Tom Brady has finally retired for good from the NFL and he is taking a year to transition out of his playing days before jumping into the booth with Fox Sports in 2024. In that time, he’s able to sit back and watch the league from a distance and, like many fans, is coming to the realization that there’s a lot of bad football happening across the NFL.
In a recent interview with Stephen A. Smith, Brady explained why he thinks there’s “a lot of mediocrity” in the NFL right now, pointing at two factors in particular that he think contributes to it: coaching and the new rules.
As Brady explains, he thinks coaching and player development has gotten worse, as young players aren’t given the time and tools needed to build a successful foundation because teams don’t spend the right amount of time on the fundamentals. He also thinks there’s a lot of sloppy football being played on both sides of the ball, but particularly on offense because of the rule changes that take the onus off of the players to protect themselves. Brady notes that he wouldn’t throw the ball to certain areas of the field against certain teams, knowing that if he led a receiver into Ray Lewis, that player was probably going to get knocked out of the game. However, now the NFL has tried to litigate those hits out of the game which has made offensive players more emboldened, but they still end up in dangerous positions.
It’s an interesting perspective from one of the all-time greats, and although it does have some hints of “back in my day” grandstanding, there’s some real validity in his points. It does seem like there’s an issue with player development across the league, where we see so many guys who clearly have talent and performed at the college ranks struggle to make the transition to the pros. That isn’t all on the players and, particularly at the quarterback position, it seems there needs to be more thought and care put into the infrastructure around these young QBs.
One place where mediocrity now runs rampant is in New England, where Brady noted it’s hard for him to watch the Patriots right now.
What had it been like for Tom Brady watching the Patriots this season?
He wouldn’t bite on Stephen A.’s effort to get him to say Bill Belichick should retire, but he did seem to indicate he sees something has changed that makes that team not run the way it once did.
As of this writing, Thanksgiving is just two days away, and Christmas (or the alternative celebration of your choice) is just around the corner. You can practically smell the turkey, most stores have already decked the halls, and Mariah Carey is once again climbing the Billboard Hot 100 Songs chart, so if you don’t want to get caught gift shopping at the last minute, now’s the time to start looking.
As always, Uproxx Music has you covered for the music fan in your life, whether they love Drake, Taylor Swift, or Beyoncé. If the music lover in your life is a hardcore member of the Hive (the Beyhive, that is), then you’re in the right place.
Here’s our 2023 Beyoncé holiday gift guide, with five things you can get for the Hive member in your life.
A Bottle Of Beyoncé’s New Perfume
Let’s start with the obvious: a bottle of Beyoncé’s new fragrance, Cé Noir, which you can likely still get shipped before the holidays. Containing notes of clementine, honey, rose, and jasmine, perfume retails for $160 for 1.7 oz. What better way to celebrate a Beyoncé holiday than smelling like her?
Of course, any music lover would enjoy having their favorite album in the highest-fidelity format available. The Deluxe Edition LP comes in a handsome box that folds out and includes massive, exclusive posters. You can grab a set for a little under $50, making it just about the least expensive thing on this list (but if you really want to save money on a legacy format, there’s also a CD set).
Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé is coming to theaters on December 1, giving fans who missed out on her Renaissance World Tour a chance to capture at least some of the energy of her live performances or fans who did see it to relive their night on the town. It’s also rumored to provide the long sought-after “visuals” fans have been clamoring for since the album’s release.
A Pair Of “Cozy” Renaissance-Themed Sweats From Amazon
Believe it or not, much of Beyoncé’s coveted Renaissance merch collection with Amazon is still available for purchase. I can tell you from personal experience that the sweatpants are warm and comfy and the T-shirts are eye-catching complements to any ensemble. Unfortunately, the “Cozy” rugs are all sold out, but it’s probably still worth checking out the remaining options, which you can do here.
A Piece From Beyonce’s Discontinued Ivy Park Collection
Speaking of sold-out, the odds that your favorite Beyoncé fan is getting their hands on the final Ivy Park drop are effectively nil, but going the extra mile for a loved one is what the holidays are for, right? Most of the collection is available on resale sites like StockX and shockingly, the markups are almost reasonable. If your Beyoncé fan missed out on a drop and gave up hope of grabbing their favorite piece, getting it for them could really put a smile on their face.
