For months, we've
suspected that the Titans have resisted cutting cornerback Pacman Jones
because they ultimately hope to get something in return for him once
he's reinstated after a one-year suspension for a smattering of arrests.
After all, he brings two important skills to the table -- he can play
cornerback, and he can return kicks.
"We have had internal
discussions and a meeting with Jones' representatives since the season
concluded," the team said in a statement. "Assuming he is
reinstated at some point, which we have received no indication when or
if that will occur, we face various decisions. At this point, no
decisions have been reached, but in order to have the best information
available to us, we did inform his representation that, at some point,
we would investigate all of our options. We will not comment
otherwise until the suspension has ended and we have reached conclusions
about his future with the club."
We wouldn't expect the
Titans to describe it any other way. If potential trade partners
know that the team has decided that he won't be part of the
organization, the price tag to obtain his rights could go down.
While Jones has not
formally been reinstated, he has been working out at the team's
facility.
POSTED
9:38 p.m. EST, January 31, 2008
NINERS PROMOTE BAALKE
A league source tells us
that the San Francisco 49ers have promoted area scout Trent Baalke to
the position of director of player personnel.
It's a new position,
created in the wake of the promotion of former V.P. of player personnel
Scot McCloughan to General Manager.
Former Giants quarterback
Timm Hasselbeck has commented on the absence of tight end Jeremy Shockey
from the team.
"People there are relieved
he's not around. There's this big stink about he's on injured
reserve," he said. "How come he's not on the sideline supporting
his team?
Let me tell
you something, they don't want him there.
"They're going to say all the right things, 'Oh yeah,
we'd love to have him around' and all that stuff because he's their
teammate, he's under contract next year and you can't do that," he said.
"But when they're talking to people and it's not necessarily being
reported they don't want him around. He's a distraction.
"Eli [Manning] is playing better without him because he
doesn't feel like he has to force the ball to him," said Hasselbeck. "I
was in the offensive meetings where they said 'Listen, we need to get
the ball to Jeremy early to keep him involved so he doesn't start going
crazy.' Any time you have to start forcing the football to
somebody to keep them happy it's not good and bad things happen."
POSTED
3:58 p.m. EST, January 31, 2008
TIKI SAVED COUGHLIN?
The scintillating subplot
created by the one-year-too-early decision of Giants running back Tiki
Barber to retire has created plenty of ammunition for debate and
conjecture.
For Ian O'Connor, one
conversation on the matter had enough substance to generate two columns
-- one for the Bergen Record and
one for
FOXSports.com.
Tiki recognizes that the
timing of his retirement and his habit for speaking his mind has given
him an unwanted role in the still-unfolding drama. "I'm Public
Enemy No. 1 if you're with the Giants," Barber said. "With every
heroic story there has to be a foil, and I'm convenient for that.
I am the f---k ing foil in a Shakespearean play."
Tiki also claims partial
credit for saving Tom Coughlin's job. Of course, if Coughlin had
been fired Tiki necessarily would have had less insight into the team
for which he played, and thus less value to his current employer.
So we doubt that it was a completely altruistic (thanks, Tiki) gesture
on his part to want Coughlin to stick around.
On a separate note, why in
the hell is O'Conner suddenly the president of the "Forgive Tiki" club?
Barber screwed things up in 2006 by letting it be known in midseason
that he would retire, and then he tried to screw things up in 2007 by
calling out quarterback Eli Manning. It's far too late for Tiki to
try to erase those realities.
It's not surprising,
however. It's classic behavior of a narcissist. The only
thing that shocks us at this point is that Tiki hasn't also claimed that
his preseason attack on Manning caused the quarterback to toughen up,
laying the foundation for his stellar postseason performances.
BERMAN BLOWS A FUSE
There's only one word to
describe the following clip.
Holy crap. [Editor's
note: Boomer uses more than a few bad words. Make
sure the kids aren't in the room.]
UPDATE:
Several readers have pointed out
that Berman takes a swig at one point from a Diet Coke. The
general consensus is that it isn't working.
SECOND UPDATE:
We appreciate all of the e-mail messages pointing out to us the
obvious fact that the clip is several years old. We're not sure
that the age of the clip diminishes its impact. Also, at least one
reader now looks forward to the day that Berman says, "He could . . . go
. . . all . . . the . . . #@%!&* . . . way!"
POSTED
3:25 p.m. EST, January 31, 2008
"LOYALTY CLAUSE" NOT
HAMPERING JOHNSON
Several readers have asked
whether the ongoing antics of Chad Johnson, featuring a radio row effort
to get himself traded without coming out and demanding a trade, runs
afoul of the Bengals' notorious "loyalty clause," also known as the "Carl
Pickens clause."
The easy answer is no, but
only because the Pickens clause was rendered null and void by the 2006
revisions to the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The amendment
specifically prohibits an attack on a signing bonus based on adverse
public statements. Thus, the bonus money Johnson received
as part of
his April 2006 contract extension is safe.
However, the CBA does not
prevent the imposition of discipline for conduct detrimental to the
team. And how can it not be detrimental for a player who is under
contract to attempt, city by city, to generate buzz for a possible
trade?
Whether the Bengals try to
impose discipline on Johnson for his antics remains to be seen.
But given the lengths to which team president Mike Brown went to justify
the loyalty clause, including but not limited to
writing a column for the Cincinnati Enquirer, it's clear that
the Bengals understand the connection between a player "blurting off at
the mouth" (thanks, Emmitt) and team performance.
As Brown wrote more than
seven years ago: "For as long as team sports have been played, it
has been demonstrated that teams that bond well perform well on the
field. Players who openly criticize their teammates and coaches
undermine the team's ability to win games."
So while the team's
options are limited, discipline can be imposed. And a league
source with knowledge of the dynamics of the Bengals front office
predicts that the current situation could eventually result in a T.O.-style
feud.
"Mike Brown won't trade
him under any circumstances," the source said. "They will let him
sit and rot."
Stay tuned, folks.
Once Ocho Stinko watches someone hoisting the Lombardi on Sunday night,
the desire to get his own fingerprints on it will only increase.
And his campaign to land with a team that he regards as a contender will
continue to intensify.
POSTED
12:52 p.m. EST, January 31, 2008
ANDERSON, BROWNS AT
ODDS OVER CONTRACT LENGTH
Last week, it was reported
that the Browns had offered quarterback Derek Anderson a three-year
contract. Our immediate reaction was that Anderson would balk at
the duration of the deal.
The duration raises a
variety of issues. First, a three-year deal necessarily will
entail less guaranteed money, since there are fewer seasons for
proration. Second, the absence of a long-term commitment to
Anderson would create a greater sense of an ongoing competition etween
himself and Brady Quinn.
Though the presence of two
potential starting quarterbacks on an NFL roster might be regarded as a
good problem to have, the situation can quickly become thorny.
Quinn won't be happy if Anderson signs a deal that makes him the
clear-cut starter well into the future, especially since Quinn needs to
play in order to unlock the high-end incentives in his contract.
Anderson, in turn, surely
doesn't want to have to look over his shoulder at Quinn.
The smart move for the
Browns, in our view, would be to extend the highest restricted free
agency tender to Anderson, gladly accept a first-round pick and a
third-round pick if someone signs him to an offer sheet, entertain trade
offers of less than a one and a three, keep him for 2008 if no offer
sheet is signed or if no acceptable offer is made, and then trade him
out from under the franchise tag in 2009.
Quinn is the quarterback
of the future in Cleveland; why else would the Browns have vaulted back
into the first round of the 2007 draft to get him? Anderson's
success arguably was fueled by an improving offensive line, the high-end
pass-catching tandem of Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow, and an aging
tailback who had more in the tank than anyone realized. And
Anderson failed to deliver with a playoff berth on the line in
Cincinnati.
So why not get what they
can for Anderson, and see what Quinn can do? If Anderson gets
extended for five years, Quinn might never get a chance to be the
starter in Cleveland.
POSTED
11:15 a.m. EST, January 31, 2008
BOUDREAU LANDS IN
ATLANTA
We've been advised that
veteran offensive line coach Paul Boudreau, fired earlier this month by
the Rams, has been hired by the Falcons.
Boudreau worked from 2003
to 2005 with Falcons head coach Mike Smith in Jacksonville.
The challenge in Atlanta
is to continue to acquire offensive lineman who can carry out the
man-blocking scheme that the team re-installed in 2007. Prior to
that, the Falcons had been using the oft-controversial zone-blocking
techniques, under the tutelage of Alex Gibbs.
Boudreau arguably was the
scapegoat for the poor performance of an offensive line in St. Louis
that was decimated by injuries.
Tomlinson says that he'll
now need six more weeks to heal. He won't be playing in the Pro
Bowl.
"The Pro Bowl is not a
concern," he said. "After not playing in the championship game,
the Pro Bowl is the least of my concerns.”
Tomlinson also addressed
the criticism he received for leaving the January 20 game against the
Patriots after only two series.
"That's part of being in
my position,” he said. "That's what the world does. It
builds you up. T hen when things don't go like people think they should,
the criticism starts. This was clearly the worst I've been
through. But it just confirms what I already knew. I've seen
other guys go through it."
The problem is that,
during the game, there was no report that Tomlinson wouldn't be able to
return due to his knee. During the CBS broadcast of the game, his
absence was described as a "coach's decision." In the press box,
an announcement was made that he "can return." In the absence of a
clear explanation for these communications, reasonable people reasonably
concluded that L.T. chose not to return.
Last year, Bills owner
Ralph Wilson sought permission to export some of his team's home games
to Toronto, in an apparent effort to regionalize the fan base -- and to
attract folks from Toronto to Buffalo for the purposes of buying tickets
and luxury suites for Bills home games.
NFL Commissioner Roger
Goodell will reportedly announce the agreement on Friday, during his
annual "state of the league" news conference.
POSTED
9:33 a.m. EST, January 31, 2008
LOFTON HIRED WITHOUT
KIFFIN'S INVOLVEMENT
The Raiders have hired
Hall of Fame receiver James Lofton as an assistant coach. The head
coach, Lane Kiffin, reportedly wasn't in on the decision.
Apparently, it's the
latest move in the effort by owner Al Davis to get Kiffin to quit.
Though Lofton's specific
role has not yet been decided, it could be that Lofton will be the head
coach, if/when Kiffin goes. Lofton previously has interviewed
twice for the head-coaching job.
And it's becoming more and
more obvious that Kiffin eventually will be gone. He hasn't
resigned because, presumably, he doesn't want to forfeit his right to
the next two years of salary. At some point, however, he might be
able to claim that he has been constructively discharged, which would
then allow him to resign while at the same time pursuing the balance of
his salary. Or, eventually, he'll say or do something that will
provide the team with a good-faith argument that Kiffin was fired for
cause, which would block him from receiving any further pay.
POSTED
9:03 a.m. EST, January 31, 2008
CHAD'S CHATTER
CONTINUES
Bengals receiver Chad
Johnson is doing everything he can to get out of Cincinnati, without
saying that he wants out of Cincinnati.
Instead, he's openly
flirting with various teams via appearances on their cities' radio
stations, and he's likewise using national platforms to refrain from
expressing a clear commitment to his current team.
Here's the clip from WFNZ in Charlotte, during which he said that
"85 plus 89 equals a Super Bowl, period."
Johnson also was on WSCR
in Chicago, during which he said
he'd make quarterbacks Rex Grossman or Kyle Orton into superstars.
Johnson also said, "I've worked myself to a point to where I make the
quarterback look good regardless of what he does or where he puts the
ball."
Before the interview,
Johnson wrote on a note pad to Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck,
"Can I play in Seattle?"
In an appearance on
NFL Network, Johnson was more restrained. He even tried to deny --
perhaps jokingly -- his comments that recently were shown on NFLN during
which he suggested that he wants to play in Miami. Here's the
"call me Parcells" clip.
Johnson later admitted
that he is frustrated in Cincinnati. "Stuff is just not right," he
said. Near the end, he hinted that he might retire. "I might
have to hang it up," he said. "You never know."
Here's the full
spot, courtesy of a member of PFT Planet.
The team has yet to
comment on Chad's borderline bizarre campaign to get out of town.
But his NFLN clip is posted on the team's official web site.
Sooner or later, the fans in Cincinnati are going to turn their backs on
him. And at that point it'll be easy for the team to justify
shipping him out of town.
