plan now because this is such a good place to invest.
Checking account balance
$800 in my main checking account
$100 in a secondary checking account.
Credit card debt (and how you accumulated it)
none pay this off in full every month.
Student loan debt (for what degree)
None. My undergrad psych degree was paid for with the money I got from my dad’s social security payment when we passed away when I was 13.
My PhD in Education was paid for through research assistantships and teaching assistantships (this is very typical of PhD programs. If you have to pay tuition, I suggest you do not attend that program).
Anything else that's applicable to you
Additional debt is my car. I have a $504 monthly car payment that will end in October. The interest rate is .99% so I don’t think it makes sense for me to pay this off any sooner. I purchased a used luxury car with very low mileage. Put 12K down and financed the rest over 4 years. I’ve had the car for almost 4 years and it still has less than 25K miles on it. I’m sure she will last me at least another 10 years.
Section Two: Income
Main Job Monthly Take Home:
This is a difficult one to answer. Since I own my own business, I do not get a regular monthly or biweekly paycheck. Some clients I charge monthly per hour (where hours vary from month to month) and some clients pay by deliverable. In December 2020 I made $21,000, in November I made $1,100, and in October I made $26,000. This is all pretax as I am responsible for paying my own taxes. In the year 2020, I will have made about $180,000.
Any Other Monthly Income Here
Yes. I am a landlady and the property I own has 3 units. I house hack, meaning that I live in one unit and rent out the other 2 units for $6,450 (total). This covers my mortgage, property taxes, and other expenses (maintenance, the plumber, who I did have to call this week). I keep any income generated from rent in a separate account and do not use it for personal use.
EXPENSES
Yearly expenses
Property Taxes: ~$17,000 a year. This is typically covered by what is leftover from monthly rent from my tenants. There are a few times where I’ve had to contribute to this from my own savings but have been lucky that my tenants have been able to pay rent this year..
Car registration: $322
Vespa registration: $70 (I think? I purchased this in 2020 and had to pay taxes on the purchase price to the DMV. This was rolled in with the registration)
Vespa insurance: $592.76. This is a lot in my opinion and unfortunately could not be combined with my car and house insurance.
Business expenses: In 2020, I spent $5,000 on my business. $500 is for business insurance. The other $4500 includes things like domain names, website hosting, squarespace account, etc. I also paid someone to help me with my website copy and marketing materials. I think this will stay the same or go up in 2021. I am thinking about ways to outsource some of what I do so I can bring in more clients and focus less time on social media, blogpost writing, and more time on the actual research.
Ring yearly plan: $30
Monthly expenses
*below are expenses associated with my house account that I do not pay for with the income listed above.
Mortgage: $3,700 a month. This is covered and then some by the rent I receive from my tenants.
Electricity: $50. This is for my apartment as well as the common area of my property
Gas: $120 (this is for my apartment and another apartment I rent out). This is on the high end… california winter. In the summer it is closer to $30.
Water: $140. This is for the whole property.
*starting here are expenses that come out of my personal accounts
Home & car insurance: $367 a month (this includes my car and my home since they are bundled). I also pay an additional $200 a year for umbrella insurance (I still don’t know exactly what this is, but it is apparently important to have).
Health insurance: $484.07 a month. I purchase my own through Covered California.
Savings:
Because I do not get paid regularly and think of my savings across a whole year. I would like to save 20K a year in my self 401K. I am also saving up for a downpayment for a house and would like to save 60K in 2021. I try to save a bit for other investments like $500 here and there in ETFs, or if there is a particular stock I want to buy. Right now, however, I am prioritizing saving for a down payment.
Debt payments: Just my mortgage and my car ($504 a month. This will be paid off in October 2021).
Donations: $50 to Planned Parenthood monthly recurring donation. I also contribute to other organizations like wikimedia, Upward Bound House, my friend’s theatre group, and the LA Food Bank. Basically anything that pops up in my inbox. My donations for 2020 totalled $1,300. I do some volunteering with a local homeless group but this is only a few times a year. Now that I have a better idea of my income while self employed, I do plan on upping this to $2K in 2021.
Wifi: $74.99 a month
Cellphone: $0 for me, My mom and I are on a family plan and she pays for this.
Subscriptions: LA times ($7.96). For entertainment, my friend and I split a lot of subscriptions. I pay for netflix ($12.99), spotify ($14.99), and sundance ($6.99 this is just temporary for 2 months for us to watch our favorite show Riviera), my friend pays for hulu and hbo. I use my mom’s amazon prime account.
Gym membership; cancelled due to COVID. Not sure yet if I will restart this.
Pet expenses: none
Therapy: $150 a month. I have a virtual session every other week and pay out of pocket for this.
At the end of each day please tally up your daily expenses. Then at the end of your diary please tally up all expenses in the following categories:
Sunday
7:30am - I have a really hard time sleeping in even on the weekends
9:00am- my boyfriend is still in bed so I decide to try to get some work done for a client from bed.
10:15am- boyfriend still sleeping. Decide to take a shower.
11:30am- boyfriend finally wakes up! We have coffee, lounge a bit.
1:00pm- take my BF home. He lives about 5 miles from me. Really nice to get out of the house and take a drive. Wanted to drop something off at the UPS store and realized they are closed on Sundays!
2:30pm- finally make myself some breakfast. Yummy breakfast sandwich (an egg and a sausage on bread with mustard). Watch a bit of my show on HBO. Watching season 2 of My Brilliant Friend. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVED the books and am really digging the series. The characters look exactly how I imagine them from the book.
3:30pm- still nothing exciting happening. Took out the trash cans, vacuumed, wrote my schedule for the week on my white board in my office, did some work, browsed online a bit.
5:30pm- making breaded chicken fingers in the air fryer and sauteeing up some kale! Enough for lunch tomorrow.
7:00pm- watched Charade
9:00pm- in bed and scrolling through the trying for a baby subreddit. My BF and I have been TTC for a couple of months now. I know these things take time and I probably shouldn’t spend so much time on the internet googling my symptoms.
Monday
6:20am- alarm set for 6:20. So far during the pandemic, I haven’t been setting an alarm and will wake up anytime between 6am and 7am naturally. I am naturally an early bird. Did a 40 minute yoga session from the app Downward Dog. I look at my checking account and see that I’ve received $430 from the government in stimulus money. I have been wanting to donate more this year so research organizations to give to. Donate $200 to Upward Bound House and $200 to the local theatre. Also make my own hemp milk in the blender for my matcha latte.