Leonardo DiCaprio recently celebrated his 49th birthday with a star-studded party where he channeled his inner Kendall Roy. Is there anything he wants to accomplish before he turns 50 next November? “You know what? Just one more movie,” DiCaprio said during an interview with Good Morning America. “One more movie.”
DiCaprio has three upcoming projects listed on his IMDb, but none are likely to come out next year, if ever. Roosevelt, a Martin Scorsese-directed biopic of Theodore Roosevelt starring DiCaprio as the former president, was announced in 2017 but there’s been no updates since then. There’s also The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder, another Scorsese project, and Jim Jones, about the cult leader of the same name, but those are still early in the development cycle. The Killers of the Flower Moon might not get his wish. He’ll have to settle for $40 million salaries and dating models in their 20s.
Last week, DiCaprio attended a Variety event where he praised his Oscar-worthy Flower Moon co-star Lily Gladstone. “That an actor of such profound talent has found it a long and hard road to get this recognition speaks to the unfairness that still exists in our industry today,” he said. “I fervently hope that we’re entering a new era in which actors like Lily, who embody this authenticity and undeniable truth in their own storytelling, take center stage. Because Lily’s not just an actor, she’s also an activist.”
You can watch the GMA interview below.
“I’ve never seen Martin Scorsese meet somebody for the first time and say, ‘That person is doing the role. Hire them.'”
Although BTS is currently on an indefinite hiatus, the band keeps coming up with unique ways to keep their fans occupied. They are now releasing a new documentary titled BTS: Monuments: Behind The Star on Disney+, which will premiere on the streaming service on December 20 — just in time for the holidays.
The series will be split into eight parts, with two new episodes dropping each Wednesday from the premiere date. According to a release, BTS’ doc will provide a “glimpse into the countless obstacles and challenges the band encountered in reaching their global career-defining milestones, as well as the members’ daily lives and inner thoughts.”
BTS also shared a trailer for the upcoming docuseries, as it focuses on their decade-long time together as a massive band.
“I felt each and every emotion,” J-Hope admits in the video. The other members are included talking in various shortened confessionals, before it ends with RM cheerfully saying, “We did it.”
While the band isn’t expected to fully return until at least 2025, as they each individually complete the South Korean mandatory military service, the BTS members have continued releasing solo projects during their free time.
Check out the teaser for BTS’ Monuments: Behind The Star above.
Barry Keoghan talks about having unwavering trust in his Saltburn director, Emerald Fennell. And for a movie like Saltburn, yeah, you’re going to need to have a whole lot of trust that your director can pull it off. Have you seen Saltburn? It’s currently out in limited release, going wide later this week, so maybe you have? If you have, you’ll probably know which scenes are being referenced here. Without giving too much away there’s a scene of Keoghan’s character, Oliver Quick, at a grave. There’s a scene of Oliver Quick dancing around the Saltburn estate naked. And then there’s a scene that takes place in a bathtub that, judging from internet search queries for “Saltburn bathtub,” is getting a lot of attention. Or, at least, some curiosity.
In Saltburn Keoghan plays Oliver Quick, a young man at Oxford who, during a break, manipulates his way (to put it kindly) into an invite to Saltburn, an estate belonging to the parents of the subject of Oliver’s fascination, Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi). At Saltburn, Oliver does his best to fit in, until he doesn’t. A lot of unusual things happen while Oliver is at Saltburn.
Shortly before Keoghan called I was asked, since Keoghan is out of the country, if we could connect on WhatsApp instead of the phone. At this point, I went into a minor panic because I had never used WhatsApp and had (and still have) no idea how it works. Trying to sign up, I somehow messed the whole thing up. By the time we connected, by regular phone, I had come to the realization I am really bad at WhatsApp…
Hey, Barry.
Hey, Mike. What’s up?
You know what I learned about myself today? I’m bad at WhatsApp.
What? Tell me, Mike.
I didn’t know that before today, but I’m bad at it. I messed it up.