And, sure, trading him
would result in a cap hit. But we're talking about the Bengals
here. Taking a big cap hit will reduce the amount of money that
the team has to otherwise spend in 2008. How is that a bad thing?
POSTED
11:31 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
FITZ WOULD BE FINE WITH
PHILLY
Though Cardinals receiver
Larry Fitzgerald wants to stay in Arizona, he told WIP radio on
Wednesday that the Philadelphia Eagles are one of four other teams for
which he'd be happy to play, if he is traded.
It remains to be seen
whether the Cardinals will try to trade Fitzgerald. Due to
escalators in his contract, he's scheduled to earn salaries of $14.59
million in 2008 and $17.355 million in 2009. That's nearly $32
million over two years, and then he'll hit the open market at only 26
years of age.
The Cardinals could, if
they so choose, pay him the money for the next two seasons. But it
would then cost more than $20 million to retain his rights via the
franchise tag for the 2010 season.
There's no good way out of
this for the Cardinals. Even if they want to extend his deal, the
price to do so would have to be enormous. He's already in position
to earn $30 million between now and September 2009, at which time his
full salary for that season would become guaranteed. Thus,
anything less than $30 million in guaranteed money as part of a new
long-term contract makes no sense.
That same line of thinking
applies to any other team, however. If he's traded, he still has a
contract that pays him huge money over the next two years. What
team would want to give up draft picks for the privilege of having their
nuts promptly dropped into a vise?
So it could be that
Fitzgerald finishes out the deal, pockets the $30 million, and then lets
the market dictate his worth for 2010 and beyond.
Meanwhile, whoever
authorized the Cardinals to sign Fitzgerald to a contract with
escalators like that needs to be fired. Then again, maybe he
already was, after the 2006 season.
POSTED
10:35 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
PER OFFICIAL INJURY
REPORT, BRADY'S ANKLE NOT INJURED
The first injury report
for the Super Bowl is out, and Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is
officially not injured.
Well, he's still got that
right shoulder thing, which was disclosed by the team as a condition
that nevertheless allowed him to fully participate in practice.
But there was no mention of any ankle or foot problem.
For both teams, the report
was fairly light. New England receiver Jabar Gaffney was a limited
participant in practice due to a shoulder problem of his own. No
other Patriot was named.
For the Giants, receiver
Plaxico Burress missed practice due to a torn ankle ligament that has
plagued him all year. Cornerback Kevin Dockery (hip flexor) and
guard Rich Seubert (knee) were limited participants.
The teams will issue
updated reports on Thursday and Friday. On Friday, the various
labels are applied. The only certainty is that Brady will be
probable due to his right shoulder.
The
possible arrival of Dom Capers in Dallas as an assistant might be
the first step toward having a defensive coordinator in place once Wade
Phillips is gone, and when Jason Garrett is the coach.
A couple of relatively
influential guys with the Giants
realize that all the chirping about beating the Pats is only
inviting a beat-down of epic proportions.
When it comes to the topic
of
getting cut by the Rams, Giants FB Madison Hedgecock should change
his last name to Stickass.
POSTED
9:35 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
MOSS ADDRESSES
NEAR-MISS WITH PACKERS
Last year, at about this
time, rumors began to surface that Packers quarterback Brett Favre
wanted the team to acquire Randy Moss. Though Favre never said
anything publicly to pressure the team to pursue Moss, it was believed
that Favre was working behind the scenes to make it happen -- and that
Favre at one point was convinced that Moss was coming to Green Bay.
On Wednesday, Tom
Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
asked Moss about the situation. And Moss explained that,
indeed, there was a chance that the man who once pretended to moon the
fans at Lambeau Field would return wearing green and gold.
"Green Bay was in the
picture, but the things told to me about maneuvering money around and
making it a good fit -- the Packers were really talking a lot about the
wrong things, not the right things.
"When they started talking
about the wrong things I hung the phone up and didn't want to talk to
them anymore. I thought about it. It was something that
could work out just for the fact Brett Favre was there, but I think as
the conversation continued throughout the day and the next day, I really
didn't want to go to Green Bay."
Moss apparently didn't
like the fact that the Packers were applying conditions to his possible
tenure with the team.
"It was like they were
telling me that they're going to take a chance on me, but if you do come
here these are the things you have to work out, 'Be on your best
behavior. Donald Driver is the top receiver here so don't come in
there trying to step on his toes,' things like that. I didn't
think that was right because my whole career things have been taken out
of [context] at times, but at the end of the day all I wanted to do was
win games. It's hard to win games. . . . I don't feel they
really wanted me. Brett wanted me, but I don't thing [sic] the
Packers' organization wanted me."
The Packers probably
didn't want Moss. Sure, Favre did. But it isn't G.M. Ted
Thompson's style to pursue a guy like Moss. Though the front
office had to remove the stick from Favre's fanny after Moss went to New
England, both teams had solid seasons. Besides, the Packers are
solid at the receiver position -- they wouldn't have been that much
better with Moss, and they'll be better off without him moving forward
given the development of guys like Greg Jennings and James Jones.
POSTED
8:14 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
REPORT OF MOOCH
INTERVIEW PREMATURE?
Contrary to a report that
Steve Mariucci has interviewed for the vacant head-coaching position in
Washington, Adam Schefter of NFL Network reports that there has not yet
been an interview.
Per Schefter, an interview
will likely happen at some point this week, but it has not yet occurred.
He says that he told ABC 7 in Washington only that the interview could
happen today.
Mariucci, who was fired by
the Lions in late 2005, has made it known that he is ready to return to
coaching.
POSTED
7:16 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
RAMS GET SAUNDERS
The St. Louis Rams have
hired Al Saunders to serve as offensive coordinator. Per media
reports, he signed
a
three-year deal.
The move could prompt Rams
fans to ponder a possible return of the "Greatest Show on Turf," since
Saunders was receivers coach in St. Louis in 1999 and 2000.
He became the Chiefs'
offensive coordinator in 2001 when former Rams coach Dick Vermeil
emerged from a one-year retirement to take over the job in Kansas City.
After Vermeil retired,
Saunders accepted the position of "associate head coach-offense" with
the Redskins. His performance there, however, didn't have the same
impact as in Kansas City.
POSTED
7:01 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
CHAD FLIRTS WITH
CHARLOTTE
Bengals receiver Chad
Johnson continued to back-door campaign to get out of Cincinnati on
Wednesday with a comment to Mark Packer of WFNZ in Charlotte.
Per multiple readers,
Johnson addressed on "Primtime with the Packman" the possibility of
teaming up with receiver Steve Smith.
"85 plus 89 equals Super
Bowl," Johnson supposedly said.
POSTED
4:54 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
CHAD'S PLAYING IT COY
Though Bengals receiver
Chad Johnson didn't come out and say that he wants out of Cincinnati
during a Wednesday visit to ESPN's NFL Live, he didn't say that
he wants to return -- and he was given every opportunity to do so.
Instead, he said that he
wants to play for a contender, and he pulled out the "next question"
card when pressed on whether the Bengals fall into that category.
Johnson will try his
damnedest not to come off as the bad guy in this. In the end,
however, he won't pull it off. If he wants out, he needs to be a
man and say so. Otherwise, he needs to say that he wants to stay,
and he needs to shut up and get about the business of being a good
teammate.
Adam Schefter of NFL
Network confirmed for ABC 7 that Mariucci, his NFLN colleague, is
sitting for the job.
Talk of Mooch to the
Redskins heated up earlier this week, when Jason La Canfora looked at
the evidence suggesting that the 'Skins could be getting ready for
Mariucci to take over.
The ultimate requirement
for coaching job is an ability to get along with Cerrato, and the status
of their relationship is unclear. As a league source told us
recently, Cerrato didn't hire Mooch in San Fran.
POSTED
4:16 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
WILLIAMS INTERVIEWS
WITH JAGS
Former Redskins defensive
coordinator Gregg Williams became a head coach in Buffalo based on his
performance as defensive coordinator of the Tennessee Titans.
Now, Williams could be
taking that same position with one of the Titans' biggest rivals.
According to the
Florida Times-Union,
Williams interviewed with the Jaguars on Tuesday for the position
created when defensive coordinator Mike Smith was hired to become the
new head coach of the Falcons.
"Gregg was here," Del Rio
said. "I will provide more info once the staff is completed."
The Times-Union
points out that Jacksonville linebackers coach Mark Duffner could be
promoted. If not, Williams could get the job.
Williams recently was
fired by the Redskins after multiple interviews for the head-coaching
job there resulted in no offer to replace Joe Gibbs.
POSTED
3:59 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
BRADY RESPONDS TO PLAX
PREDICTION
Earlier this week, Giants
receiver Plaxico Burress predicted that his team will beat the Patriots
in Super Bowl XLII by the score of 23-17.
On Wednesday, Pats
quarterback Tom Brady responded.
"We're
only going to score 17 points?" Brady said, laughing. "OK.
Is Plax playing defense? I wish he had said 45-42 and gave us a
little credit for more points."
But Brady didn't respond
with any guarantees or predictions of his own. "I learned a lesson
early in my career: No matter what you say during the week -- and
God knows we say a lot this week -- we're going to be focused on going
out and winning this game. We're confident, but I don't think we
share our thoughts with everybody."
Exactly. Nothing is
gained by possibly getting the other team riled up. And we know
the Pats are capable of getting riled up. Remember how Brady jawed
at Steelers safety Anthony Smith during their December 9 game, which was
preceded by a stupid-ass guarantee from Smith that Pittsburgh would win?
Brady knows to be low key
for now. Come Sunday, he and the rest of the Pats will be anything
but.
POSTED
2:52 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
STINKO FORCING HIS WAY
OUT?
Several readers tell us
that Bengals receiver Chad Johnson is making the rounds in Arizona, and
that he's creating the distinct impression that he wants out of
Cincinnati.
One reader said that Ocho
Stinko appeared on The Jim Rome Showon Wednesday, and made it clear that he's looking to get out.
Lance McAlister of 1530 The Homer in Cincy has an entry about the
comments of Señor Stinko on McAlister's blog.
"This isn't cute....it
isn't fun...and it's not an act," McAlister writes. "This is calculated
and orchestrated. He and agent Drew Rosenhaus
have put the
wheels in motion to get out of town. They believe he's best
served leaving Cincinnati."
Recently, Johnson joked on
camera about hoping to be traded to Miami, and he has given disturbingly
candid interviews to Sirius NFL Radio and to ESPN Radio regarding his
status in Bengals.
But coach Marvin Lewis has
said that Johnson won't be traded. Of course, the Eagles have said
the same thing about quarterback Donovan McNabb, and plenty of people
aren't buying that one, either.
Stay tuned. Three
years after T.O. forced his way out of Philly, there could be another
NFL soap opera playing itself out in Cincy.
POSTED
1:58 p.m. EST; UPDATED 3:45 p.m. EST, January 30, 2008
FUN WITH EMMITT, SUPER
BOWL STYLE
So we were watching the
endless loop of SportsCenter on Wednesday, and there was Emmitt
Smith and his shoe-polish beard talking about covering Randy Moss with Sean Salisbury and his body
that by all appearances has rejected the NutriSystem products. Salisbury made a reference at one point to
LL Cool J and his song based on the early career of receiver Steve
Smith, Mama Said Knock You Out.
Later in the spot, Emmitt
tries to make an LL Cool J reference of his own. The only problem
is that, as usual, it didn't quite come out the way he wanted.
Here's the clip, courtesy
of our friends at Awful Announcing. Pay particular attention at
the 70-second mark.
By the way, Emmitt coined
another new phrase earlier in the show regarding the boastings of
receiver Plaxico Burress. Emmitt referred to the situation as
having a guy who "blurted off at the mouth."
UPDATE: Peter King of SI.com
had this to say about Emmitt's analytical skills: "I think
this was about the dumbest thing I've heard this week so far. When
ESPN's Emmitt Smith was asked on TV about Plaxico Burress' prediction of
a 23-17 Giants victory, Smith said: 'His prediction will get him
double-coverage.' I can only hope Smith either misspoke or was
somehow exaggerating, because to imagine that the Patriots would be
moved to change their defensive plan against Burress because of
something he said prior to the game is ridiculous."
It's Jordan Palmer,
younger brother of Carson Palmer.
The younger Palmer was a
quarterback at UTEP in 2006, and a sixth-round draft choice of the
Redskins in 2007.