8:00am- start getting some work stuff together. Create invoices for 2 clients. I have a call with a potential client at 9:30 and need to brush up on what we spoke about last. In my field, a lot of organizations get funding through grant competitions. We are the finalists for one and they would like me to be one of the presenters! Eeek. Get an email that the yoga app I have been using is only $14.99 for the year so purchase that
8:40am time for my second matcha latte.
9:30am meeting with a client
9:50- meeting ended early. My best friend who is in another country right now wants to vid chat. We chat for about 10 minutes
10:15am- getting hungry! Heated up the chicken fingers from last night
11:00-12:30- run some errands. Get my Vespa looked at. It was acting weird a few months ago and now we can’t recreate the problem. Go to the postoffice to send my friend’s xmas gift. $11.04
12:30 continue working
4pm- heating up the last of my chicken fingers! Looks like i’m having a super early dinner today.
5pm- lost a little steam. Did a 10 minute ab workout. Loaded the dishwasher. On the computer now trying to do more work.
6:00-6:45pm- spent some time decluttering and listing items on Poshmark. I really am on a mission to declutter as much clothing as possible and only keep the things I love and feel confident in. I get a lot of things second hand from my mom so it is hard for me to part with stuff because I think of it as her stuff. But this past month I have really focused on figuring out my personal style and how I want to dress (thank you pinterest for helping me).
7-8pm did work for an hourly client
8pm- veg time and my eventual bedtime.
Total= $426.03
Tuesday
6:20- read news, don’t get out of bed until 6:45. Empty the dishwasher. Do a 35 minute yoga session. Shower.
8:05- working! Some work for an hourly project. Our meeting is at 9am this morning.
11:30- meeting ended early! Going to make some lunch! Rice bowl with eggplant, kale, sausage and egg on top! My tenant reported that her kitchen sink is leaking so I called the plumber.
1:30- took the vespa to fedex to print documents ($1.08). Stopped by the gas station to fill up ($4.05). Came home, packed items, and walked to the post office to drop things off in the mailbox.
2:15pm- back at my desk to work.
4:30pm- just ended a meeting with my business partner. Hoped on a video call with my BF. He is coming over tomorrow.
5:30pm- start making dinner. Meatballs (with turmeric and chickpea flour!) rice, radish
6:30-7pm- hop on a call with my friend in singapore
7pm- I pull the trigger and purchase an 8 week coaching class with Melissa Le Man ($290). I have been following her on snapchat and her clients have great results! This might be categorized as lifestyle creep, but I’m at a point where I do not want to spend mental energy trying to decide what to eat or how to work out. Once I fill out her intake form and take before pictures she will email me an eating and workout plan within a week.
Total- $295.13
Wednesday
6:10- wake up a bit before my alarm. Read the news. Go on Target to purchase dumbbells and food scale I need for my training. I opt for picking up items from two locations.
7:45am- take my “before” pictures to send to the trainer. I also finish filling out her intake questionnaire about my goals and lifestyle and eating habits.
9:20- have 10 minutes before my next meeting. What do I do?? Trying to be more consistent in writing blogposts.10 minutes of writing is better than 0 minutes!
10:50- finished a call and some emails. Time to eat!
11-12:30- went to target to pick up my order ($45.14) and went grocery shopping ($90.88). I go grocery shopping once a week and some weeks it is on the higher side (like this bill) and some on the lower.
I know I’m going to get some hate for venturing out of my house but I honestly don’t want to rely on delivery anymore. It is so wasteful. Yes, I could have all these things delivered to me and not leave the house, but I would still be putting work on others.
12”50pm Did some laundry, changed my sheets. Start working from working from bed. I am exhausted today.
Following the shit show of what is happening at the White House
2:30pm- the plumber is here. I wasn’t expecting him until tomorrow! Also on the phone with my BF about insurance. He is a contractor and decided to purchase his own health insurance. The day is going by so quickly and haven’t gotten as much done as I had hoped. It’s just been one of those days.
4:30pm- meeting ended early. Folding laundry, cleaned the bathroom.
5:00pm- back on computer to send a few emails.
5:30pm- start cooking dinner. BF on his way over.
9:00pm- pass out super early
Total: $136.02
Thursday
6:30am- set my alarm for 7:30 but up at 6:30. Feel so much more rested than yesterday
8am- advisory board meeting
11am- meeting with a potential client
12pm- BF is making us a nice brunch! Omelettes with sausage and bread!
2pm- my BF got me a TV for xmas!!!!!!!!! Best Buy cancelled the TV that was supposed to be delivered so we go to Best Buy to pick it up (they come out to the car to deliver it). Then we go to Target (a different location from here I was earlier in the week) to pick up my second set of weights for my personal coaching ($47.07).
3:30pm get home, BF sets up TV, I go back to work
5:30 I am crazy hungry and pick up pizza for us. $54.71 (includes 20% tip).
Fall asleep around 9:30pm
Total: $101.78
Friday
6:30am - wake up again before my alarm. Do some emails, read the news
8:00am- Go on my Friday bike ride! This is about 10 miles total on a nice bike path from my house to the beach. Listen to You’re Wrong About podcast. The bike ride really helps me clear my head and am excited because not many people are out
9:05 am. Get back, shower. BF brings coffee.
10:05am meeting and NON STOP WORK UNTIL 5:30pm. It was a crazy busy day for me today with a last minute project that got added. Luckily we have leftover pizza for lunch! And the CSA box my friend gave me as an xmas gift arrived! Totally forgot this was coming or else I would’ve bought less veggies at the store. Freeze the spinach for my smoothies, and rinse, trim, and freeze the strawberries from the grocery store.
5:45pm- BF makes dinner!
7:30pm- in bed watching My Brilliant Friend on HBO. Finished season 2.
I think I passed out at 9:30 or so.
Saturday
6am- no alarm why am I up? Lounge in bed, go on youtube and snap chat. Do a 40 minute yoga session on Downward Dog app. Eat some leftover pizza.
10am- have a call with a family friend. I am actually hoping I can hire her to help me with some of my work.
11:15am- have a call with my business partner for a grant that we are helping a client put together
12:00pm- pop in some laundry then my BF and I head in the car to pick up sandwiches from a place that he loves. Hot pastrami sandwich for me. He pays. We eat the sandwiches on the curb outside by the parked car.
2:00pm get home, chill for the rest of the day and evening. Fold laundry, vacuum, watch Wonder Boys, watch a lot of youtube, basically enjoying the TV and I pass out at 9pm.
Totals
Food + Drink- $145.62
Fun / Entertainment- $0
Home + Health- $392.20
Clothes + Beauty = $0
Transport = $4.05
Other: $412.12
Total: $953.99
Lastly, reflect on your diary!
This was not a typical week for me in terms of spending since I did make donations and paid for private coaching and workout equipment. I was pretty drained and exhausted this week. I didn’t really take a break from working over the holidays and I think it is finally catching up to me. I also ventured out of my house more in the past week than I have in the last few weeks combined. It was really nice to feel like I was actually doing something and not just suck at home. I also ate way more meat this week than I usually do.