You know what? That’s kind of cool. Kids respect that these days when you’re not good with tech.
I’m usually good at tech, but I’m bad at WhatsApp.
They all pretend they’re not good at texting and all of this stuff, and it’s kind of the cool thing is to not be good at it. But when you’re not actually good at it, that’s real coolness. So I respect that. With me, I’m not good at any of it.
That’s what people say about me when I walk down the street: “There goes real coolness.” Everyone says that.
“There’s real coolness! Mike, he doesn’t know how to use WhatsApp.” Nah, that’s proper cool.
I love those videos when they show teenagers a rotary phone and they can’t figure it out.
Game Boy Color. They wouldn’t know what a Game Boy Color is! Crazy. Crazy.
First of all, Emerald loves you. I think you know that already, but she does not stop talking about you.
She literally just sent me a text there two minutes ago saying, “I love you.”
Really?
I’m not messing.
Well, there you go.
I love that woman as well. She’s fucking amazing. She’s been a big part of my life in the sense of looking out for me and always checking in on me and always making sure I’m doing the right things. She’s been an amazing person for me.
Is this going to be a collaboration going forward?
I hope so. I hope so. I really do. She’s amazing. She’s one of the best directors I’ve worked with, and I say that in the sense of she’s so fucking clever. Sorry about cursing, but she’s so clever and so honest.
Oh, you can curse. You can say fuck if you want.
Oh, okay. No, but she is. She’s got a different approach. You know when you find yourself really comfy around someone? It’s because you trust what they do and you kind of understand their approach as well. And there will be times me and Emerald wouldn’t even have to talk. She’ll look at me and I know what to do and I know what not to do. She wants to justify every single motive you have going forward as well as the character and what’s the reason for it. Yeah, she’s just incredible, man. She really is. And she’s such a soft soul as well. And … you know I mean that. Yeah, she really does, she cares for me so much. I just responded to her right now, “I love you, too”
You made a really good point about trust. There are a lot of scenes in this movie, like the one where you are dancing around the house naked. I’m guessing you have to be like, “She knows what she’s doing and I’m going to dance around this house with no clothes on.”
Yeah, and I wouldn’t do that for anyone. I wouldn’t just do it. You’ve got to know, creatively, is it the right thing you’re doing for the character? Does it make sense in the story? Does it push it forward? But with Emerald, every single line in there, every single action, you could question it and she’ll have an answer for it. For me, it’s also pushing me as an actor to show my commitment and my maturity to my craft and allow me that space to elevate as an actor and to elevate as an artist. And to have confidence in making these creative choices that you’d shy away from because you think it’s silly. Emerald gives you that confidence. I don’t know what it is. It’s an aura. She just gives me the confidence to make these bold choices, and she’ll be honest. She’ll be like, “No, that’s not what I was thinking.” Or, “That doesn’t move it.” And that’s the collaborative experience that I’m looking for.
And I think that’s a testament to her writing as well because, on the page, it’s so clear to me what he is. And there’s so much room also to learn about him and discover him with Emerald. But to me, he’s animalistic. To me, he’s an observer. He’s a lost, confused boy who’s intrigued and fascinated with how humans interact with one another. How humans have certain motives and morals and why they say certain things and do certain things. And it’s an addiction almost to that, along with obsession. To me, that’s what Oliver is. When all that is gone, it’s sort of like, “Fuck, what does he do now?” He’s got the manor, but he wasn’t chasing the manor. That’s just a result of everything.
Well, he dances around the house, that’s what he does now.
Yeah. But after that. The song at the end, that moment there for me is the worrying moment because it’s like, oh shit, what does he do now? And it’s like, God bless what he does now because someone’s going to suffer. He’s got no toys to play with. The boy moves best when he’s in it. When he can control, when he can manipulate and experiment – that’s when Oliver is present and at his best. But when all that is taken away, it’s sort of like … I fear for people.
Emerald compared you to Robert Mitchum. And I thought that was interesting.
Oh, Robert Mitchum she said?
Yeah.
Fucking hell, man. I like that. [Laughs] I was going for Paul Newman or Marlon Brando, but anyway, it’s cool. It’s cool. Those are great references. She always says that, yeah.