Palmer was cut by the
Redskins on September 1, and did not land with another team.
POSTED
11:16 a.m. EST, January 30, 2008
BROOKS NOT HIRED, YET
Contrary to a report from
Len Pasquarelli of ESPN.com that Larry Brooks has been hired to coach
the defensive line in Washington, a league source tells us that Brooks
has not been hired -- and might never be.
Per Pasquarelli, there is
an "agreement in principle." Though the explanation might now be
that there was an agreement in principle that later fell apart,
it's our understanding that there wasn't even a tentative arrangement.
The move raised eyebrows
because Brooks spent two seasons on Steve Mariucci's staff in Detroit,
and was out of football in 2007.
POSTED
10:59 a.m. EST, January 30, 2008
TIME TO SHED SHOCKEY?
Lost amid the hype and the
preparations for Super Bowl XLII is Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey.
And his apparent lack of interest in what his team is trying to
accomplish might be reason enough for the Giants to sever ties with him.
Shockey broke a leg late
in the regular season. As we recently heard, Shockey is pissed
that the team has done so well without him. Some league observers
believe that the sudden maturity of quarterback Eli Manning has resulted
at least in part from the absence of the loud-mouthed tight end.
Let's repeat that one.
Jeremy Shockey, a member of the New York Giants football club, has not
yet decided whether he'll attend the Super Bowl as a member of the team.
Of course, Shockey is
slated to attend Terrell Owens' Super Bowl party on Thursday night
as a "confirmed guest,"
along with the likes of Tony Romo and Chad Johnson and JaMarcus Russell.
If Shockey attends the T.O.
party but isn't with his team for the Super Bowl, then the Giants should
trade him or cut him. Sure, he's under contract through 2011.
Yeah, there would be cap consequences. But we can envision no
greater act of selfishness or betrayal than for a supposed member of a
team to fail to provide support and respect as the organization tries to
pull off one of the all-time great underdog stories in league history.
It truly would be a case
of addition by subtraction. Heck, it already has been.
POSTED
10:26 a.m. EST, January 30, 2008
'SKINS SEARCH HEADS
WEST, AGAIN
After meeting for a second
time with Colts defensive coordinator Ron Meeks on Tuesday, Redskins
owner Daniel Snyder and Executive V.P. of Football Operations Vinny
Cerrato are
believed to be heading to Arizona for possible meetings with Steve
Mariucci and/or Jim Fassel, according to David Elfin of the
Washington Times.
After the Super Bowl,
Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and/or Pats offensive
coordinator Josh McDaniels could be in play.
Some are speculating that
the Redskins might be considering a run at Patriots coach Bill Belichick,
who could be inclined to move on if his team secures its fourth Super
Bowl win in seven years via a perfect 19-0 season.
But such speculation
overlooks the fact that Belichick would want to run the show anywhere
that he goes. In Washington, no coach is going to run the show --
as evidenced by the fact that the Redskins are already hiring the guys
who'll be working for the coach who eventually is hired. This
approach necessarily runs off any potential head coach who is inclined
to call all of the shots.
POSTED
8:27 a.m. EST, January 30, 2008
T.O. SLAMS UNION
Cowboys receiver Terrell
Owens addressed on Tuesday the recent decision by an arbitrator that
he'll have to cough up another $769,000 as part of the $2.49 million
consequences of his misbehavior with the Eagles in 2005.
And, true to form, it
wasn't T.O.'s fault. Instead, he's blaming the union, which
presented his case on his behalf.
"I'm
disappointed in the union," Owens said on Tuesday. "The second
time that we've kind of used their services, I've been very, very
disappointed in that.''
Owens also hinted that
he'll be paying his new debt to the Eagles, even though he didn't really
say so.
"I'm not going to really
worry about the money, money doesn't really make me,'' Owens said.
"I'm very fortunate to be where I am, and I'll leave that in the past.''
Ironically, it was Owens'
desire for more money that prompted him to act like an ass in Philly,
resulting in fines, a suspension without pay, and the loss of signing
bonus money.
And don't be surprised if
it happens again. With Owens entering the last year of his
contract with the Cowboys and getting closer and closer to the back end
of his prime, he's going to want an extension . . . especially after
Randy Moss gets his new contract, and if the Cardinals resolve their
self-created cap mess with Larry Fitzgerald by giving him a big-money
long-term deal.
POSTED
10:00 p.m. EST, January 29, 2008
MORE DETAILS ON
CRENNEL'S DEAL
The two-year extension
that coach Romeo Crennel has received from the Browns is, we're told,
worth "just under" $4 million per year, which is consistent with
published reports of a $4 million per year salary.
Per a league source, the
deal also contains incentive payments based on winning the AFC North,
winning playoff games, and winning the Super Bowl.
And those kinds of things
should be the next goals for the Browns. The franchise hasn't won
a playoff game since 1994, when then-coach Bill Belichick defeated,
ironically, the Patriots.
Though we don't play
favorites (instead, we hate all teams equally), we think that folks in
Cleveland deserve to have a successful football team. They've been
through a lot and, finally, the future is bright.
With anger, denial,
bargaining, and depression in their rear-view mirror, the '72 Dolphins
apparently are settling down with
a nice big cup of acceptance.
When the Ravens were
searching for a new head coach, left tackle Jonathan Ogden said that he
wouldn't want to play for Marty Schottenheimer. Ogden might not
play for John Harbaugh, either.
Ogden told the
Baltimore Sun that he might not be back in 2008.
"I'm still in the same
place;
I'm still leaning toward not coming back," Ogden said. "If I
do, I have to feel healthy. I can't go through what I did last
season. I can't be getting treatment every day. And with a
new regime, it's going to be more work."
Ogden seriously considered
retirement in the 2007 offseason.
POSTED
8:33 p.m. EST, January 29, 2008
MOOCH ADDRESSES
REDSKINS RUMORS
Former 49ers and Lions
coach Steve Mariucci
addressed
on NFL Network rumors that he might be the next coach of the
Redskins.
Mooch was noncommittal --
he clearly is open to the possibility, but he calls it a "family
decision." (Insert whip crack sound here.)
A couple of readers have
pointed out that the recent hiring of defensive line coach Larry Brooks
by the Redskins could evidence that Mariucci will get the job, given
that Brooks was Mooch's defensive line coach in Detroit in 2004 and
2005.
POSTED
5:20 p.m. EST, January 29, 2008
'SKINS ADD ANOTHER
COACH, BUT NOT A HEAD COACH
The Washington Redskins
have hired and fired several coaches of late. They're still
waiting, however, to name the guy who'll run the show.
Brooks didn't coach in
2007; he most recently worked for the Cardinals as a member of Dennis
Green's staff.
The addition of Brooks
means that the eventual head coach, whoever it might, will have one less
position to fill. But coaches typically like to have a say in
who'll be coaching with them, and plenty of coaches wouldn't be
interested in the Redskins' job simply by virtue of the fact that the
front office has tied their hands by hiring guys whom the eventual head
coach, whoever it might be, doesn't like.
Some league observers
think that Jim Fassel is destined to get the job, but that owner Dan
Snyder and Executive V.P. of Football Operations Vinny Cerrato are going
through the motions of interviewing other candidates so that they can
claim that they did their due diligence once the fans and the local
media criticize the decision to hire Fassel. (Pssst . . . they
already are.)
At this point, that's the
only explanation that makes any sense. And while former Lions and
49ers coach Steve Mariucci could be lurking, there's no reason for
Snyder to dilly-dally in courting Mooch. Like Fassel, Mariucci can
load up the van and head to D.C. at any time. We think that the
sole reason for the delay is to allow Snyder and Cerrato to be able to
say that Fassel is the best candidate, and that they know this because
they interviewed enough other guys before making their decision.
POSTED
2:24 p.m. EST, January 29, 2008
McDANIELS WON'T RULE
OUT POST-SUPER BOWL INTERVIEW
David Elfin, via John
Taylor, of the Washington Times reports that Patriots offensive
coordinator/quarterbacks coach Josh McDaniels
won't rule out interviewing for the vacant head-coaching position
with the Redskins after the Super Bowl.
McDaniels has been with
the Patriots since 2001, and he won't be 32 until April.
He previously withdrew his
name from consideration for all 2008 vacancies.
POSTED
12:55 p.m. EST, January 29, 2008
STEVENS STORY PROVOKES
PFT PLANET
We posted on Monday night
an item that
linked to a lengthy story regarding the history of criminal
investigations, allegations, arrests, and convictions of Buccaneers
tight end Jerramy Stevens.
The reaction from our
readers has been overwhelming. Some have renounced their loyalty
to the Bucs. Others have turned their backs on the Seahawks, who
drafted him out of the University of Washington, and who should have
known about his exploits in Seattle better than anyone else.
The most common reaction
has been a belief that the story needs to be heard -- and that it must
be read and understood by every owner, every coach, every scout, every
player.
It is, indeed, a sickening
account of a system gone haywire, all in the apparent name of making
sure that a football team will have its most talented players available
to play.
Special mention should be
made at this time that one of Stevens' early enablers was
current Rams head coach Scott Linehan, who went to bat for Stevens
back in 1998. Linehan was going to be Stevens' position coach at
Washington, and Linehan described the decision of Stevens to stomp on
the face of a guy who had been hit in the head by a baseball bat face as
an "isolated incident," based on a University background check that
showed "nothing but high marks." Linehan vowed that Stevens would
should "growth and maturity," and that under the University of
Washington's supervision "this type of incident [will] not occur again."
Technically, Linehan was
right. To our knowledge, Stevens hasn't since stomped on the face
of anyone who has been hit by a baseball bat.
But Stevens has done other
things. As one reader points out, the brother of Giants kicker
Lawrence Tynes is serving 27 years for a non-violent crime; Stevens has
only ever gone away for 12 days.
This story needs to
continue to be developed. Hopefully, someone from 60 Minutes
has a condo on PFT Planet (and not in the building where Stevens lived
in Seattle). Tough questions need to be posed to Mike Holmgren and
Rick Neuheisel and Scott Linehan and Bruce Allen and Jon Gruden and
anyone else who granted to Stevens the privilege of playing football for
their team.
When Stevens hits the
market on February 29, it'll be interesting to see who gives him his
next "second chance." Maybe it will be Linehan.
Then again, he's already
got more than his share of tight ends with rap sheets in Randy McMichael
and Dominique Byrd.
POSTED
11:50 a.m. EST, January 29, 2008
GLOBE SELLING
19-0 PATRIOTS BOOK
Many readers have
forwarded to us
this link from Amazon.com, which offers for pre-order a book that
memorializes the New England Patriots' perfect 2007 season.
The book is titled "19-0:
The Historic Championship Season of New England's Unbeatable Patriots."
And the listed author is the Boston Globe.
Our first reaction was
that the thing might be a fake, reflecting an effort by someone who
wants the Giants to win Super Bowl XLII to get them pissed off by the
perceived indignity.
But since so many readers
are responding to our item about the Giants and their ill-advised
smack-talking by pointing out the existence of the presumptuously titled
book, we need to be clear on one thing.
The Patriots aren't the
ones who are writing or selling it.
There's aslight
difference between various members of the Giants organization crowing
about a coming win and a company with no connection to the Patriots
lining up advance orders for a book that will be available if the Pats
finish the deal on Sunday.
Besides, the Boston
Globe is owned not by Robert or Jonathan Kraft, but by the New
York Times.
UPDATE:
Someone is taking pre-orders on a book that
presumes the Giants win, too. So it's a wash.
POSTED
10:10 a.m. EST, January 29, 2008
FITZGERALD WANTS TO
STAY IN ARIZONA
Due to his performance
during the first four years of a very good but not stellar NFL career,
the Cardinals owe Larry Fitzgerald a base salary in 2008 of $14.592
million.
For one year.
$14.592 million.
Factoring in the
prorations arising from his signing bonus and option bonus, Fitzgerald's
cap number for 2008 will be a whopping $16.485 million.
The technical term for
Fitzgerald's current posture is "leverage out the ying-yang." The
only way to reduce his cap number is to sign him to a long-term
extension, which will require roughly $25 million or so in guaranteed
money. Then again, with $14.592 million in money that becomes
guaranteed as of Week One of the 2008 regular season, Fitzgerald might
be able to get even more than $25 million on his next contract.