NEW YORK

• Bethenny Frankel models a mini dress with thigh-high stockings as she poses in front of her Pink Christmas tree with dogs Biggy and Smallz (Daily Mail)

POTOMAC

• Ashley Darby Says Part 3 Of The Reunion Will Make Your Jaw Fall To The Floor: It’s ‘Crazy’ (HollywoodLife exclusive)

"HOLLYWOODLIFE: Following the first two parts of the RHOP reunion, a lot of fans have been criticizing you for not holding your husband accountable for his actions. What do you say to that?
ASHLEY DARBY: I definitely do hold my husband accountable. I would say that not everyone gets to see everything we talk about. And you have to remember that my marriage goes every single day, 365 days a year. So, while yes, you’re seeing snippets of it, you have to remember that ultimately, you know, my marriage is an ever-steady presence in my life. So not everything is going to be on the television.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Why do you think you and Michael have stayed together after all the drama that’s unfolded? And do you fear that another indiscretion might happen in the future?
ASHLEY DARBY: Well, Michael and I have stayed together because our relationship has always been really complex. We have many factors that have influenced our relationship from the beginning: our race, our age difference, our political views, which are now more aligned. But previously, we were on so many different sides of the playing field, so we are used to having that sort of scrutiny. And the way that we just keep going is we talk about it, and really, everything that happens is a learning lesson for us. And while yes, everyone has seen that we’ve had our share of challenges, we really have recovered from them. And we work really, really hard. Michael and I make sure we have good communication because ultimately there will be these challenges. It’s just the way it is. I’ve had them with my family. I have them with my friends, have with my husband, and so we just keep working through them and we talk about it, and I’m not worried about an indiscretion now because I do trust him. We’ve been working on rebuilding our trust together. And if Michael did decide that he didn’t want to be in this family, then that would be a choice that he made. And I would have to accept it and move on. So I can’t keep living in fear about what could happen. I have to acknowledge what is happening, how he has shown me how committed he is to our family and work from there.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Is it because your trust in him that you no longer feel the need for a post-nuptial agreement?
ASHLEY DARBY: Yes, the post-nuptial agreement honestly is not really necessary, considering the fact that our pre-nuptial agreement is now null and void. So really, it was just a piece of paper that ultimately — what would I have asked for? We have a shared interest in our family, he is a stellar dad, and our children are his first priority. So I don’t really have that fear anymore. The post-nuptial agreement really was just more so if I felt like we weren’t on the same page and we weren’t getting to a better place. But we have made so much progress, I promise you.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: How did you feel when Candiace made strong accusations about your husband during the reunion? She insisted he had sex with the woman he had a sleepover with.
ASHLEY DARBY: I don’t know if I could care any less about anything that comes from Candiace’s mouth. Honestly, um, she is a person who — it’s very apparent in her social media behavior, and in the interviews that she does, that she’s just a really hateful person. And I’m not going to let myself get caught up in her narrative. She’s so consumed with what I have going on in my life. But she and her husband need to address whatever issues they have in their lives and the shortcomings or whatever they have in their marriage. Because I assure you, none of us are perfect, so I don’t listen to her.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: RHOP alum Katie Ross also said she had a sexual encounter with someone in the cast, but you swore it wasn’t you when it was brought up during the reunion. Do you know who it was?
ASHLEY DARBY: So it’s really interesting because everyone swore that it was me. I would tell you at this point if it was me, and I was just getting slammed with all of that. But if I had done it, I would admit it, first of all, but based on the context clues shared, there are some theories as to who it could be. The lady obviously lives in Potomac and she has a garage. So it’s something you have to kind of deduce based on those descriptions.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Do you know who it is or who she claims it is?
ASHLEY DARBY: I know who it allegedly is — I’ve talked to my other cast mates, and we’ve kind of put our heads together.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Were you privy to the rumor your cast mates were allegedly trying to spread about Monique and her trainer?
ASHLEY DARBY: So I didn’t fully understand the degree of what was happening. Now all of us had heard about this because her friend had reached out to every single one of us, and she had said something really gross. I mean, like, horrible things. And at the time, I didn’t know where they were coming from. No one fully told me the extent of what Gigi was claiming. So it wasn’t until Monique and I became closer. That’s when Monique was like, ‘Ashley. I’m just going to tell you what this woman is trying to do to me.’ And so that’s when I found out everything. So for a while there, I was in the dark. I didn’t know all of the things that Gigi had done to try to build up this case against Monique. I didn’t know that.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: The cast seems very divided right now when it comes to the feud between Monique and Candiace. Do you think the show can continue with both of them in the cast, and should it?
ASHLEY DARBY: I think that’s a really good question. And I asked myself that, too, but one of the beautiful things about being on Housewives and that I do appreciate, is we don’t really get the opportunity to run away from each other. And that’s a good thing. So, like in your real life, you know, if you don’t like someone, even if you’re in similar social circles, you can avoid them at all costs. But now, if you don’t like someone, you still have to talk to them. You and you have to hash it out. And I think that that is a huge benefit of being a part of this show. So, Monique and Candiace, they can… I do believe that they can work it out. I think anything is absolutely possible. If I could get to a place of decency with Candiace after what she did to me, I definitely have hope that she and Monique could find some way to bury the hatchet.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Why do you think Robyn, Gizelle and Wendy are ‘Team Candiace’ and doing what they can to discount Monique’s recollection of the fight?
ASHLEY DARBY: I think that the ladies felt that Monique went too far. And yes, that is true. But where I think things get a little bit murky is some of their previously held ideas about Monique are now affecting their opinions now, because as I said, if everyone was able to move forward with Candiace after she tried to instigate a fight with me and they weren’t, you know, they’re like, ‘Oh, Ashley, it’s over. You have to get over it.’ So if I — if I’m being told that that’s the stance I need to take, then I think that there should be a little bit more understanding about Monique and realizing that this really is an issue between these two women. And they need to, you know, like let them work it out.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: And how’s your pregnancy going? Have you picked a baby name yet?
ASHLEY DARBY: I’m seven months pregnant. And yes, so we do have a name. The baby’s name will begin with a ‘D’. I’m a fan of alliteration. It’s been a really great pregnancy. I have to say, I definitely went through a lot with Dean, really postpartum, so now that I’m in the thick of my third trimester, where everything really culminates, running after a one year old who is incredibly active and independent makes it so that I don’t really have time to think about what’s happening. You know, I really only have time at the end of the night, so I actually make a point now just to rub and hold my belly because I’m so engrossed in what’s happening with Dean, I just forget about this baby sometimes, you know? I also have a lot of precautions that I’m going to take after doing some more research about postpartum depression so that I can avoid having those same feelings that I had with my first pregnancy.
HOLLYWOODLIFE: Anything you can tease about the third and final part of the reunion?
ASHLEY DARBY: The final part is just crazy. I personally had to pick my jaw up a few times. It’s a good one."
NEW JERSEY

