When the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Eagles in Super Bowl LVII in February, it marked a dramatic end to the 2022 NFL season, with Patrick Mahomes overcoming injury to mount a thrilling second-half comeback against Philadelphia. It was a year of change, as some underdog teams overachieved while several favorites failed in dramatic fashion. We saw the final game (probably) of the most successful quarterback of all time, and emerging superstars who lit up the field in style. We turned to Danny Sheridan, our football expert, for his assessment.
BIGGEST SURPRISES
The Giants won a measly four games in 2021, so it was time to start over with rookie head coach Brian Daboll and rookie general manager Joe Schoen. Daboll turned Daniel Jones into a winning quarterback and the Giants shocked the league by going 9-7-1, making the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and even winning in the first round. In Jacksonville, Trevor Lawrence made his second-year leap (with perfect hair) and won the godforsaken AFC South, and then rallied his Jaguars from 27-0 to come back in the Wild Card game against the Chargers, one of the biggest comebacks in league history. New coach Doug Pederson is the anti-Urban Meyer in every way.
Dan Campbell has changed the culture in Detroit and the knee-biting Lions seem poised to challenge for the NFC North, especially with Aaron Rodgers almost certainly leaving rival Green Bay. Seattle was supposed to have a gloomy 2022 season, with Pete Carroll rebuilding after moving on from Russell Wilson, but Geno Smith ("They wrote me off, I ain't write back, though.") staged a remarkable comeback at age 32. The Seahawks not only had a winning season, but also made the playoffs.
BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENTS
This story is from the March / April 2023 edition of Cigar Aficionado.
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This story is from the March / April 2023 edition of Cigar Aficionado.
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A High Steaks Game - Gallaghers restaurant, New York's oasis for carnivores, has thrived for 96 years, playing host to a colorful crowd of sports heroes, show people and classic characters
Dean Poll, the owner of Gallaghers Steakhouse on Manhattan's West 52nd Street, has to think both like a restaurateur and the curator of a museum with an entire wing of art. Only, instead of tending to European oil paintings, Poll oversees images of Old New York. I work here every day. I am thinking about the food and staff, Poll says, sitting in a corner that could be called baseball cove. Over his right shoulder are stills of Lou Gehrig and the Yankees' Murderers' Row manager Miller Huggins. Jack Dempsey is clowning, grappling with a bat also held by Babe Ruth. "To Helen Gallagher, sincerely Babe Ruth," the inscription reads. Poll gestures toward signed caricatures of Tiger Woods, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus. "So I lose, to a certain extent, the importance of what's on the walls. But the photos are the decor. They lend some hominess to the place. It's the heart and soul of this restaurant. It's not cheap decoration. The only thing missing is the cigar smoke", adds Poll, who fancies a Partagás 8-9-8 It's what this restaurant is for 96 years.
The Enforcer - Cole Hauser, who plays the tough-as-nails cowboy Rip on the hit show "Yellowstone," has been around horses since he was a little boy
Cole Hauser looks like he can kick your ass. And kicking ass is the specialty of his most famous character, Rip Wheeler from the hit series "Yellowstone." He's the show's man in black, his dark cowboy hat often coated in trail dust, shades hiding his intense eyes, black beard covering a mouth that seldom smiles. The absolute opposite of a pretty boy, he's never chatty-and when he does talk it's often with a bit of menace in his voice. He's not the kind of guy to take a back seat to anything.
Pinball Machines - "Two kind of people in this world," Ray Liotta's character says in the 1997 movie Cop Land.
"Two kind of people in this world," Ray Liotta's character says in the 1997 movie Cop Land. Pinball people and video game people." If you're 50 or older, you might fall into the former group of gamers who are enthralled by the ringing bells, snapping flippers and the captivating combination of mechanics and electronics that make pinball irresistible. While it's the ultimate Sisyphean game-the eternal (and doomed) effort to keep an 80-gram, carbon-steel ball from going down the drainfor those who love it, it couldn't be more fun.
TAG Heuer Formula 1 | Kith
Many connect TAG Heuer with Formula 1 racing through the renowned Monaco watch, named for the Grand Prix held in that city.
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A Major Celebration - pro golfer and cigar lover Xander Schauffele was ready to unwind after winning the PGA Championship in May
Cigars are meant for celebration, so when pro golfer and cigar lover Xander Schauffele was ready to unwind after winning the PGA Championship in May, he lit up.It was a time of immense relief. Despite being a marquee name in golf, with a Gold Medal and a Ryder Cup among his wins, the 30-year-old Schauffele was haunted by another distinction: the back-handed compliment of being on the list of the best golfers never to win a major. He had come ohso-close in many majors, finishing second twice, and seven times in the top 10. But in May, when his final putt-just over six feet in length-dropped for a birdie, the wait was over. He raised both arms in celebration, a huge smile spreading across his face. He was finally a major champion.
Leader of the Lost Boys
Mike Rypka loves smoking cigars with his friends so much, he bought his neighbor's house and transformed it into a smoking lounge