Then again, these are the
Cardinals. The poster children for "pay as you go." They
don't like to use big signing bonuses, because they prefer to take their
cap lumps in the current year. So while that 2008 base salary
might make other teams scramble to extend the player, the Cardinals
might simply shrug.
After all, $16 million in
cap room to Fitzgerald is $16 million less in cap room that they'll have
to give to someone else.
But if the Cardinals
decide that a receiver doesn't merit that kind of a one-year salary and
if they choose not to pay to him the kind of a long-term deal that he's
in a position to command, trading him becomes an option.
For Fitzgerald's part,
however, he doesn't want to leave. "I
want to be a Cardinal," he said on Monday. "I enjoy it here.
I love my teammates."
If that's the case, then
he might have to give up some of that leverage, work out a reasonable
deal, and essentially take less money than he could get elsewhere to
stay put.
It'll be interesting to
see how the Cards play this one. They created this mess by signing
Fitzgerald to a contract that resulted in such a gigantic jump in his
salary. How they clean it up could be one of the more intriguing
stories of the offseason.
Especially since a new
deal for Fitzgerald likely will cause Anquan Boldin to ask about an
"adjustment" to his own contract, which runs through 2010.
NO RADIO ROW? NO
PROBLEM
Even though the PFT Yugo
was unable to make the trek to Arizona (MDS is there, however, through
his primary gig at AOL), we'll still be talking with a few of the radio
hosts who took their shows on the road for the days leading up to the
Big Game.
At 11:08 a.m. EST, I'll
spend a few minutes with Dan Patrick, in my ongoing quest to keep his
"quality of guest average" in a reasonable range, since others on his
show today include Lynn Swann and Doug Williams.
One of the oldest (and
thus most accurate) notions in football is that, before a game, you
either say nothing about your opponent, or you praise them.
Or you make them, and
everyone else, nauseous with a Lou Holtz routine about how they're the
best organized sports team in the history of the country, if not the
world.
So, as Super Bowl XLII
approaches, the New York Giants are either playing with fire -- or
blazing a new trail.
Ignoring the potential
motivational effect that their words might have on the 18-0 Patriots,
the Giants are pulling a collective Joe Namath, announcing to all who
will listen that they plan to win.
And as the game
approaches, the Giants are only getting more brash.
Maybe they're simply
taking a cue from upstairs. After all, co-owner Steve Tisch
claimed on Friday night that the Giants will win.
In a way, it all makes
sense. Between the lines, trash talking now pervades all of sport.
Why should the chatter not begin before the players take the field?
Still, the risk is great.
The Patriots surely say nothing publicly, but coach Bill Belichick will
paste together these various comments, predictions, and guarantees to
work his guys into an absolute frenzy as 6:20 p.m. EST approaches on
Sunday.
And when you can
sprinkle that kind of emotion over an 18-0 team that is one of the best
to ever play the game, it's a dangerous combination.
After all, David didn't
drop smack on Goliath before he planted a stone into his skull. If
the New York Giants can find a way to knock off the NFL's giants after
chirping for a couple of weeks about how they plan to do so, the outcome
of this one really will be on par with Jets-Colts in Super Bowl III.
POSTED
9:12 a.m. EST, January 29, 2008
MOOCH IS READY TO
RETURN
Though it's not clear
whether the Washington Redskins are interested in hiring former 49ers
and Lions coach Steve Mariucci, Mooch apparently is ready to get back
in.
Coincidentally (or not),
Mariucci's contract with the Lions ran through the 2007 season. So
if Mooch had gotten the itch a year ago to coach, scratching it would
have meant working for free, since any money he would have earned would
have reduced the Lions' obligation to him under the five-year, $25
million contract he signed in 2003. Typicall, income derived from
broadcasting work does not count against any remaining salary owed to a
coach who is fired.
As to whether he might end
up coaching the Redskins, Mooch was mum. Indications remain that
Jim Fassel is the favorite, and that the Redskins hope to speak with
Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo after the Super Bowl.
POSTED
8:22 a.m. EST, January 29, 2008
T.O.'S FINAL PHILLY
BILL? $2.49 MILLION
In 2005, receiver Terrell
Owens wanted more money from the Eagles. (Arguably, he deserved it
after a heroic performance in the Super Bowl. But Owens opted to
go public, and the team dug in. The situation deteriorated, and
Owens ultimately settled on a strategy of becoming a complete pain in
the ass in the hopes that the Eagles would cut him or trade him.
It worked, but it came
with a price.
The final tally?
$2.49 million, per the Philadelphia Inquirer.
A four-game suspension
without pay, which was upheld by an arbitrator, cost Owens $764,000 and
change. The team then took the position that Owens had defaulted
on his signing bonus, claiming that he owed $1.725 million of the $2.3
million that the team paid upon inking Owens in 2004.
The team collected
$955,000 and change by not paying him any of the game checks for his
five-game suspension with pay, which means that, in the end, it wasn't.
The rest of the cash comes in the wake of an arbitrator's ruling that T.
owes the balance of the $1.725 million, which comes out to more than
$769,000.
The Owens situation
prompted the NFLPA to slip significant changes into the most recent
revisions to the CBA, which now prevents teams from sending players home
with pay.
As a result of the ruling,
the Eagles will receive a $769,000 salary cap credit for 2008.
Before we're flooded with
e-mails asking how the Eagles can go about getting their money if Owens
opts not to pay, here's the procedure -- if he tells them to cram it
sideways, the team can file suit against him to enforce the arbitration
award. It's a fairly simple procedure, and Owens won't have any
meaningful defenses, given that the Eagles followed the procedure
created by the union representing Owens' rights. Once a judgment
is entered against him, he can either write the check (with interest) or
the Eagles can begin attempting to seize some of his assets and sell
them off.
Regardless of whether
Owens opts for the easy way or the hard way, there's no way that the
Eagles will let this go.
POSTED
7:07 a.m. EST; UPDATED 7:21 a.m. EST, January 29, 2008
CRENNEL GETS EXTENSION
At a time when the team
was privately pretending that it was inclined to extend the contract of
coach Romeo Crennel, the Browns gave their three-year head coach a
two-year extension, putting him under contract through the 2011 season.
Per Todd Porter of the
Canton Repository, there's an "agreement
in principle" on a two-year extension.
The extension is for one
less year than Crennel's agent, Joe Linta, initially wanted. Linta
also wanted $5 million per year; per Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland
Plain Dealer, the contract pays Crennel
in the range of $4 million per year.
We're still not sure why
the Browns felt compelled to get the deal done, especially when they
were putting the word out that they didn't intend to do so.
Crennel had no leverage. Maybe, in the end, they decided that they
merely want to keep him happy as the critical phases of the offseason
approach.
And maybe it was, in the
end, an effort by G.M. Phil Savage to create the same kind of
partnership that Pats coach Bill Belichick and V.P. of player personnel
Scott Pioli enjoy.
"Scott will always watch
Bill’s back and that’s their greatest strength," Savage told Porter.
"They're on the same page. . . . That’s what we're trying to get
with Romeo and myself. We're trying to build a partnership."
POSTED
10:08 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
NEW LAWYER FOR MOSS
ADVERSARY
The woman who claims that
Pats receiver Randy Moss battered her
has changed
lawyers, dumping David McGill of Miami and hiring Darrell Thompson,
who is based in California.
The move comes in the wake
of allegations that McGill tried to extort money from Moss.
"It appears that her old
quarterback was sacked, penalized and ejected,'' said Richard Sharpstein,
who represents Moss. "We have to believe that the new quarterback
is more sensible.'"
The hearing to convert the
temporary restraining order against Moss to a permanent injunction has
been moved to March 28, with a commitment that Moss will honor the TRO
until then.
Bucs CB
Brian Kelly plans to become a free agent, but he apparently won't
hit the market until the middle of March, after the crazy-ass-insane
spending has died down.
According to pool reporter
Dan Pompeii of the Chicago Tribune, Brady appeared to have a
"slight limp" but he participated in all phases of practice.
His right ankle was taped
for the session. The team practiced in shorts and shells.
POSTED
8:51 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
PACKERS FANS STILL
RILED UP OVER FAVRE THROW
We've received several
e-mails over the past eight days from Packers fans who are complaining
openly about the performance of quarterback Brett Favre in the NFC
Championship.
Some are even taking the
position that he should walk away now so that a young and improving team
can continue to do so with a young and improving quarterback.
And their argument is
driven by a photo that has been making the rounds over the past few
days. It's an image of the interception thrown by Favre in
overtime against the Giants. You know, the interception that set
the table for the game-winning field goal by New York.
Here it is.
With no real pressure and
plenty of time to deliver the ball, Favre opted to throw the out route
to the player who was covered more closely than any of the four
receivers.
Look, we're not saying
that the Packers would have won the game if Favre had thrown the ball to
another guy. But a time when some Packers are beginning to look
for reasons to argue against another season for Favre, it's providing
plenty of them with all the ammo they need.
And, despite the fact that
we've needled Favre plenty over the years, we think it would be a
mistake for him to walk away. He's still got another year in him,
and it would be great to see him ride off into the sunset with another
Super Bowl trophy tucked under his arm.
POSTED
8:17 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
STEVENS' CASE IS
GRAPHIC PROOF OF ATHLETES' DOUBLE STANDARD
If you've got about 15
minutes to kill and if there's nothing sharp under your chin that might
result in a flesh wound when your jaw drops onto it,
read this story about Buccaneers tight end Jerramy Stevens.
We're not even going to
try to summarize the article. It speaks for itself. Stevens
apparently has been the chronic recipient of second-chances from
football programs that have plenty to gain from his talent, if they can
manage to look the other way.
We're not saying that
folks who are accused or convicted of crimes shouldn't be allowed to
work. But playing professional football is a privilege, and even
though a guy like Stevens might be able to help a team win (if he
doesn't eat popcorn before the game -- yeah, I watched The Longest
Yard three times this weekend on TBS), he has no place in the NFL.
His deal with the
Buccaneers, who signed him while he faced DUI charges, was for only one
year. Given his history, which is extremely well detailed by Ken
Armstrong and Nick Perry of the Seattle Times, we think it's time
for each of the 32 NFL teams to ignore a man who has ignored the rights
of those around him for far too long.
POSTED
7:40 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
BRANDT SAYS HE'S
LOOKING FOR A NEW CHALLENGE
Former Packers cap guy and
general counsel Andrew Brandt saws that he's leaving the Packers simply
because he's hungry for a "new challenge."
Brandt quit his Green Bay
gig without having any other job lined up. It's unknown whether he
was (or is) contractually obligated to the Packers, or whether he could
jump to another NFL team without the permission of the Packers.
"Maybe I'm too honorable,
but I didn't feel right looking for other opportunities while I was
still working for the Packers," Brandt said. "Maybe I take my time
with this. Maybe no one calls [with an offer]. We'll see."
("Honorable" might not be
the best word to describe Brandt's actions; given that he has a wife and
two young sons, quitting a job without having another one lined up
simply because he wants a -- sniff -- new challenge arguably could be
called "reckless" or "irresponsible" or "downright selfish.")
Time will tell whether
Brandt is really taking a shot in the dark (not to be confused with
former Packer Najeh Davenport, who once took a sh-t in the dark), or
whether he secretly has something else lined up with another team.
At this point, it's unclear whether the "new challenge" for which he's
looking is a new line of work in a new industry, a new type of work in
the same industry, or simply a new team in the same 32-company business
where he has spent the last nine years. Prior to that, he was the
G.M. of the Barcelona Dragons in the now-defunct World League, and he
has worked as an agent and a law professor.
POSTED
5:04 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
EAGLES ADD WHIPPLE
To many of the folks of
the same generation as yours truly (i.e., old enough to be
considered old by the young people but young enough to be considered
young by the old people), the name "Whipple" still conjures images of
the dude who admonished his customers for fondling packages of toilet
paper.
In the NFL, the name
"Whipple" was missing in 2007; after not being hired for the Boston
College job and not receiving an invitation to remain with the Steelers'
staff after Bill Cowher left, Whipple couldn't find a landing spot last
year at this time.
But former Steelers
quarterbacks coach Mark Whipple is now back in the game, hired as an "offensive
assistant" with the Eagles.