• Margaret Josephs wants Caroline Manzo back on ‘RHONJ’ despite Teresa drama (Page Six)

"Margaret Josephs wants Caroline Manzo to re-join “The Real Housewives of New Jersey” — despite her drama with co-star Teresa Giudice.
Josephs, 53, revealed that she has never met fan-favorite Manzo, who left the show before Josephs became part of the cast, but called her “smart” and “strong” and said she’s always “loved her character.”
“I’d get a big kick out of [Manzo returning]. I think it’d be great,” she said on the “#NoFilter with Zack Peter” podcast. “Personally, I think after COVID-19, I don’t know if her and Teresa could ever heal — that would be amazing. And then I wouldn’t be the oldest on the show!”
Giudice, 48, and Manzo, 59, have been at odds for years, with Giudice even accusing Manzo of reporting her and her husband to the federal police, leading to their respective prison sentences. Of course, Manzo has denied any wrondoing.
Still, the former friends came together to break bread for a Sabra Hummus commercial during the Super Bowl this year.
Last year, Manzo said she considered returning to “RHONJ” for Season 10 but didn’t because Bravo made her a “very insulting” offer. Network honcho Andy Cohen, meanwhile, said last April that Manzo was one of the women he missed the most.
Season 11 is expected to premiere in early 2021."

• Margaret Josephs Goes Off on Siggy Flicker (#NoFilter with Zack Peter podcast/Heavy)

During a recent podcast appearance, Real Housewives of New Jersey star Margaret Josephs dished on her relationship status with her former friend and cast member, Siggy Flicker.
“[Siggy] repulses me,” Josephs said while appearing on the #NoFilter With Zack Peter podcast on December 23. “She’s a stain on New Jersey and I can’t wait until she moves to Florida. Literally a stain on New Jersey.” Josephs also claimed that the former star is a “conspiracy theorist” and a “psycho.”
While appearing on the #NoFilter With Zack Peter podcast, Josephs also spoke about her other former friend, Danielle Staub. “I’d take Danielle back over Siggy any day of the week,” Josephs said while on the podcast. “I actually used to love Danielle. We had a close relationship. I feel very sad about the way it went down. I think she’s suffering. I don’t think she’s an evil person, I think she’s hurting and damaged and I think that’s what it is. She always feels like a cat in the corner, which is not really the case. I do have a mixed feeling about her, even though she physically attacked me and all of those things.”
Josephs continued, revealing more alleged details about their past friendship. “[Danielle] needs adoration, needs love. You cannot be honest with her. If you’re being honest with her, you’re immediately being mean to her or something like that…I was completely honest with her about certain things, and she didn’t like it, and that was it.”
BRAVO

• The Most Shocking Real Housewives Moments That Played Out in 2020 (E!)

CHESHIRE

• 'Soulmates for life': Missé Beqiri shares a heart-wrenching tribute to her late brother Flamur - a year after he was murdered on Christmas Eve (Daily Mail)

BEVERLY HILLS

• Sutton filming for BH11 and Dorit too (Queens of Bravo Twitter)

It’s that time again, nfl. 32 representatives. 32 teams. 32 rankings. The 11th Annual NFL Official Power Rankings are back! Each team ranker creates their own unique power ranking from top to bottom. All lists are then combined into one and posted here, updated on a weekly basis. Thank you to the readers, discussion starters, and supporters. Here’s Week 0’s list, 24/32 reporting. Let the arguments begin!

