I, Sportsradamus, the all-knowing, all-seeing swami of sports prognostications, present to you my annual predictions for this, the year 2022.

As I pointed out last year at this time, coming off the year of a pandemic and most of the sports world having been shut down in 2020, I predicted that 2021 would not be much different, and games would still be cancelled. It was better, yes, but with these new strains of COVID variants we are still seeing games cancelled in the NHL and college sports, and many players sidelined after testing positive in the NFL and NBA, forcing the teams to use replacement of minor league players. So, things have gotten better, but we’re still not out of the woods.

With that being said, I predict this year will be a little bit better, and will improve as the year continues into the latter months.

The 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo were delayed a year, but they finally took place, however, there were no spectators allowed in the venues. Will the Winter Olympics in Beijing also be affected in February? I say, yes. The threat of several countries not attending because of diplomatic or human rights issues with China, has already presented itself, but also, with the spread of the omicron variant, and the next one right behind it, I predict even more countries will elect to not participate and put their athletes at risk.

During the 2020-2021 college cycle, there were 2,626 FBS football players and more than 1,700 college basketball players that entered the transfer portal. Those numbers include walk-ons.

Are you kidding me?

First, it’s hard to believe that there are that many disgruntled college athletes who feel the grass is greener…well, you know. But, the NCAA has itself to blame for creating college free-agency by making it simple for athletes to transfer to another program.

Secondly, those numbers include WALK-ONS. Now if you’re a walk-on, don’t you think you should be content to just be playing a sport at the university you elected to attend? How in the world does a walk-on think they’ll get a better opportunity transferring to another school (unless they go down a level to Div. II or Div. III)?

I predict, this trend will continue at an alarming rate, and there will be more than 6,000 college athletes across all sports that will enter the transfer portal this year.

In the NFL, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady will again announce his retirement from the sport, but then will get talked into coming back and signing a contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars to tutor their quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, who just completed a miserable rookie season.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rogers will call it quits, after leading his team to the Super Bowl. Rogers will join the broadcast crew on FOX.

The NFL will finally come to its senses and realize there is no way the horrible Detroit Lions deserve to play on Thanksgiving Day; something the team has done since 1932. The Lions’ game has become a great excuse for taking a nap, post-turkey.

I predicted last year that Brooklyn Nets superstar Kyrie Irving would retire and open a chain of CBD stores. Well, I wasn’t exactly right, however, he has sat out every one of his team’s games, up until last Wednesday. Irving has refused to get the COVID vaccination, thus not being allowed to play in New York City, due to local mandates. The team has finally agreed to allow him to be a part-time player and suit-up only for road games.

In other NBA news, Labron James, who has been a part-time player this season for the Los Angeles Lakers, will announce his retirement at the end of the season.

Major League Baseball will once again play a shortened season, but not because of the pandemic. This time the current lockout and lack of both parties coming to a collective bargaining agreement, will keep the players off the fields through Spring Training in March, and will force the MLB season to begin late. Best case scenario, the league manages to schedule a 140-game season. Worst case, each team will likely not play more than 100 games.

Predictions for which teams will win the championship in various leagues:

• NFL: Green Bay defeats the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
• NBA: Phoenix Suns capture the NBA title by defeating the Brooklyn Nets.
• MLB: Tampa Bay Rays get past the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.
• NHL: The Vegas Knights defeat the Carolina Hurricanes for the Stanley Cup.
• College football: Alabama in a close one over Georgia.
• College men’s basketball: Baylor defeats Michigan for the title.
• World Cup Soccer: France will defeat Brazil in the 2022 World Cup Final.