Erin Andrews: Conflict of Interest

Interesting article in the NYTimes last week on ESPN sideline reporter Erin Andrews and whether or not she crossed a journalistic boundary.

Andrews has recently become a spokesperson for Reebok's ZigTech footwear line. At first blush there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with that.

But a bit of uproar was caused when the link between Andrews' endorsement deal with Reebok and her comments during the Rose Bowl game were connected. As a sideline reporter during that game she mentioned that players were "slipping in their new Nike cleats".

As a sideline reporter she's well within her duties to pass along that sort of information but when it comes from the mouth of a Reebok spokesperson the message gets tainted.

Polamalu leads Jersey Sales

Pittsburgh Steelers' Safety and Head & Shoulders pitchman Troy Polamalu has the number one selling NFL jersey amongst men and women according to NFLShop.com.

It's a bit surprising to see him outsell Manning and Brady who are the most prominent faces of the league. Also surprising to see back-up rookie QB Tim "Air Virgin" Tebow so high up on the list.

Top Selling Jerseys amongst Men

1.Troy Polamalu, Steelers
2.Drew Brees, Saints
3.Tim Tebow, Broncos
4.Peyton Manning, Colts
5.Tom Brady, Patriots
6.Michael Vick, Eagles
7.Aaron Rodgers, Packers
8.Eli Manning, Giants
9.DeSean Jackson, Eagles
10.Mark Sanchez, Jets


Top Selling Jerseys amongst Women

1.Troy Polamalu, Steelers
2.Peyton Manning, Colts
3.Drew Brees, Saints
4.Aaron Rodgers, Packers
5.Tom Brady, Patriots
6.Tim Tebow, Broncos
7.Miles Austin, Cowboys
8.Eli Manning, Giants
9.Tony Romo, Cowboys
10.Jason Witten, Cowboys

Wonder if Miles Austin and Tony Romo's inclusion on the list are because of the profile they got from their ex-girlfriends (Kim Kardashian and Jessica Simpson)?

Let's just say if Kris Humphries' NBA jersey soars in sales next year we'll know that there's such thing as a "Kardashian effect".

Mark Sanchez: New Kleenex pitch man

Come on, Kleenex this is a campaign ready to be made!

New Jersey Nets: We don't have Melo but our tickets are cheap

Maybe LeBron James, and Phil Jackson's girlfriend and Lakers VP Jeanie Buss were onto something when they mentioned the idea of NBA contraction earlier this month. Monday's game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the host New Jersey Nets proved to be a less desirable match-up than Ronnie and Sammie.

According to a New York Times article, tickets for the LeBron-less, Carmelo-less game could be had on StubHub.com for as low as 11 cents. Yes 11 cents!!!

By the time the site shut down ticket sales, the least expensive seats available were listed at just 11 cents for the game between the two worst teams in the Eastern Conference.With 22 tickets available at that price, the total to buy them would have been $2.42, though service and delivery fees would have increased the total purchase to a whopping $12.37. A single fan traveling from New York City would spend almost that much just getting to the game and back; transportation from Manhattan to the Prudential Center via New Jersey Transit costs $5 each way.

The lowest ticket actually sold for the game went for a whopping $0.48.

Greg Jennings: I love it when you call me Big Papa

Greg Jennings will have one more game to play this season and that's good news for fans of the Green Bay Packers WR and hamburgers

A&W Restaurants and Jennings have teamed up for a promo offer. Anytime Jennings scores a touchdown, A&W will offer anyone in the U.S. a Papa Burger for $0.85 to match-up with Jennings' jersey number.

The Packs' WR and the restaurant have the deal in place since last year but on a more regional scale.

In 2009, A&W Restaurants began a grassroots partnership with Greg Jennings and offered $.85 Papa Burger Single to Green Bay residents if the receiver scored a touchdown during a game. The popularity of the program quickly expanded in 2010 to reward all Wisconsin residents with $.85 Papa Burger Single. A&W extended the deal to everyone in America for the Conference Championship game - Source: PR Newswire

Unfortunately Jennings didn't score in the game against the Bears.

This type of promo deal opens up plenty of options. What if Rex Ryan's team had made the Super Bowl would Payless Shoes offered Buy One, Get One Free if the Jets won the Superbowl. Maybe free bottles of Head & Shoulders for every Polamalu INT?

Strikeforce Heavyweight Tournament

2011 is a make or break year for Strikeforce coming off a bad 2010. Let's just say 2010 was uglier than Brandon Vera's nose with with Fedor's upset loss to Fabricio Werdum, Jake Shields defeat of highly sought after free agent Dan Henderson followed by Shields' subsequent defection to UFC, only one fight from Alistair Overeem and a disastrous card on CBS that ended up in a brawl and may have scared off network TV from showing another Strikeforce event.

Strikeforce has started off 2011 with a big announcement - they're holding a 8-man heavyweight tournament to crown a super champion and hopefully spark viewer interest.

At first glance the tournament bracket looks more stacked than Scarlett Johansson on one side. With Werdum, Overeem, Emelianenko and Big Foot, Strikeforce has its top-4 HW all grouped together while the other side of the bracket has fighters with plenty a bunch of question marks.

With the way the tournament is structured let's call it what it is - a clever bit of marketing. This is not so much a tournament as it is Strikeforce announcing their matchmaking for the next 6 months to the public.

Let's look closer: the Werdum-Overeem fight is a title fight that Werdum earned after beating Fedor. The winner of the Fedor-Big Foot fight is for the #1 contender spot. The other side of the bracket simply builds up another viable title contender.

Good on Strikeforce for coming up with a clever way to garner some interest in a damaged brand.