#		Team	Record	Comment
1.		Chiefs	12-4	The Chiefs are reigning Super Bowl champions. The sentence still feels like a fever dream even now to most Chiefs fans, but it is the current reality. Patrick Mahomes, the demi-god of Kansas City, is back with a half a billion-dollar contract and is as hungry as ever for more championships. After an offseason of Brett Veach handing out millions of dollars in extensions, the Andy Reid led Chiefs are favorites to win the whole thing again in a Covid-19 filled season. Let the high flying year commence.
2.		Ravens	14-2	Ravens: Expectations are high, schedule is easy on paper, and aside from an unproven linebacker and WR corps the Ravens seem to have improved everywhere from last year. Most teams have, though, and sadly games aren't played on paper. Can Baltimore keep it up when after losing ET3 and Marshall Yanda? Will they crap the bed against the Browns early in the season again? How are the wide receivers? No idea, but this blurb is just here to serve as a welcome to the clusterfuck that is the first few weeks of the regular season.
3.		49ers	13-3	The Super Bowl Runner up 49ers enter the new year with few notable losses, hoping that roster stability will continue the team's recent success.
4.		Saints	13-3	Not since Nicholas Flamel has someone come as close to alchemy as Mickey Loomis. With one of the most consistent creative coaches in Sean Payton, if Brees holds it together for one more year New Orleans is on track to be as competitive as ever.
5.		Seahawks	11-5	Jadeveon wasn't here to stay, hopefully Jamal is. He'll be paired with Pete Carroll, heavily upgrading from his last coach pairing of Gase/Gregg Williams. Unlike his refusal to let Russell Wilson play a real first quarter of football, Pete is a proven defensive mind and Jamal has never had work ethic issues. It'll be tough to crab walk out of the bucket that is the NFC WEST.
6.		Packers	13-3	Another year in a West Coast offense could pay dividends for Rodgers, who woke up one morning in April to see Favre's reflection staring back at him. Love could be the long term answer for the Pack, who are already one of the most happily-spoiled QB teams in history. If not, LaFleur likely will be coaching somewhere warmer.
7.		Cowboys	8-8	The Cowboys overhauled their two greatest issues this off-season: Kicker and coaching staff. There were some key departures in guys like Robert Quinn, Byron Jones, and Fredbeard the Conqueror, but they at least have a plan that's good on paper to address all that. If it all works out, the sky's the limit.
8.		Buccaneers	7-9	This will either be yet another example of Arians' track record with first year quarterbacks, or another ring for Tompa Brady's Gauntlet. There isn't time for anything in between.
9.		Titans	9-7	The run to the AFC Championship game by the Titans was unexpected to most of the league and not reflective of where the team was to start the 2019-2020 season. After making the switch at QB to Tannehill a different Titans team emerged and finished the year with a 9-4 record after week 7. Going into 2020 the Titans have signed Tannehill and Henry to long term contracts, keeping the core offense together and made some high upside signings on defense with Clowney and Beasley to try and boost the defensive line pressure. The key, as it always is for the Titans, will be if the QB can stay healthy throughout the year. The Titans have not had 1 QB start all 16 games since 2011, when Matt Hasselbeck lead the Titans to a... 9-7 record.
10.		Vikings	10-6	The Vikings had a whirlwind of an offseason, headlined by trading away Stefon Diggs, trading for Yannick Ngakoue, promoting Gary Kubiak to offensive coordinator and selecting a record 15 players in the 2020 NFL draft. With seven 2020 pro bowlers on the roster, the Vikings have the top-end talent to make some noise in the playoffs, but to get there in the first place they'll need to overcome some massive holes in the trenches and all the question marks surrounding the callow cornerbacks and receivers.
11.		Bills	10-6	Without fans in the stands, Bills games will look and sound different than ever before. BillsMafia will still don their zubaz, they will still crack their Labatts, and many may still break their tables, but now from the comfort and (relative) safety of their homes. In Cheektowaga there will be driveway dizzy-bats. In Amherst fans will go through the flip-cup table they’ve erected on their lawns. And in the city proper, Bills fans will have their speakers ready to blast the Shout Song after a score, all in the hopes that Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills can deliver the city a much-needed championship. Will Allen take that final step forward and help carry this loaded roster to the promised land? Or will the Bills return to the ways of mediocrity? Either way, BillsMafia was born ready.
12.		Steelers	8-8	The Steelers enter the 2020 Beer Bug season looking down the barrel of a completely loaded Ravens team. The Black and Gold find themselves very much in the underdog's position. In a preaseason of unknowns and little evidence to go on, could Pittsburgh strike WR gold again with Chase Claypool? There's quite a bit of hype there and the Steelers need people to step up and take pressure off of Smith-Schuster.
13.		Patriots	12-4	Its a whole new world.
14.		Eagles	9-7	The Eagles entered the off-season needing to address both their secondary and receiving corp, both of which were at or near worst in the NFL last year. Major upgrades were made across both units, and the Eagles fanbase is hopeful this year won't be a repeat of last, especially with the NFC East in dismal shape. Everything is predicated on Carson Wentz now, who needs a healthy year to detract naysayers.