"I've kind of followed
Mark's career," head coach Andy Reid said. "He started off at New
Haven, went to Brown University where he kind of brought football back
to Brown and then went to the University of Massachusetts and goes in
there and wins a National Championship. Bill Cowher and I talked
about him last year when I thought maybe I would lose [quarterbacks
coach] Pat [Shurmur] about maybe coming in and working with the
quarterbacks and Bill told me that, when he came back [to the NFL to be
a head coach], that would be the first guy that he would hire.
"I said, 'Wow, I've got to
really look at this guy.'"
Before we go any farther,
we supposed the headline of this item could have been "Coach Chin
definitely coming back, some day."
It'd be interesting to
know more about Whipple's contract with the Eagles. If he signed
only a one-year deal, it could be that Whipple wants to be available
when the Chin Man comes calling. If Whipple has signed a
multi-year deal, would Reid let Whipple walk for a job on Cowher's
staff?
POSTED
4:47 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
BRANDT LEAVES PACKERS
The casual football fan
likely has never heard of Andrew Brandt. But Brandt has been a key
component of the success of the Green Bay Packers over the past several
years.
Brandt, the V.P. of player
finance and general counsel in Green Bay, is
leaving
immediately. He spent six years in that role, and nine overall
with the team.
He won't discuss his
reasons for leaving until after the announcement is formally made.
But the fact that he's leaving without another job raises questions
about whether it's an amicable parting.
Brandt was one of four
finalists for the position of team president, which is the closest thing
to an owner in Green Bay. It's odd to think that it was an
up-or-out proposition for Brandt, but it very well might have been.
Though not a "football
guy" in the industry sense of the term, which means that he doesn't
scout players, one look at
his online
bio reveals that he was a key component in managing a successful NFL
team during the salary-cap era.
Brandt likely will be in
high demand, and the Packers' rivals in the NFC North would be wise to
be the first ones to chase him.
POSTED
3:08 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
COULD OCHO CINCO JOIN
HUE IN MIAMI?
Our report that former
Falcons offensive coordinator Hue Jackson will interview for a job with
the Dolphins is sparking speculation among Fins fans that the hiring of
Jackson could be a precursor to the swinging of a deal for Bengals receiver
Chad Johnson.
Jackson was Johnson's
position coach in Cincinnati through 2006, and coincidentally Johnson
was never regarded as a malcontent or a trouble-maker until his first
season without Jackson (with the exception, of course, of Johnson's
halftime meltdown during a 2005 Wild-Card playoff game against the
Steelers).
Adding fuel to the theory
are undated comments from Chad Johnson on NFL Network, in which he
strongly hints that he'd like to play for the Dolphins -- and then
closes by saying,
"Parcells call me, man."
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis
has said that Johnson won't be traded, but in shockingly candid
interviews on Sirius NFL Radio and ESPN Radio Johnson has created the
distinct impression that he wants out.
POSTED
1:57 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
NO MOOCH IN D.C.?
A source with knowledge of
the dynamics in the Washington front office firmly believes that former
San Francisco and Detroit head coach Steve Mariucci won't be the next
coach of the Redskins.
Though both Mariucci and
'Skins executive V.P. of football operations Vinny Cerrato worked
together in San Fran, Mariucci was hired by former Niners owner Eddie
DeBartolo and front-office exec Carmen Policy. "Mooch was never a
Vinny guy," the source said.
Mariucci has been linked
to the job via informed speculation from Jason La Canfora of the
Washington Post.
POSTED
12:43 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
RYAN STILL A RAVEN
Despite being passed over
for the head-coaching job in Baltimore, defensive coordinator
Rex Ryan is staying with the team, and he has signed a three-year
contract to do so.
Per the Baltimore Sun,
he'll make $1.3 million to $1.5 million per year.
"This is a good thing,
this is great," said Ryan. "I'm excited to be back with the
Ravens, and excited about what is going on here. These are my guys
[on defense], and we've been through a lot together."
Initial reports suggested
that Ryan had been fired along with the rest of former coach Brian
Billick's staff. But when Ryan began to draw interest from teams
like the Redskins for the position of defensive coordinator, it became
known that the Ravens still had retained their contractual rights to
Ryan.
Ryan was interviewed for
each of the four head-coaching vacancies during the 2008 hiring cycle.
Some league insiders believe that the chances of Rex Ryan and his
brother, Rob, to become NFL head coaches have been hampered by the
reputation of their father, Buddy, for being a loose cannon during his
time in the league as an assistant coach with various teams and as the
head coach of the Eagles and Cardinals.
POSTED
12:06 p.m. EST, January 28, 2008
CARMICHAEL STAYING PUT?
Now that Monday morning
has come and gone, we're hearing that Saints quarterbacks coach Pete
Carmichael has opted to stay put with the team in lieu of leaving to
become the Dolphins' offensive coordinator.
At this point, it's only
an unconfirmed rumor.
Carmichael has been a key
ingredient in the development and rise of Saints quarterback Drew Brees.
Carmichael worked with Brees since 2002, Brees' second season in the
league.
POSTED
11:59 a.m. EST, January 28, 2008
FINS TO INTERVIEW
JACKSON
One of the rumors that
we've heard regarding the situation in Miami, and have been able to
subsequently confirm, is that Hue Jackson will interview for a position
with the Dolphins -- presumably, offensive coordinator.
Jackson worked for the
Falcons as offensive coordinator in 2007. Former Miami assistant
Mike Mularkey has replaced him there.
As we understand it, the
interview is set for Tuesday. It's unknown whether the courtship
of Jackson will continue as to another spot on coach Tony Sparano's if
the Saints release quarterbacks coach Pete Carmichael, whom the Dolphins
want to hire for the job of offensive coordinator.
POSTED
11:47 a.m. EST, January 28, 2008
SAINTS MIGHT NOT
RELEASE CARMICHAEL
Despite an apparent policy
by Saints coach Sean Payton to permit members of his staff to leave for
opportunities elsewhere, the team could be poised to prevent
quarterbacks coach Pete Carmichael from accepting the position of
offensive coordinator with the Dolphins.
We're hearing unconfirmed
rumors that, while Payton is inclined to let Carmichael leave, G.M.
Mickey Loomis wants to force Carmichael to stay put. We've also
heard -- again, unconfirmed -- that quarterback Drew Brees, who has
worked with Carmichael since 2002, is lobbying the organization to keep
him.
As we understand it,
Payton has final say on the matter.
The rumor is that Loomis,
Payton, and Carmichael are meeting on Monday morning in an effort to
work things out.
Stay tuned.
POSTED
10:56 a.m. EST, January 28, 2008
LOSS OF NEW ORLEANS
GAME QUESTIONED
Published reports indicate
that the Saints will "host" a home game in London next year, and that
their opponent will be the Chargers.
But as one league source
opined to us over the weekend, "What happened to the league's commitment
to New Orleans?"
In 2005, the area was
devastated by a hurricane. That season, the entire slate of "home"
games was played in places like San Antonio and Baton Rouge, and even
New Jersey.
At a time when there was
mounting speculation that owner Tom Benson might use the devastation as
an excuse for moving the team, the league recognized that the
abandonment of New Orleans was not an option. Benson's tune
quickly changed.
In 2006, the Saints
returned to New Orleans with a rousing and memorable Monday night win
over the Falcons, and they emerged over the balance of the season as a
contending team. Years of struggles to sell tickets at the Superdome
evaporated, and folks living in a region that is still ravaged in many
areas by the aftermath of the ensuing flood had reason for hope.
So why take one of eight
regular-season home games away from New Orleans now? And why take
one of the highest-profile contests on the slate -- a
once-in-eight-years visit from the San Diego Chargers?
We realize, and we
support, the league's desire to expand the reach and the influence of
pro football in other countries. But the sacrifice this time
around seems to be too great. The Buccaneers stand ready and
willing to give up a home game, and the folks in Tampa nearly failed to
sell out Raymond James Stadium for a playoff game.
Though Benson surely will
be handsomely compensated for his decision to give up a home game in the
name of the league's broader effort to become an international
phenomenon, there will be no compensation for the revenue lost by the
various businesses that rely upon those eight weekends from September to
December in which an NFL game is hosted there.
Eventually, the league
will likely expand the regular season to 17 games, which means that
every city will keep its eight home games and play once per season at a
neutral site. In our view, the Saints should have gotten a pass on
playing a home game overseas until that seventeenth game is added.
POSTED 9:41 a.m. EST,
January 28, 2008
DOES BOWLEN'S RANT HURT TAGLIABUE?
Last year, a heated debate over whether former
NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue should have a bronze bust in Canton unfolded
at the annual selection meeting, which was held on the day before the Super
Bowl in Miami.
Tagliabue didn't make it. The feeling
was that more time needed to pass in order to fully assess his legacy.
But with Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, who chairs
the league's labor committee, now sounding off about the inadequacy of the
most recent extension of the CBA, Tagliabue's chances for getting through
this time around could be hampered.
Tagliabue and NFLPA executive director Gene
Upshaw were primarily, if not exclusively, responsible for pushing through a
revised deal that now funds the league-wide salary cap with nearly 60
percent of the total football revenue, which includes amounts not shared
equally by the 32 teams. The sticking point for the owners was the
negotiation among them of a way to handle the growing disparity in unshared
revenues. Upshaw's insistence on such a plan among the owners, which
in theory should be irrelevant to the union, created the perception that
Upshaw and Tagliabue had decided among the two of them what was best for
everyone, and then set about to do whatever had to be done to get it
implemented.
Meanwhile, the focus on the dollars and cents
prompted management to accept the NFLPA's final term sheet without noticing
the various noneconomic terms that made it harder for the 32 teams to deal
with problem players.
Bowlen's criticism of the revised system that
Tagliabue championed could therefore hurt Tagliabue in the short term,
prompting the writers to continue to take a wait-and-see approach as to
whether his efforts are truly Canton-worthy.
Though, as we suggested on Sunday, Bowlen's
beef with the system might simply be cover for a string of bad free-agency
decisions by coach/de facto G.M. Mike Shanahan, there isn't enough time to
sort that out before Saturday, and Bowlen's name likely carries enough clout
to give the naysayers sufficient fuel to keep Tagliabue out, at least until
2009.
La Canfora says that his colleague, Mark Maske,
bumped into Mooch in Phoenix on Sunday and asked him point-blank about the
possibility. Said Mooch: "I'm working for the NFL Network right
now, and that's all I'm doing."
La Canfora locks onto the possibly key term
"right now," and what it might imply.
Also, La Canfora explains that the recent move
by owner Dan Snyder to hire offensive and defensive coordinators without a
head coach would not keep Mariucci away, given that the two assistants in
question are Jim Zorn and Greg Blache.
As one NFL General Manager told La Canfora:
"It all points to Mariucci. It's like you're starting a Washington
branch of the West Coast family. Look at the coordinators. Then
you've got Vinny [Cerrato] who could put it together. That's viable.
That's something I think you could sell.
"He's a likeable guy, he's had
success, been to the playoffs, you can trace him back to Bill Walsh. I
think you could sell that package to the fans and everybody's comfortable.
That's what I think he's trying to pull off."
Mariucci has consistently
deflected potential interest in his coaching services, but perhaps he's
realizing that, if he doesn't get back into the game soon, he might never
get another opportunity.
CARROLL SAID "NO THANKS"
As new names and possibilities
emerge for the head-coaching job in Washington, there's a certain
high-profile name that quietly hit owner Dan Snyder's radar, before moving
on.
Adam Schefter of NFL Network
reports that USC coach Pete Carroll recently met with Snyder in St. Louis.
Per Schefter, Carroll listened, but he declined to further pursue the
option.
One of the problems is that
Carroll is widely believed to be interested only in returning to the NFL if
he will be able to run the show. In Washington, Vinny Cerrato is
firmly entrenched as the guy with the keys to the roster, and Snyder also
wants to stick his finger in the pot from time to time.
That's why the coach who ends
up with the job will be someone who can work with Cerrato (like Steve
Mariucci) or who'll simply be so happy to have a job that he won't try to
grab power (like Jim Fassel).
POSTED 6:53 a.m. EST,
January 28, 2008
BRADY SAYS HE'LL BE "READY TO GO"
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady
addressed the media on Sunday night in Arizona, and he declared that
he'll be able to play in Super Bowl XLII despite an ankle injury.
"It's feeling good," he said. "I'll be
ready to go."