Oh, she’s told you that?
Yeah, she said Robert Mitchum as well, I think, to me.
I need to watch more Robert Mitchum movies. I strangely haven’t seen a lot of Robert Mitchum movies.
Same.
Now I’ve learned I’m bad at two things. I’m bad at WhatsApp and I’m bad at…
Robert Mitchum references.
What actor wouldn’t want to play Oliver Quick? Even the name is great.
It’s a pure showcase for an actor, isn’t it? If Emerald asked me to do anything, I’d do it. I would do it. If she came knocking on my door right now and said, “I want you to do this part,” I’d do it. No question. I’m all for it.
It sounds like that might happen.
I know. I’m waiting on the knock from all the filmmakers I’ve worked with.
Alright, I’m out of time…
Well, now you can go figure out WhatsApp.
‘Saltburn’ is currently in limited theaters but will be expanding later this week. You can contact Mike Ryan directly on Twitter.
In a boon to late night comedians, Donald Trump inexplicably brought up the whole “pee tape” business during a campaign stop in Iowa over the weekend. As the political legend goes, the Russians reportedly have video of Trump staying in a hotel room that was previously used by Barack and Michelle Obama, and Trump allegedly hired sex workers to give him a golden shower in a weird jab at the Obamas.
The story was huge during the 2016 election and was the source of jokes for a while before people moved onto the cavalcade of blunders and alleged crimes Trump has committed since. In fact, the only person who keeps putting the “pee tape” in headlines is Trump himself. This time around, he roped Melania Trump into the weird aside during the campaign stop on Saturday.
“You think that was good that night to go up and tell my wife? ‘It’s not true darling, I love you very much, it’s not true,”” Trump told the Iowa crowd. “Actually, that one she didn’t believe because she said he’s a germaphobe, he’s not into that, you know. He’s not into golden showers as they say.”
During his Monday night monologue, Jimmy Kimmel couldn’t help but notice Trump’s interesting choice of words.
“That one, she didn’t believe,” Kimmel quipped via The Independent. “Normally, she has no trouble believing the terrible things. Stormy Daniels, 100 per cent she believes it. This one? Not at all.”
Of course, Melania should have every reason to believe the Stormy Daniels allegations. Trump is on trial for committing business fraud in making the alleged cover-up payment to Daniels, and Melania’s emails have reportedly been of interest to prosecutors. Ah, the luxurious life of being Ms. Donald Trump.
The music video for “Oral” begins the way all music videos should: with Björk and Rosalía in Mortal Kombat poses before kicking the crap out of each other. Later on, after a series of impressive flips in what looks like an airplane hangar was turned into an Apple Store, they grab swords and team up. The last thing we see is them beating up the camera. Together.
Björk described “Oral” as a “25-year-old song of mine i wrote and programmed inspired by a dancehall beat.” She praised Rosalía for her “experiments with the genre” and “incredible voice,” which “made her an obvious guest for the song. i feel blessed she said yes and she and her team are giving their work and all the profits to this battle.” The “realest bitch alive” added, “i think somehow there is an elegant resonance between the fact that both of our voices are the same age on the recording.”
All proceeds from the song will go towards combatting open pen fish farming in Iceland, including “legal fees for protesters, taking action to stop the development of intensive farms that harm wildlife, deform fish, and pose risks to salmon’s DNA and survival.” You can watch the video above.
The Brits are back. After teasing that a series of shows was in the works, The Rolling Stones have officially announced their live performance plans for 2024. Next year, the band will hit the road for the Hackney Diamonds Tour (which is appropriately sponsored by AARP) to support their album by the same name.
Today (November 21), in a post on the group’s official Instagram page, they unveiled that for the first time since 2019’s No Filter Tour, fans in the United States will be treated to a dedicated arena tour across the country. Across the 16-date journey, The Rolling Stones will make stops in Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, and more.
The Hackney Diamonds Tour will launch on April 28, 2024, at the NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. As of today, no special guests or billed opener has been announced.