15.		Texans	10-6	BoB the GM continues to perplex. The Watson contract is great, and ties down the best QB the Texans have ever had for the foreseeable future. But, he traded our best WR for basically peanuts. There are all kinds of rumors swirling around about why this happened, but the end product is that the Texans are unequivocally worse off without Nuk. For all jokes about the GM/Head Coach/Imperator perpetuo of the Texans, the team is better than most give it credit for. Time will tell how big the Hopkins trade will impact the team.
16.		Rams	9-7	Over the offseason, the Rams lost Todd Gurley, Brandin Cooks, Aqib Talib, Dante Fowler, Cory Littleton, Clay Matthews, Greg Zuerlein, DC Wade Phillips, and ST John Fassel. They do have a shiny new stadium and amazing new logo, which should offset these losses. Super Bowl or bust. #hornsup
17.		Colts	7-9	If one can possibly compartmentalize, then 2020 would offer an optimistic outlook for Colts fans. A trade for one of the best players in the league and getting whatever's left in Rivers' tank signals a move of the proverbial chips to the pot. There are so many 'if's at this point, it would be fruitless to discuss them further. We'll take this week by week in what will surely be the most surreal NFL season of all.
18.		Falcons	7-9	The Falcons enter the season with a veteran loaded coaching staff, the oldest roster in the NFL, and one of the few teams without opt outs. If consistency means more in 2020's unique season, then Atlanta might have fallen backwards into the keys of success. With leadership at key positions across the board it's hard not to be hopeful.
19.		Cardinals	5-10-1	Excitement and expectations are higher than they've been in quite awhile for the Cardinals. Kyler Murray will be looking to make a leap after winning rookie of the year honors and has a lot more help this season after the team magically acquired DeAndre Hopkins and managed to dump David Johnson's terrible contract at the same time. They'll get an immediate test as they face the reigning NFC champions this weekend.
20.		Broncos	7-9	Uh, football? I think?
21.		Raiders	7-9	Raiders fans are always optimistic at this time of year, and we are ready to be hurt once again.
22.		Browns	6-10	NFL season sneaked up on us.
23.		Bears	8-8	Chicago looks to bounce back from an underwhelming team defensive performance that "only" ranked fifth by PPG in 2019. Their expectations are higher than ever, as the defense also has the job of playing so well that the general populace forgets what Trubisky is capable of.
24.		Chargers	5-11	Fresh off of their Hard Knocks appearance, the Chargers will feature a brand new offense with a promising rookie QB in the wings and a defense that looks to improve with new additions like Linval Joseph and CHJ. As they get set to take on Joe Burrow and the Bengals in Week 1, the biggest question looms large: How long will this season actually last? Will we actually get to answer any questions this year about the post-Rivers era Chargers?
25.		Lions	3-12-1	The Detroit Lions have made a science of keeping the emotional roller coaster chugging along. From the injury plagued 2019 season with Stafford missing half the season with an injury, and Kenny Golladay still leading the NFL in TD's... to signing AD and Stafford vowing for an MVP race. If the Lions can avoid injury, there's reason to believe in a playoff appearance and even a win. One thing is certain, the offense is going to be a force to be reckoned with.
26.		Dolphins	5-11	There's high hopes floating around the Dolphins as they enter year 2 of a multi-year rebuild. Will those hopes come tumbling down as they often do, or will Flores unleash Fitzmagic and show some improvement in a squad that vastly outperformed what people thought of them last year.
27.		Giants	4-12	It can be a slippery slope trying to emulate Bill Belichick. Rookie HC Joe Judge, though, seems to have taken command of this Giants team while still having fun and caring about the players. While nothing earns fan adoration quite like winning football games, most Giants fan would agree this year that seeing second-year passer Danny Dimes take strides forward is enough to get excited about. The G-Men face a tough schedule all year, but week 1 may prove to be especially daunting. The Steelers were a defensive monster in 2019 that dragged Mason Rudolph and Duck Hodges kicking and screaming to an 8-8 record. With Big Ben back at the helm, Monday night will prove to be a serious challenge for a Giants team with new faces on both sides of the ball.
28.		Jets	7-9	Sending Jamal Adams to Seattle is a big emotional blow for Jets fans, but the price can't be ignored and certainly puts the team in position to put young talent around Sam Darnold. As long as he can keep his tongue in his mouth, Darnold should have an opportunity to prove a lot about the Jets future in 2020.
29.		Panthers	5-11	The odds are stacked against Carolina, especially with first year NFL coach Matt Rhule coming from the NCAA. Stranger things have happened in the NFC South, and for better or for worse, starting QB Teddy Bridgewater could be the deciding factor.
30.		Bengals	2-14	The Bengals may start the season near the bottom of most power rankings, but where they finish will depend on how league ready Joe Burrow is. By most accounts he has been very sharp in practice, but without a proper pre-season we won't really know how ready he is until the games start. But for now, optimism is very high in Cincinnati.
31.		Washington FT	3-13	After a smooth and mostly quiet off-season with very little fuss or drama, The Red- I mean Football Team will finally take the field. With a new coach, Head Coach having named their starting quarterback, Quarterback and their number two draft choice, Defensive End we’re ready to see what Football Team looks like.
32.		Jaguars	6-10	During the offseason, the Jacksonville Jaguars made so many moves, this blurbist was unable to keep up with all of the roster changes. At the very least, there's only 12 players left from the nearly Super Bowl squad. This might be rough.