It was the first actual acknowledgement of the
injury by anyone in the organization. Other than, you know, the
walking boot that Brady was spotted wearing a week ago in New York.
Brady also said that the injury occurred in
the third quarter of the AFC Championship.
"I'm not concerned about how it's going to
affect my play," he said. "This won't keep me out."
Brady's candor will make it difficult for the
team to play games with the injury report, listing him as a limited
participant in practice all week and then describing him as "questionable"
for the game.
And Sunday's comments could be the only time
Brady discusses the situation in the days leading to the game. After
being asked another question about the ankle, Brady dubbed it as the "[l]ast
question of the week."
It might be the last one he answers. It
definitely won't be the last one he's asked.
POSTED 9:56 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
MEEKS GETS A SECOND LOOK IN D.C.
With the Washington Redskins still looking for
a new head coach, ESPN's John Clayton reports that Colts defensive
coordinator Ron Meeks
will get a
second interview for the job.
Former Giants coach Jim Fassel is believed to
be the front-runner for the position, especially with former Redskins
defensive coordinator Gregg Williams out of the running -- and out of a job.
The Redskins also are expected to interview
Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo after the Super Bowl.
POSTED 4:49 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
BRADY TO BE AVAILABLE TO THE MEDIA ON
SUNDAY NIGHT
The official NFL schedule of events for Super
Bowl week promises that Pats coach Bill Belichick and six players will be
made available to the media later today, after arriving in Arizona.
And one of the six players will be quarterback
Tom Brady, whose ankle has been the subject of considerable discussion and
debate over the past several days.
Joining Brady will be linebacker Mike Vrabel,
linebacker Tedy Bruschi, defensive end Richard Seymour, center Dan Koppen,
and running back Kevin Faulk.
But while the league requires the Super Bowl
participants to periodically make themselves available to the media in the
days leading up to the Super Bowl, nothing compels the teams to say anything
about player injuries. The only obligation in this regard is the
injury report, which will be published on Wednesday and updated on Thursday
and Friday.
Our guess? Brady will be listed as
participating in practice on a limited basis on Wednesday, Thursday, and
Friday, and as questionable with an ankle injury in Friday's final report.
Then, Brady either will play, or he won't.
Undoubtedly, he'll play.
POSTED 4:27 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
CAMPO BACK TO COWBOYS?
More than five years ago, Cowboys head coach
Dave Campo suffered one of the worst indignities that any head coach could
experience. While he was still working as head coach, owner Jerry
Jones secretly met with Bill Parcells about replacing him.
And now Campo could be coming back.
Albert Breer of the Dallas Morning News
reports that
the Jaguars have given the Cowboys permission to interview Campo, which
means that the Jaguars won't be upset to see him leave. With former
Lions and Jets defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson now on the
Jacksonville staff in an undetermined role, Campo's expertise with the
defensive backs might no longer be needed, or wanted.
Campo wouldn't be the first once-fired head
coach of a team to return in a lesser capacity. Former Chiefs coach
Gunther Cunningham returned to the team in 2004 as defensive coordinator,
and has spent four more seasons there.
POSTED 3:57 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
TISCH SAYS GIANTS WILL WIN
Usually, the practice of guaranteeing victory
is for the participants in a sporting event. This time around,
however, one of the men who holds the title to one of the teams in the NFL
title fight is providing a prediction about the outcome of the game.
On Friday night, Giants chairman Steve Tisch
told the Bergen Record that his team will win Super Bowl XLII.
It's not blind boasting. Tisch backs his
beliefs with reasoning that lacks no persuasive force.
"We're getting stronger, we're
getting better and we're performing as a team with confidence. Eli
[Manning] is taking more of a leadership role, week after week. This
is not a team that peaked at midseason. This is a team that's been on
the road, as underdogs many times, and has succeeded 100 percent.
"This team has played with
heart and pride and dignity and strength, and I feel those elements will get
us the 'W' on the third."
In any other year, we'd agree
whole-heartedly. But this is the Year of the Patriot, the season in
which a team has won 18 games and lost none. The throng of voices
predicting that they won't finish the deal will do the Giants no favors,
since it will only provide the Patriots with more motivation to get the deal
done.
Under the traditional approach
to pre-game jibber-jabber, it would be far better for the Giants if everyone
were picking against them, and if no one in the organization were suggesting
that the team could win.
Then again, maybe a New York
team is the best kind of team to talk tough -- and to back it up.
We're still not sure who we think will win the game next Sunday, but if the
Giants pull it off football teams at every level would be wise to ask
themselves whether the benefits of expressing confidence outweigh the risks
of giving the opponent bulletin-board material.
POSTED 1:34 p.m. EST;
UPDATED 2:38 p.m. EST, January 27, 2008
BOWLEN BLAMING SYSTEM FOR SHANAHAN'S
SCREW-UPS?
The
Buffalo News has a Sunday item based on a nine-day-old report from
the Rocky Mountain News, in which Broncos owner Pat Bowlen sounds off
on the problems caused by the financial aspects of the Collective Bargaining
Agreement adopted by the league and the players' union nearly two years ago.
"Cash
is an issue in the National Football League," Bowlen told the Rocky
Mountain News. "I think it's pretty common knowledge our last
labor agreement is not our smartest move, and that we're way beyond, and I'm
not talking about just the Denver Broncos, I'm talking about just the league
in general . . . we being we collectively, 32 teams, can't live with this
deal."
Bowlen's belief arises from his team's
experiences in free agency, where money has been spent year after year on
players who haven't panned out.
"The lesson in free agency is slowly being
learned," Bowlen said. "And I think that we probably learned it as
much as anybody. . . . That's for all teams, sort of leveling off now,
saying, 'just a minute, our payrolls are over the top, we're taking bigger
risks than we thought with some guys and we've got to be a lot more vigilant
in how we do it.'"
If enough other owners agree with Bowlen, it
could spell labor trouble, as soon as November of this year. Under the
CBA, either the league or the union can pull the plug after the 2010 season
by giving notice in November 2008. It would result in an uncapped year
in 2010, which could trigger the same kind of cap mayhem that would have
unfolded two years ago if 2006 had been a year without a spending limit.
But we're hardly sold on the notion that
Bowlen's views are shared by his colleagues. The problem in Denver is
Mike Shanahan the G.M. Though Mike Shanahan the coach has done
remarkably well with the impaired talent that Shanahan the G.M. has provided
for him, Shanahan the G.M. has squandered Bowlen's money on men not worthy
of it. The new CBA has magnified the problem only because it has given
Shanahan the G.M. more money to spend on guys who shouldn't be getting it.
We're not ruling out the possibility that
other owners feel the same way as Bowlen. But, in the case of the
Broncos, they have only themselves to blame for the millions that have been
spent on players who added nothing to the most important bottom line --
winning football games.
POSTED 12:52 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
'BOYS TO MAKE A DEAL WITH THE FINS?
ESPN's Chris Mortensen suggested during a
special edition of Sunday NFL Countdown that Cowboys owner Jerry
Jones is eyeing the possibility of swinging a trade with the Dolphins for
the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 draft.
Such a deal would allow the 'Boys to bag
running back Darren McFadden, who played college football at Jones' alma
mater of Arkansas.
Per Mort, any such deal would have to include
the rights to Cowboys running back Marion Barber, who is slated to be a
restricted free agent. To make it happen, the Cowboys would have to
work out a sign-and-trade deal before Barber gets a chance to ink an offer
sheet that would force the Cowboys to match the terms or let him go in
exchange for compensation. Thus, the safest bet for the 'Boys would be
to tender Barber at the highest possible level, which would force any team
that signs him to give up a first-round pick and a third-round pick.
Those extra picks then could be used to sweeten the pot for the top spot in
the draft.
And it's clear that the Cowboys are going to
have to find a way to enhance the two first-rounders that they can offer up
for the No. 1 pick. Under the
revised draft
order, the Cowboys pick at No. 22 (from Cleveland) and at No. 28.
Under the trade
chart, the No. 22 overall pick is worth 780 points and the No. 28
selection is worth 660 points. The No. 1 selection has a value of
3,000 points; thus, the Cowboys would be a whopping 1,560 points short.
Though the trade chart arguably needs to be
adjusted to reflect the fact that the enormous financial investment that is
now required when using the top pick makes the prospects of a move up even
more fraught with risk, the Fins could justify the 1,560-point gap by
placing that value on Barber, who coupled with Ronnie Brown could give Miami
a deadly one-two punch in the backfield.
Some readers think that the framework for a
deal is already in place, and was part of the unspoken understanding that
allowed the Dolphins to have their way with the Dallas front office and
coaching staff. If that's true it wouldn't surprise us. Jones
surely covets McFadden, and our guess is that he is willing to do whatever
is necessary to get him.
POSTED 12:17 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
COMING SOON: PFT HEROES
Though one of our goals here is to get rid of
the negative aspects of pro football by shining a bright light on them, we
don't hate the sport and we don't hate the teams. We love pro
football, and we want to see it retain its status as the top sport in North
America. (We also share the NFL's unspoken goal of making a run at
soccer as the world's pre-eminent sport.)
And so, in the days after the Super Bowl,
we'll begin to hand out postseason awards. There won't be a press
conference, there won't be trophies, and there won't be a vote.
Instead, the folks who put their sweat and tears (there hasn't been blood,
yet) into the site will caucus and name the player from the past year whom
we most admire and respect at each position.
We'll also be naming the award for each
position after the retired player at each position whom we decide we most
admire and respect.
Why wait until after the Super Bowl?
Because the season isn't over until then, and some of the best and most
inspiring stuff happens after Week Seventeen.
Though we'll be making these decisions
internally, we're happy to get your
input. Who would you give the prize to at each position, and who
would you name each award after, at each position?
POSTED 12:06 p.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
FIRST "TURD WATCH" GAME ENTERS FINAL WEEK
Amazingly, it's been nearly a year since we
decided to start tracking arrests and convictions and guilty pleas of the
players and other employees of NFL teams in the game known as
Turd Watch.
With a week left, the Miami Dolphins are
leading the way with 74 points. In second place are the Jaguars, at
64. Unless a Jacksonville player or coach or front-office employee or
janitor or other worker go loco in the next eight days, the Fins will have a
little something to ad to the trophy case.
Following the Fins and the Jags are the
Vikings at 48, the Falcons at 44, the Bucs at 39, the Titans at 34, the
Steelers at 33, the Broncos at 29, the Bengals at 22. The Raiders and
Saints are tied for the tenth spot at 17.
The AFC leads the NFC, 335 to 204.
The bigger story is that only five teams have
zero points -- the Patriots, the Giants, the Cowboys, the Eagles, and the
Lions.
That's right, the two Super Bowl teams had no
incidents over the past year with players or other employees getting
arrested or pleading guilty or being convicted of a crime.
Coincidence? We doubt it.
Meanwhile, we're now considering the official
rules for Turd Watch II, and we welcome
any ideas or suggestions.
Among other things, we're seriously considering giving teams full or partial
credit for cutting a player within a week after an arrest.
We've resisted this concept in the past
because the goal is to avoid acquiring guys who might get themselves in
trouble. But there's something to be said for sending a strong and
swift message.
We're also considering a change to the point
system. For Turd Watch I, arrests counted more than convictions or
guilty pleas, because as we see it the arrests cause the greater P.R.
problem for the team. We might keep the same basic structure -- three
points for a misdemeanor arrest and seven points for a felony arrest -- and
then use the same points if/when a player is convicted of or pleads guilty
to the charges.
POSTED 11:48 a.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
SHOCKEY HASN'T BEEN AROUND
One of the subplots that hasn't gotten much
attention in the run-up to the Super Bowl is the status of Giants tight end
Jeremy Shockey.
Shockey broke his leg late in the regular
season, and he hasn't been missed. Rookie Kevin Boss has stepped in
nicely, and Shockey really hasn't been missed.
One of the reasons that he hasn't been missed
is that, as we hear it, he hasn't been around much over the past month.
And, as we hear it, he's got a burr in his butt about the fact that the team
has achieved more without him that it ever managed with him.
So a potential source for interesting sound
bites over the coming days could be Shockey. If he even goes to
Arizona.
POSTED 11:40 a.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
SAUNDERS TO SIT WITH RAIDERS
John Clayton of ESPN reports that former
Redskins assistant head coach-offense Al Saunders will interview with the
Raiders.
