No, I’m not surprised that the government is heavily involved in the football world too (its tentacles touch everything), making some men rich(er) at the expense of us all. But this is still worth remembering when you watch the game tonight:
Taxpayers have spent at least $471 million on the Superdome since Hurricane Katrina, allowing a state reeling from the nation’s most-expensive natural disaster to keep its pro sports teams and rebuild a part of downtown destroyed by the 2005 storm. Benson, meanwhile, is worth $1.6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, after acquiring the National Basketball Association’s New Orleans Hornets, a 26-story office tower that houses state agencies and a mall next to the stadium.
As for the game itself, the Boston Globe notes this: “One X factor is how Kaepernick will respond when one of the Ravens drills him. That should happen at some point. He’s a 6-foot-4-inch ostrich running down the field, and somebody like Bernard Pollard is going to lay him out — 15-yard penalty be damned — to set the tone.”
So might it be possible that we could witness a story of sweet redemption tonight? Namely, should Pollard knock Kaepernick out of the game, that would force the 49ers to rely on much-maligned QB Alex Smith (who didn’t get his job back after returning from a head injury earlier in the season).
My prediction: 49ers win and cover (34-24)