There should be no sympathy for the Giants after they watched their season come to an inglorious end with the Eagles rolling over in a 20-14 loss to Washington on Sunday night. That’s what happens when your fate winds up in the hands of a hated rival.
The Giants wouldn’t have been in that position if they hadn’t blown an 11-point lead to the Eagles in the final six minutes of their Week 7 matchup. Now, watching quarterback Jalen Hurts get pulled from a three-point game early in the fourth quarter surely will add some juice to the next Giants-Eagles meeting. But the reality is the Giants went 6-10 and even in this wacky season, that’s not enough to make the playoffs.
Here are some thoughts as the Giants begin the offseason rather than starting preparations for a home playoff game against the Buccaneers:
• Though playoff experience would have been beneficial, this outcome may be the best thing for the organization in the long run. It would have been a mistake to have the view of the big picture clouded by a fluky division title. If the Giants were in any other division this season, they would have finished at least five games out of first place.
The biggest decision Giants ownership has to make is the future of general manager Dave Gettleman. John Mara and Steve Tisch need to evaluate a three-year tenure that has produced 15 wins and 33 losses, and there won’t be any “but we made the playoffs” arguments added to the equation. The Giants have three wins over teams with winning records in Gettleman’s three seasons.
It’s certainly possible that ownership reviews Gettleman’s full body of work and decides to stick with him based on the progress made this year. Gettleman was outstanding in free agency in the offseason and he appears to work well with first-year head coach Joe Judge.
On the other hand, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Giants make a change. That may not mean an outright firing — perhaps the 69-year-old will retire or shift into an advisory role — but the end result would be someone new running the personnel department. If that happens, expect the Giants to find someone with ties to Judge. A decision on Gettleman’s fate should come within the next day or so since six teams (Lions, Texans, Falcons, Jaguars, Panthers and Washington) are already in the market for a new general manager.
• The other major decision looming is the fate of offensive coordinator Jason Garrett. The Giants produced the second fewest points in the league (topping only the Jets) in Garrett’s first season as the play caller.
Garrett has long been a favorite of ownership and he was viewed as a valuable sounding board for Judge in his first year as a head coach. That guidance carries less value after Judge handled his first season smoothly.
Garrett had to overcome some personnel deficiencies, but his scheme appeared outdated. While more innovative offenses heavily feature pre-snap motion, Garrett lagged in that category. His route combinations relied too much on pedestrian receivers winning one-on-one matchups, while other schemes spring receivers open more frequently.
Judge and Garrett has always felt like an arranged marriage. It could be headed for divorce after one season.
• Though the Giants were running Garrett’s offense and he was calling the plays, Judge’s imprint is on every facet of the team. So the head coach bears responsibility for the overly conservative offensive approach.
Judge clearly believed this team’s best opportunity to win came from limiting mistakes offensively and riding the defense. But that style of play leaves an impossibly narrow margin of error.
Judge is aware of this, since he’s stated that part of his defensive philosophy is to limit big plays and force opponents to snap the ball again and again until they eventually make a mistake. Yet armed with that knowledge, that’s the type of offense he chose to deploy this season.
Maybe Judge just felt that he needed to keep the training wheels on second-year quarterback Daniel Jones behind a shaky offensive line and surrounded by mediocre skill players. But the best teams in the league have the most explosive offenses, so that’s what the Giants will need to become if they’re going to be taken seriously as contenders.
• Jones had two touchdown passes in the finale to increase his season total to 11 in 14 starts. That was a steep decline from his 24 touchdown passes in 12 starts as a rookie. Jones’ passing numbers were down across the board in his second season. He did cut back on his turnovers (10 interceptions, 11 fumbles) after alarming ball security issues as a rookie (12 interceptions, 18 fumbles). Jones was much more of a rushing threat this season despite being limited by hamstring and ankle injuries over the past month.
Judge has been steadfast in his support of Jones, pointing out development that doesn’t show up in the box score. But next season will be crucial in charting the future of Jones and the franchise. Assuming the Giants bolster Jones’ supporting cast, he needs to make strides as a quarterback in Year 3.
• The need for a No. 1 wide receiver is glaring, whether that’s added through free agency, the draft or both. The Giants offense is full of complementary pieces, but it needs a top dog. Sterling Shepard is an ideal No. 2 out of the slot and Darius Slayton will benefit from another receiver drawing attention from defenses after a quiet second half of the season.
Tight end has to be viewed as a need, as the Giants can’t go through another season relying on the wildly inconsistent Evan Engram. Maybe Engram will thrive in a smaller role because he’s involved in as many big plays for the opposition as he is for the Giants in his current featured role.
The Giants are counting on getting Saquon Barkley back at 100 percent, although it will be interesting to monitor his rehab from knee surgery. He had his meniscus repaired in addition to having his ACL reconstructed, which can make for a longer recovery process. But Barkley will be almost 11 months removed from the injury at the start of training camp, so there’s no reason to believe he won’t be back at full speed by then. It will be interesting to see how Barkley performs behind an offensive line that hit its stride run-blocking in the second half of the season.
If everything develops perfectly, the Giants could have five young offensive linemen in place to grow together. But the only sure things headed into next season are left tackle Andrew Thomas, who improved after a rocky start to his rookie season, and Nick Gates, who made progress in his first season at center.
Guards Shane Lemieux and Will Hernandez have enough weaknesses that the Giants likely will be hesitant to move on from high-priced veteran Kevin Zeitler. Rookie right tackle Matt Peart ended the season on a down note after showing promise early. The Giants will count on development on the offensive line, but it’s a position that likely needs reinforcements this offseason.
• The Giants have some big decisions to make in free agency with defensive linemen Leonard Williams and Dalvin Tomlinson. Williams bet on himself by playing on the $16.1 million franchise tag this season and he cashed in with a career-high 11.5 sacks.
Williams said after the game “it’s never been about the money.” Unfortunately for the Giants, Williams has agents and their job is entirely about the money. His asking price will likely be in the $20 million per season range and it’s hard to imagine the Giants balking considering his value to the defense.
At some point the well will run dry, especially with needs at other positions, so it looks like Tomlinson could wind up as the odd man out. That would be unfortunate since Tomlinson has been a model player and person in his four seasons with the Giants. But the salary cap forces tough decisions. If Williams is going to get $20 million per year and safety Logan Ryan just signed an extension worth $10 million per year, there won’t be much left over for Tomlinson, who should warrant a deal in the $12 million per year range.
• A tip of the cap to the job the defensive coaches did with limited resources at the cornerback spot opposite Pro Bowler James Bradberry. The Giants started four different players at No. 2 corner and somehow weren’t exploited despite a deficiency at such an important position.
Corey Ballentine opened the season as the starter and was benched after two games. Isaac Yiadom took over and was benched after two games. Yiadom was replaced by Ryan Lewis, who made three starts before suffering a season-ending hamstring injury. Yiadom reclaimed the job in Week 8 and started the next eight games before getting benched for safety Julian Love in the finale.
Adding a legitimate No. 2 cornerback to complement Bradberry is another item on the offseason checklist.
• The Giants will have the 11th pick in the draft, finishing between the two other 6-10 teams (Dallas picks 10th and the 49ers pick 12th). The win over the Cowboys cost the Giants four draft spots, as they would have picked seventh with a loss. The Eagles will pick sixth. They would have slid to ninth with a win on Sunday night, and they showed how valuable they viewed those three draft slots.
• The Giants’ 2021 opponents and locations are now finalized (the order of games will be announced around the draft). The Giants will host the three NFC East teams, Atlanta, Carolina, Denver, Las Vegas and the Rams. They’ll travel to the three NFC East teams, New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Kansas City, the Chargers and Chicago.
The Giants finished in second in the NFC East. The matchups with the Bears and the Rams are the result of those teams finishing in second in the NFC North and NFC West, respectively. The entire NFC East will face the NFC South and AFC West next season.
• Washington capturing the NFC East continued a streak of no repeat winners of the division since the Eagles from 2001-04. The Giants last won the division in 2011, which was their most recent Super Bowl season. Since then, each of the other NFC East teams has won the division three times.
• The Giants have plenty of their own problems to worry about, but they have to feel good about the mess the Eagles have made of their quarterback situation. There were reports Sunday that the relationship between Carson Wentz and the franchise is “fractured beyond repair,” with the quarterback seeking a trade.
Drafting Hurts in the second round of this year’s draft was a colossal backfire. Instead of adding help for Wentz, the Eagles added a threat that the quarterback apparently couldn’t handle. Hurts showed flashes in four starts, but there are plenty of questions about his potential as a franchise quarterback.
The way the Eagles season finished only adds to the dysfunction of a franchise that appeared to be poised for a lengthy run after winning a Super Bowl in the 2017 season.
• One footnote: The Giants would have hosted the Bucs next Saturday night. It would have been sweet to have another postseason matchup with Tom Brady, even if he’s wearing a different uniform and Eli Manning has transformed into a Twitter super fan.

