The 2008 NFL draft was bittersweet for Peyton Hillis. The University of Arkansas fullback, whose blocking had cleared running lanes for the tailbacks Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, enabled them to be selected fourth and 22nd.
Hillis had to wait another day to hear his name called: in the seventh (final) round, 227th overall.
Still, he landed feet-first in Denver. Mike Shanahan, the Broncos' coach at the time, deployed the rookie as a ball-carrying, pass-catching back, mirroring his college duties pre-McFadden, pre-Jones. Shanahan is known for tailbacks of all shapes and sizes.
Shanahan's successor, Josh McDaniels, was less enamoured and, after a forgettable second season, Hillis was sent to Cleveland for the quarterback Brady Quinn.
Based on early returns, the trade stands as among Denver's worst. As Quinn sits in Denver, Hillis is bowling over tacklers - when not running around them with his impressive speed.
Last Sunday, Hillis torched New England for 184 rushing yards, the most yielded by the Patriots in eight seasons. With 873 rushing and receiving yards, he ranks eighth in the league. He also has scored eight touchdowns.
"Peyton's a load," said Eric Mangini, coach of the Browns. "I mean, I avoid him in the hallway."
The role of Hillis-as-blocking -back has been assumed in Cleveland by Lawrence Vickers, who said, "If you don't want to run into that truck, move out of the way."
For some talent evaluators, Hillis's high football IQ and relentless drive were offset by the eye test: at 1.85m and 109kg he is is heavier and wider than the typical NFL tailback. Luckily for him, the Browns' cupboard was bare at the position.
Nobody is hurting more over Hillis's emergence than Jerry Jones, as if the owner of the Dallas Cowboys does not have enough to worry about. Jones passed on Hillis, a fellow Arkansas alumnus, and instead is stuck with Jones, who has failed to score while gaining 459 rushing/receiving yards.
(As for McFadden, do not colour the Oakland Raiders regretful. He has generated the league's fourth-most yards.)
Sometimes, tagging a player as "versatile" can become a scarlet letter. If the guy gets moved around, the thinking goes, he cannot master one position.
On the day he was drafted, Hillis expressed a willingness to serve wherever he was assigned. "I'm just anxious to play," he said. Wish granted, at the glamour position.
"I want this to be a routine thing," Hillis said. "I want to be known as being consistent and going the whole year through, being the man, tote the rock."
Today’s top games
• Tennessee at Miami: For Randy Moss, the season has become a series of Halloween nights: he changes into another costume. Now with the Titans, Tennessee hopes that Moss, if nothing else, will open the field for tailback Chris Johnson. The Dolphins switched Chads at quarterback – from Henne to Pennington.
• Dallas at NY Giants: The coldest NFC team visits the hottest. The Cowboys ended the misery of coach Wade Phillips by firing him and promoting Jason Garrett, whose pass-happy play-calling has been criticised. The quarterback Jon Kitna, below, has started since the Giants KO'd Tony Romo early in their five-game win streak.
• New England at Pittsburgh: A compelling collision of 6-2 teams and marquee quarterbacks, Brady vs "Big Ben". The Patriots are licking wounds from their worst game, a beatdown by the Browns. The Steelers are prime-time hits (it's their third straight night game) and celebrate homecoming after three on the road.
Today’s other games
Detroit at Buffalo
Carolina at Tampa Bay
Minnesota at Chicago
Houston at Jacksonville
NY Jets at Cleveland
Cincinnati at Indianapolis
Kansas City at Denver
St Louis at San Francisco
Seattle at Arizona
Tomorrow's game
Philadelphia at Washington
Stat of the week
Position players went 1-for-2 on extra-point kicks last weekend after the regular kickers were injured. The Detroit defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh missed off the right post. The New England receiver Wes Welker split the uprights.
sports@thenational.ae
The Breadwinner
Director: Nora Twomey
Starring: Saara Chaudry, Soma Chhaya, Laara Sadiq
Three stars
Company%20profile
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Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
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SPECS
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Adele: The Stories Behind The Songs
Caroline Sullivan
Carlton Books
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday, February 8 v Kenya; Friday, February 9 v Canada; Sunday, February 11 v Nepal; Monday, February 12 v Oman; Wednesday, February 14 v Namibia; Thursday, February 15 final
WORLD CUP FINAL
England v South Africa
Yokohama International Stadium, Tokyo
Saturday, kick-off 1pm (UAE)
SPECS
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SPECS
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The%20specs
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At Eternity’s Gate
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Oscar Isaacs, Mads Mikkelsen
Three stars
Sri Lanka's T20I squad
Thisara Perera (captain), Dilshan Munaweera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Ashan Priyanjan, Mahela Udawatte, Dasun Shanaka, Sachith Pathirana, Vikum Sanjaya, Lahiru Gamage, Seekkuge Prasanna, Vishwa Fernando, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay and Chathuranga de Silva.
Heather, the Totality
Matthew Weiner,
Canongate
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Q&A with Dash Berlin
Welcome back. What was it like to return to RAK and to play for fans out here again?
It’s an amazing feeling to be back in the passionate UAE again. Seeing the fans having a great time that is what it’s all about.
You're currently touring the globe as part of your Legends of the Feels Tour. How important is it to you to include the Middle East in the schedule?
The tour is doing really well and is extensive and intensive at the same time travelling all over the globe. My Middle Eastern fans are very dear to me, it’s good to be back.
You mix tracks that people know and love, but you also have a visually impressive set too (graphics etc). Is that the secret recipe to Dash Berlin's live gigs?
People enjoying the combination of the music and visuals are the key factor in the success of the Legends Of The Feel tour 2018.
Have you had some time to explore Ras al Khaimah too? If so, what have you been up to?
Coming fresh out of Las Vegas where I continue my 7th annual year DJ residency at Marquee, I decided it was a perfect moment to catch some sun rays and enjoy the warm hospitality of Bab Al Bahr.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Profile of MoneyFellows
Founder: Ahmed Wadi
Launched: 2016
Employees: 76
Financing stage: Series A ($4 million)
Investors: Partech, Sawari Ventures, 500 Startups, Dubai Angel Investors, Phoenician Fund
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
The%20specs%20
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Results
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
Boulder shooting victims
• Denny Strong, 20
• Neven Stanisic, 23
• Rikki Olds, 25
• Tralona Bartkowiak, 49
• Suzanne Fountain, 59
• Teri Leiker, 51
• Eric Talley, 51
• Kevin Mahoney, 61
• Lynn Murray, 62
• Jody Waters, 65
Company%20Profile
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Company%20Profile
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More on Quran memorisation:
Easter%20Sunday
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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