The position for which Saunders will interview
is unknown. The Raiders have an offensive coordinator in Greg Knapp.
Then again, the Redskins had one, too, when Saunders was hired. And
still had one thereafter.
Meanwhile, Kiffin said on Saturday that
he hopes to
still be the Raiders head coach in 2008. If reports that he has
been asked to resign are true, we would advise against betting anything of
value on it.
POSTED 7:21 a.m. EST,
January 27, 2008
BRADY SPOTTED, LIMPING
After being unseen since Tuesday, Patriots
quarterback Tom Brady has been spotted.
According to the Boston Herald, Brady
emerged from his home to greet a couple of police officers who have been
protecting him from any nut-jobs that might be inclined to try to help the
Giants by going Gillooly on
Brady. (Ah, taxpayer dollars at work.)
He reportedly has a mild high ankle sprain.
But while he was photographed and videotaped in a walking boot on Monday, he
was seen out of the boot on Monday night and Tuesday, and not limping.
So did the ankle get worse over the past few
days, or is he able to walk without a limp when he thinks someone is
watching?
The thick veil of secrecy won't be able to
last for much longer. On Sunday at approximately 7:45 p.m. EST, Pats
coach Bill Belichick and six players will be available to the media.
(It's unknown whether Brady will be one of them; though he's the most famous
of the Pats, our guess is that he won't be there.)
On Monday at 7:30 p.m. EST, Belichick and six
players will be available again.
On Tuesday from noon to 1:00 p.m. EST, the
Patriots will collectively be available to the media at the University of
Phoenix stadium as part of media day. Brady will be compelled to
attend.
And, on Wednesday, the teams will release
their first injury reports.
Through it all, Brady's true status will
likely continue to be clouded in uncertainty as the Super Bowl approaches.
And there isn't one player on either team who has greater importance to the
potential outcome of the game.
POSTED 10:26 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
RUEGAMER HAS A SCREW LOOSE
One of the practical realities of covering the
NFL for nearly a full decade is that nothing surprises me anymore.
"You grab the forelegs and pin them to the
ground, and then you grab the back legs and throw them on their back,"
Ruegamer said. "[A]way you go. It's the way the Basques do
it. . . . [Y]ou pull them out with your teeth, spit them in a
bucket, next one."
Okay, now I'll never be surprised again.
POSTED 8:57 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
SAINTS TO PLAY CHARGERS IN LONDON
When Drew Brees left the Chargers and signed
with the Saints, he likely never dreamed that his opportunity to prove the
folks in San Diego that they kept the wrong guy would occur on the other
side of an ocean.
The game will be played at Wembley Stadium,
the same venue where the Dolphins hosted the Giants in October 2007.
There was some thought that the game wouldn't be played at Wembley again,
because the slick soccer pitch coupled with a cold rain made the thing a
sloppy mess last time around.
This time, the league wanted to provide
England with a potentially high-scoring game, and the Chargers and Saints
have two of the league's marquee offenses.
POSTED 8:00 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
MORE BIG-MOUTHED GIANTS
One of the problems with the New York Giants
of the past several years is that former G.M. Ernie Accorsi compiled too
many loud-mouth players, and that coach Tom Coughlin hasn't been able to get
them to act contrary to their nature. (Okay, that's two problems.
Sorry.)
But while the departure of smiling malcontent
Tiki Barber and the absence due to injury of scowling malignancy Jeremy
Schockey arguably has opened the door for a talented team to get to the
Super Bowl, the tendency of other players to flap their gums will only
continue to provide the Patriots with more motivation to dismantle the NFC
champs.
It's a claim that no one can make with a
straight face. Though Burress has had a great year, the receiving
corps in New England is top-to-bottom superior; it's not even a subject for
reasonable debate. Randy Moss set the single-season touchdown
reception record in 2007, and Wes Welker took full advantage of the futile
efforts to slow down Moss, catching 112 passes in his first season with the
Pats. Beyond the starters, the Pats boast guys like Donte' Stallworth
and Jabar Gaffney and Kelley Washington. All three could compete to be
featured receivers elsewhere.
And even if Burress or any other members of
the Giants believe that their receivers are better, saying so serves no
purpose. It will only get the Pats more riled up for the Super Bowl --
as if an 18-0 team needs any extra reason to bring their best game to
Arizona.
We're still not ready to make our game pick,
but we still think that, while everyone wants to see a competitive game, the
planets are lining up for a blowout.
POSTED 6:05 p.m. EST;
UPDATED 7:41 p.m. EST, January 26, 2008
KIFFIN SENDING MESSAGE TO AL?
Several members of the media, including Adam
Schefter of NFL Network and Albert Breer of the Dallas Morning News,
have noticed an intriguing fact regarding the behavior of Raiders coach Lane
Kiffin at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.
Or, specifically, his attire.
While all members of the Raiders staff
coaching at the Senior Bowl are wearing Raiders gear, Kiffin is merely
wearing black, with no team logos or names. Per Schefter, Kiffin has
been doing it all week.
Publicly, Kiffin denies that there is any
trouble brewing between himself and management. Ditto for the team.
However, there are multiple reports that owner Al Davis has asked Kiffin to
resign.
UPDATE: Several readers
have pointed out to us that 49ers coach Mike Nolan is dressed in the same
way as Kiffin, with no team name or logo on his outfit. We didn't
notice, because we can't bring ourselves to watch college all-star games.
POSTED 5:13 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
WILFORK FINED AGAIN
Pats defensive tackle Vince Wilfork has been
fined for the fourth time this season. This time, it was $5,000 for a
face-mask penalty against the Chargers in the AFC title game.
"It's bad because you go out there and you get
a penalty and the first thing you say is, 'Am I going to get fined?' " said
Wilfork, according to the Boston Globe. "It's
ridiculous. Anything you do that's a penalty, it's a fine. I
don't think the game should be like that, but the NFL makes the rules and we
have to abide by them. We have to do a better job of abiding by them."
But Wilfork should still consider himself
lucky for not getting fined more than $12,500 for throwing an elbow into
quarterback J.P. Losman's knee (the fine was later reduced to $10,000), and
for not getting suspended for trying to stick a finger into the eye of
Giants running back Brandon Jacobs.
POSTED 4:52 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
KAEDING HAD BROKEN LEG
Quarterback Philip Rivers wasn't the only
member of the San Diego Chargers who was injured far worse than believed
during the postseason.
Per the San Diego Union-Tribune,
Kaeding broke a bone in his plant leg during the opening kickoff against
the Broncos on December 24, and played with it for the balance of that game,
the next game, and three playoff games.
But while we're always ready to blow the
whistle (as if anyone is actually listening) when teams appear to violate
the injury- reporting, the Chargers apparently complied with the rules, if
the injury fully healed before last weekend's AFC title game. For Week
Seventeen and the first two weeks of the playoffs, Kaeding was listed as
probable due to a "left fibula." For the AFC Championship, Kaeding did
not appear on the injury report at all.
But he played every week, and resumed his
duties on kickoffs during the conference title game.
Trouble arises under the rules where a
player isn't listed on the report (or is listed as probable) and then
doesn't play. The Chargers escaped scrutiny last weekend regarding the
fact that running back LaDainian Tomlinson missed most of the game despite
being listed as probable with a knee injury because he started the game, and
then presumably reinjured it.
Meanwhile, several readers have pointed out to
us that L.T.'s latest action figure sums up perfectly his contribution to
the team's effort to get to the Super Bowl. He's even sort of pouting.
POSTED 2:48 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
JAGS, RAMS WANT WILLIAMS
by Michael David Smith
Jay Glazer of Fox Sports
reports that although Gregg Williams is no longer with the Redskins, he
won't be out of work for long.
Per Glazer, the Rams have
already requested permission to interview Williams, and the Jaguars are
interested as well. Jacksonville is currently without a defensive
coordinator, as Mike Smith left to take the top job in Atlanta. It's not
clear where Williams would fit into the Rams' coaching staff, as Jim Haslett
is already in place as defensive coordinator. Williams has never worked with
either Rams coach Scott Linehan or Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio.
Meanwhile, Redskins owner Dan
Snyder has confirmed in a statement released by the team that the coaching
search will last until after the Super Bowl.
"The process of selecting a
new head coach continues, although
no hire is planned until after the Super Bowl so as not to distract from
the Championship game as well as to keep open all our options," Snyder said. "We are on track with our interviews, but in the interim we also are filling
our coaching positions and re-signing several existing staff members."
POSTED 2:07 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
WILLIAMS DONE WITH REDSKINS
by Michael David Smith
Washington Redskins assistant
head coach Gregg Williams, the highly paid, well regarded assistant who at
one point was thought to be the heir apparent to Joe Gibbs, is no longer a
part of the organization, his agent said today.
Agent Marvin Demoff told Jason
La Canfora of the Washington Post that the sides mutually agreed to
part ways. Demoff also says everyone involved, including owner Dan Snyder
and Vice President of Football Operations Vinny Cerrato agreed that Williams
had not, contrary to some reports, said anything negative about Gibbs.
"Both Snyder and Cerrato
agreed that that had never occurred and those reports were totally false,"
Demoff said. "They
wished each other well in the future and the sides parted."
Although the parting might
have been mutual and on good terms, obviously, Williams can't be pleased. He
likely thought he was next in line when Gibbs left, and now he's looking for
a job, a job that will almost certainly pay less than the one he's had in
Washington for the last four years.
The Redskins have already
moved on, announcing that Greg Blache will run the team's defense. Blache
already had the title of defensive coordinator, but he was below Williams on
the organizational flow chart. The appointment of Blache today and Zorn
yesterday means that whoever becomes the next head coach of the Redskins,
he'll already have his offensive and defensive coordinators in place.
POSTED 1:18 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
SIX AGENTS IN RUNNING TO REPRESENT McFADDEN
A source close to the process tells us that
Arkansas running back Darren McFadden has narrowed the field of potential
agents who'll negotiate his rookie contract (and, more importantly, help
position him to be drafted as high as possible) to six.
Per the source, the finalists are Ian
Greengross, Angelo Wright, Terry Watson, Fletcher Smith, Lamont Smith, and
Bus Cook.
McFadden previously has hired Mike Conley to
handle his marketing work, and lawyer David Cornwell to assist the selection
process and to negotiate the deals with the various service providers.
Per NFLPA rule, potential football-contract agents could have no contact
with McFadden until January 19, since 2007 was not his last year of NCAA
eligibility.
McFadden, a two-time first runner-up for the
Heisman Trophy, is poised to be one of the top picks in the 2008 draft.
POSTED 12:20 p.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
BROWNS FEEL NO URGENCY ON CRENNEL
Though the agent for Browns coach Romeo
Crennel wants his client to get a contract extension -- and isn't afraid to
say so publicly -- a league source tells us that the Browns are feeling no
specific urgency to get something done.
Crennel is under contract for two more years,
and he has yet to take the team to the playoffs. There's no outcry
from the media or the fans to lock up Crennel, 60, beyond 2009. Thus,
the team simply isn't going to move quickly to give Crennel want he wants.
Meanwhile, the
Browns have made contract offers both to quarterback Derek Anderson and
to running back Jamal Lewis. Anderson, as we mentioned on Friday,
reportedly has been offered a three-year deal. He'll otherwise be a
restricted free agent. Lewis, who signed a one-year deal a year ago,
is due to become an unrestricted free agent. The team could opt to
limit his options via the franchise tag.
POSTED 11:59 a.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
FINS CHASING A COUPLE OF SAINTS
Though the Cowboys have been the primary focus
of the Dolphins' efforts to rebuild the front office and coaching staff, the
Fins are now
turning their attention to New Orleans.
For starters, the Fins have hired Saints
special teams coordinator John Bonamego, a nine-year NFL coaching veteran
who worked with new head coach Tony Sparano in Jacksonville before stints in
Green Bay and New Orleans. If, as we assume, Bonamego signed a
contract with a duration longer than two years when joining the team in
2006, the Saints apparently didn't feel strongly enough about keeping
Bonamego to block the move.
Next on the Fins' wish list is Saints
quarterbacks coach Pete Carmichael, Jr., who spent time with the Browns,
Redskins, and Chargers before joining Sean Payton's staff in 2006.
Carmichael, 36, has worked with Drew Brees for all of his career as a
starting quarterback. Even though the move is a promotion, the
Saints could prevent Carmichael from leaving if, as we assume, Carmichael
signed a contract with a duration longer than two years when joining the
team in 2006.