Check out The Rolling Stones’ 2024 Hackney Diamonds Tour dates below. The Rolling Stones’ fan presale begins on Wednesday, November 29 at noon PT. The general sale date will kick off on Friday, December 1. Find more information here.
The Rolling Stones’ 2024 Hackney Diamonds Tour dates
04/28/2024 — Houston, TX @ NRG Stadium
05/02/2024 — New Orleans, LA @ Jazz Fest
05/07/2024 — Glendale, AZ @ State Farm Stadium
05/11/2024 — Las Vegas, NV @ Allegiant Stadium
05/15/2024 — Seattle, WA @ Lumen Field
05/23/2024 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
05/30/2024 — Foxborough, MA @ Gillette Stadium
06/03/2024 — Orlando, FL @ Camping World Stadium
06/07/2024 — Atlanta, GA @ Mercedes-Benz Stadium
06/11/2024 — Philadelphia, PA @ Lincoln Financial Field
06/15/2024 — Cleveland, OH @ Cleveland Browns Stadium
06/20/2024 — Denver, CO @ Empower Field at Mile High
06/27/2024 — Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field
07/05/2024 — Vancouver, BC @ BC Place
07/10/2024 — Los Angeles, CA @ SoFi Stadium
07/17/2024 — Santa Clara, CA @ Levi’s Stadium
It seems Travis Kelce is taking some notes from his new girlfriend, Taylor Swift. This past week, the Kansas City Chiefs player teamed up with his brother, Jason (who is also a football player, for the Philadelphia Eagles) to release a Christmas song. And now, thanks to the power of the Swifties, the siblings have earned their first Billboard-charting hit.
The two put a spin on the Pogues’ “Fairytale Of New York” to create a new song titled “Fairytale Of Philadelphia,” which is set to appear on the Eagles’ upcoming holiday album, A Philly Special Christmas Special. Now, the track has reached No. 2 on the Rock Digital Song Sales chart and No. 5 on Billboard‘s overall Digital Song Sales chart — making it a pretty special feat, even if they didn’t crack the Hot 100… yet.
There was even a behind-the-scenes video of Travis in the recording booth that had fans laughing at his line delivery. “They’ve got cars big as bars / They’ve got rivers of gold / But the wind goes right through you / It’s no place for the old,” he sings in the clip.
Just in time for the holidays, the Eagles currently have the album available as a preorder on vinyl, with more information available here. It also goes to a wonderful cause, as proceeds will benefit the Children’s Crisis Treatment Center’s Toy Drive and Children’s Hospital Of Philadelphia’s Snowflake Station.
Check out Travis and Jason Kelce’s “Fairytale Of Philadelphia” above.
Snoop Dogg is always up to something. After making the world think he was giving up weed, he unveiled a new brand partnership with Solo Stove. This follows last week, when he and E-40 teamed up to release Goon With The Spoon, a new cookbook. That arrived just in time for Thanksgiving prep, and if you’re looking for a way to jazz up your mashed potatoes this year, Snoop has a secret ingredient for you: Hennessy.
As People notes, Snoop says of his take on the classic side dish, “These ain’t your mama’s mashed potatoes, y’all! […] I know what you’re thinking: ‘Isn’t cognac more for a concert with the Dogg rather than Thanksgiving?’ My answer to that: ‘Why not both?’”
Aside from cognac/brandy, the recipe also calls for butter, heavy cream, and mayo, meaning there should be a ton of creaminess and flavor in this spud preparation.
Check out the full recipe (via People) below and pick up a copy of Goon With The Spoonhere.
“4 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
½ cup (4 oz.) cognac or other brandy
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
2 cups heavy cream
½ cup mayonnaise
2½ tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. cracked black pepper
1. Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil over high. Reduce heat to medium high; add potatoes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 25 minutes. Drain, and set aside.
2. Return empty pot to stovetop over medium. Add cognac; cook until slightly reduced and alcohol is cooked off, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk in butter until melted. Whisk in cream and mayonnaise; cook until slightly thickened and warm, about 5 minutes.
3. Return potatoes to the pot; add salt and pepper. Using a potato masher, mash until combined and smooth.
Serves: 10
Active time: 35 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes”
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