Olivia "Liv" Jawando has now become the first competitor in the history of this show who is younger than this show's existence. She was born in April, 1999, and this show premiered in June, 1998, meaning she is about ten months younger than this show. She is also the first 21 year old(and youngest competitor) to compete on this show since Larissa Nakagawa on Battle of the Bloodlines. This is hard to believe for us old school fans, because we remember when the average age of the competitors on this show was about 21-23ish years old. Times have changed. On the contrary, on the start date of filming Double Agents, Darrell was 40 years, and 298 Days Old, making him now the oldest competitor to ever compete on a season in this show’s history(breaking Veronica’s record on Final Reckoning). This means there is nearly a 20 year age gap between the two, making this about the longest age-span between two competitors in the same season.
With that being said, I decided to have some fun. I’m now going to look at the world differences between November, 2000(when Darrell turned 21 years old), and April, 2020(when Liv turned 21 years old). I will mainly be looking at this from the perspective of living in the United States of America.
-When Darrell turned 21 years old, Liv was 19 months old(just to help put in perspective of how big this age gap is). Darrell is pretty much in Generation X(maybe a longshot to debate him as a Generation Y’eMillennial), and Liv is definitely in Generation Z, two full generations behind Darrell.
-When Darrell turned 21 years old, there wasn’t a pandemic. When Liv turned 21 years old, we were(and still are) in the COVID-19 Pandemic.
-When Darrell turned 21 years old, it was right before the 2000 Presidential Election, which was the Republican Candidate George W. Bush Jr., and Democratic Candidate Al Gore, with Democrat Bill Clinton as our president. When Liv turned 21 years old, it was seven months before the 2020 Presidential Election, with Republican Donald J. Trump as our president, and the election boiling down to the main party candidate of Democrat Joe Biden vs. Republican Incumbent Donald Trump.
-When Darrell turned 21, the political scandal still being talked about was Clinton’s Impeachment. When Liv turned 21, the political scandal still being talked about was Trump’s Impeachment.
-When Darrell turned 21, The Real World: New Orleans(2000) was almost finished airing. When Liv turned 21 years old, it was a full year after Real World: Atlanta aired, which is already predicted to be the final season of that show.
-When Darrell turned 21 years old, Road Rules: Maximum Velocity Tour had recently finished airing. When Liv turned 21 years old, this was a full twelve years after the most recent Road Rules Season to air(Viewer’s Revenge).
-When Darrell turned 21, the Nokia 3310 was the most popular cell phone. When Liv turned 21, the Apple iPhone 12 is the most popular Cell Phone.
-When Darrell turned 21, the Number 1 Billboard Hit Song was “With Arms Wide Open” by Creed. When Liv turned 21, the Number 1 Billboard Hit Song was “Blinding Lights” by The Weekend.
-When Darrell turned 21, some notable movies in theaters were How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Little Nicky, Charlie’s Angels, and 102 Dalmatians. When Liv turned 21, Trolls World Tour, Extraction, Jesus, and The Main Event were some notable movies in theaters(or, at least slated to be released, but affected by the pandemic).
-When Darrell turned 21 years old, the most recent MLB World Series winners were the New York Yankees, the most recent Super Bowl winners were the St. Louis, Rams. When Liv turned 21 years old, the most recent Super Bowl winners were the Kansas City Chiefs, and the most recent World Series winners were the Washington Nationals. When Darrell turned 21, Patrick Mahomes II was five years old, and the Washington Nationals were known as the Montreal Expos.
-When Darrell turned 21, the most popular video games released were Final Fantasy IX, Banjo-Tooie, and Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX. When Liv turned 21, the most popular video games released were Resident Evil 3, Final Fantasy VII Remake, and Gears Tactics.
-When Darrell turned 21, the most popular toy at the time was the Razor Scooter. When Liv turned 21, the most popular toy at the time was the Baby Yoda Plush(oddly enough).
-When Darrell turned 21, the Ford Explorer was the most popular vehicle sold. When Liv turned 21, the Hyundai Tucson was the most popular vehicle being sold(and still is, for that matter).
-When Darrell turned 21, the average price of gasoline was $1.51 per gallon. When Liv turned 21, the average price of gasoline was $1.95(and that was already heavily weighed down due to the pandemic, and lack of traveling).
-When Darrell turned 21, there had only been three seasons of The Challenge, one season of Survivor, and one season of Big Brother. When Liv turned 21 years old, we were in the beginning of the 35th Challenge season, towards the end of the 40th Survivor season, and had 21 full seasons of Big Brother under our belts.
-When Darrell turned 21, the most iconic Reality Star names were Eric Nies, Puck Rainey, Richard Hatch, and Chicken George. When Liv turned 21 years old, the most iconic Reality Stars were Johnny Bananas, Chris Tamburello(CT), Boston Rob, Dr. Will, and I guess Snooki.
I could keep going on, but it’s just crazy to see how much of a difference their lives are at the age of 21 years old.