Since neither Bonamego nor Carmichael were
fired by the Saints after the 2007 season, we can only assume that head
coach Sean Payton would have liked to keep them both. And that makes
us wonder whether Payton deferred to Fins V.P. of football operations Bill
Parcells on this one, since it was Payton's work under Parcells in Dallas
that gave Payton a shot at becoming an NFL head coach.
Alternatively, it's possible that Payton's
approach to his assistants is that he wants them to want to be part of the
team, and that if they don't want to be there Payton doesn't want to force
them to stay. If that's the case, however, there's no benefit to the
team for having assistant coaches under contract for more than one year at a
time.
POSTED 11:32 a.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
KIFFIN SHOULD HAVE KNOWN WHAT HE WAS
GETTING INTO
So Raiders owner Al Davis wants coach Lane
Kiffin to quit and Kiffin won't and now there's a mess in Oakland.
Again.
Talk in league circles, however, is that
Kiffin should have known what he was getting into when he took the job a
year ago. After all, the same structure that fired Art Shell after a
year and then overlooked all candidates with head-coaching experience and
ultimately honed in on off-the-radar USC co-offensive coordinator Steve
Sarkisian and then shifted to even-more-off-the-radar USC co-offensive
coordinator Lane Kiffin when Sarkisian passed is the structure that
currently is considering dumping yet another head coach and looking
elsewhere.
Meanwhile, we're hearing that Kiffin's
reported salary of $2 million per year is believed to be a $1 million higher
than it really is. If that's so, it's even more confusing to us that
Davis wouldn't merely cut Kiffin loose and pay his money and move on.
Instead, it appears that Davis will wait until
he can conjure up a reason to fire Kiffin for cause. And even if there
really isn't actual cause, Davis likely will claim that there is -- and then
force Kiffin to try to get his money through the league's grievance
procedures.
So what next for the Raiders? Some
believe that Davis simply doesn't value a head coach in the same way that
other teams do. For the Raiders, player talent and offensive and
defensive coordinators are the keys to success. The head coach is
merely the game-day manager. Thus, the Raiders could make a change at
any time before the start of the regular season, and it won't make any real
difference to the fate of the team.
If that's the way the Raiders truly operate,
then defensive coordinator Rob Ryan won't be elevated to the position of
head coach. He'll stay in his job, and offensive coordinator Greg
Knapp in his, and Dennis Green or some guy we're not presently thinking of
(and possibly haven't even heard of) will get the job.
POSTED 10:57 a.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
THURMAN GETTING BACK IN?
A couple of readers asked us on Friday about
rumors that Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman is back in the building,
working out at the team's facility.
Though such rumors are not accurate, we've
learned in the process of getting the answer that Thurman will be
conditionally reinstated on March 1. He'll be able to participate in
the offseason conditioning and workout program. If he stays on the
right side of the substance-abuse policy, he'll eventually be able to play
football in 2008.
Thurman was suspended for a year in 2006, and
his first effort at reinstatement was unsuccessful.
It's very good news for the Bengals, who are
in dire need of linebackers. Within the next few weeks, they should
also find out whether David Pollack, the team's first-round pick in 2005,
will be able to return to action in 2008. Thurman was a second-round
pick that same year.
POSTED 10:02 a.m. EST,
January 26, 2008
WILLIAMS OUT OF RUNNING FOR 'SKINS GIG
ESPN's Chris Mortensen reports that Redskins
defensive coordinator
Gregg Williams
is out of the running for the head coaching job with the team. One
of the factors apparently was the belief that Williams criticized former
coach Joe Gibbs during the interview process.
But Williams says he hasn't been informed that
he won't get the job. "I haven't been told anything," Williams told
ESPN. "And I would never, ever dump on Joe Gibbs. He is
one of the best people I have ever been around in life. I came here
because of Joe Gibbs. He's in the Hall of Fame as a coach and he's a
better person than he is a football coach. I can't believe anybody
would suggest I dumped on Joe. That's completely false."
Now, before we go any farther with this one,
how is what the Redskins leaked to Mort any different than what Falcons G.M
Tom Dimitroff supposedly leaked to Michael Smith of ESPN? In that
case, Michael Smith apparently knew that Mike Smith would be hired to coach
the Falcons before Mike Smith knew. In this case, Mort knew that Gregg
Williams won't be hired to coach the Redskins before Williams knew.
Mort also reports that a source close to
Williams (i.e., perhaps Williams himself) believes that the Redskins
might start a smear campaign against him because he enjoyed the support of
the players, the media, and the fans. In our view, the notion that he
criticized Gibbs in the interview process could be the first step of such an
effort.
After Williams' first interview, we heard that
he had concerns about his ability to to have a voice in the
player-acquisition process, which executive V.P. of football operations
Vinny Cerrato now runs, given the difficulties that Gibbs had (from
Williams' perspective) in getting the players he wanted. If a Hall of
Famer can't get what he wants, how can a guy who coached the Bills well
enough to get fired after three years ever have a shot at influencing the
process?
There are were recent reports of conflict
between Cerrato and Williams. And it could be that, once the Redskins'
power structure caught wind of those reports, they opted to start spreading
the news that Williams wouldn't get the job.
With Williams out of the running, it's still
not clear who is. By all appearances, the team has opted to hold off
on hiring Jim Fassel until after the Super Bowl, when they have a chance to
kick the tires on Steve Spagnuolo.
POSTED 8:37 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
STRAHAN TO PULL AN ELWAY?
If the Giants beat the Patriots next Sunday
night in Super Bowl XLII, defensive end Michael Strahan might pull a John
Elway/Jerome Bettis and call it a career.
In comments to Mike Silver of Yahoo! Sports,
Strahan suggests that he might ride off into the sunset, if the Giants can
finish the job.
"[I]t would be great to
go out like Elway or Bettis -- that's the ultimate dream, to do
something like that. If we win this game, I've got a serious decision
to make."
On the other side of the coin, he's not going
to replenish his post-divorce bank account as effectively if he gives up
that $4 million salary he's due to earn next season.
Speaking of post-divorce bank accounts,
Strahan also talks about the ugly divorce that resulted in him owing $15.3
million to his ex-wife, Jean.
"At first it really hurt me,"
he told Silver. "She was telling people I beat her up, that I was gay,
and I worried how I'd be perceived. Then I finally decided that my
friends and family members, the people who really know me, know the truth.
If other people wanted to believe her, I just had to let it go. And
the kids are the most important thing, and the main thing is to do what's
best for them."
POSTED 8:03 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
RAIDERS DENY KIFFIN REPORT
The Oakland Raiders have denied reports that
coach Lane Kiffin has been asked to resign. The news was first
reported on Thursday night by Adam Schefter of NFL Network, and confirmed on
Friday afternoon by Chris Mortensen of ESPN.
"There
is no issue here," Raiders senior executive John Herrera said.
"There was never an issue here. There's nothing to it."
Of course, that's what the team said a year
ago, when Schefter reported that head coach Art Shell was getting the shoe
and the team called Schefter a "false
rumor monger." (It was also the name of Schefter's team in the
2007 PFT Media Fantasy Challenge.)
So when it comes to outright denials, we trust
nothing that any team says.
POSTED 5:53 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
FALCONS TO ADD MULARKEY
by Michael David Smith
A league source tells PFT that new Atlanta
Falcons head coach Mike Smith will hire Mike Mularkey as his offensive
coordinator.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
reported today that Mularkey was the Falcons'
first choice for the job.
Mularkey spent the last two seasons as the
Dolphins' tight ends coach. Prior to that he was the head coach in Buffalo
in 2004 and 2005, where he compiled a 14-18 record.
Mularkey spent eight seasons as a Steelers
assistant coach, the last four as offensive coordinator. He started his
coaching career as a Buccaneers assistant in 1994.
An NFL tight end, Mularkey played for the
Vikings for six years and the Steelers for three years.
POSTED 5:35 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
REPORT: REDSKINS TO NAME ZORN OFFENSIVE
COORDINATOR by Michael David Smith
The Washington Redskins have
agreed to a three-year deal to make Seahawks quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn
their offensive coordinator, the Washington Times is reporting.
According to the report, the hiring of Zorn
means that Redskins associate head coach-offense Al Saunders will definitely
not be with the Redskins for the 2008 season.
But the real question is this: Who will Zorn's
boss be? The Redskins still haven't hired a head coach to replace Joe Gibbs,
and the latest word out of Washington is that it could be weeks before that
job is filled.
Redskins owner Dan Snyder was said to be
working on plans to make former Giants head coach Jim Fassel his head coach,
with Zorn as his offensive coordinator, but it may be that Snyder has simply
decided he wants Zorn calling his offensive plays no matter who the head
coach is.
Although hiring and firing of assistant
coaches has traditionally fallen under the purview of the head coach, in
recent years there have been multiple examples of owners and team executives
taking an active role in hiring assistants. Jerry Jones hired Jason Garrett
as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator before he hired Wade Phillips as his
head coach, and Bill Parcells (or Jeff Ireland) hired David Lee as the
Dolphins' quarterbacks coach before he (officially) hired Tony Sparano as
his head coach.
POSTED 4:56 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
DAVIS WANTS KIFFIN TO QUIT
For several weeks, the status of Raiders coach
Lane Kiffin has been up in the air. Though he has said all the right
things when the microphone is on, rumors have persisted that he wanted the
Arkansas head-coaching job, that he wanted defensive coordinator Rob Ryan to
be fired, that owner Al Davis kept Ryan after polling players and concluding
that they prefer Ryan to Kiffin, and that Kiffin and Ryan no longer are on
speaking terms.
If Kiffin quits, he won't be entitled to any
of the $2 million per year that he's due to receive over the next two
seasons, before the team-option portion of the contract is triggered.
If he's fired, he gets it all -- less any money he earns coaching elsewhere.
Mort also reports that Davis is considering
hiring Dennis Green to be the new head coach.
Kiffin has been the Raiders' coach for one
year, which followed the one-year tenure of Art Shell, which followed the
two-year tenure of Norv Turner, which followed the two-year tenure of Bill
Callahan.
Since moving back to Oakland from L.A. in
1995, the Raiders have had six head coaches. Soon, that number could
increase to seven.
POSTED 2:53 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
TROUBLE BREWING BETWEEN HINES, BEN?
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger
recently said he'd like to have a tall receiver. And one of the team's
receivers of lesser stature apparently feels shortchanged.
"I'm
always going to ask for a tall receiver," Roethlisberger told the
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "That's just me. Our receivers are
unbelievable, but our tallest guy might be Hines. Or Santonio
[Holmes]. Hines is going to say he's 6 foot, but he's 5-11."
Said Ward in response: "I don't hear Tom
Brady or Peyton Manning asking for that. I don't know, whatever he
says. I have no idea. To me, it's a rare combination of
receivers out there who are good and tall. We won a Super Bowl, we
didn't have a tall receiver then. I don't see Tom Brady caring about
who's tall or not. He got Randy this year, but he did it before
without him."
We agree with Ward. Height is just one
piece of the puzzle. For a quarterback who'd like to get away with
being less accurate than he should be, a taller receiver provides convenient
cover for off-target passes. Otherwise, it's about whether the guy can
get open -- and whether he can make the catch.
The bigger problem with Roethlisberger's
comments are that, like Donovan McNabb in Philly, Big Ben shouldn't be
talking publicly about things that he wants the team to do. Asking for
taller or better players is always going to be interpreted poorly by one or
more of the guys in the locker room, and making the request publicly simply
isn't the way that a leader of men should behave.
POSTED 2:30 p.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
HARRIS LOOKING TO GET OUT OF JACKSONVILLE?
Buried in an item regarding
concerns of the Fritz Pollard Alliance as to the Falcons'
recently-completed searches for a new G.M. and a new head coach is a
statement that seems to suggest that Jags V.P. of player personnel James
Harris is looking for a pathway out of Jacksonville.
Per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
the Fritz Pollard Alliance recommended Harris, Seahawks director of pro
personnel Will Lewis, and Lions assistant G.M. Martin Mayhew for the G.M.
job that was filled by former Pats director of college scouting Tom
Dimitroff. None of the three were interviewed.
Surely, the FPA wouldn't have recommended
Harris if Harris didn't want to be recommended. The fair inference is
that Harris wanted to be recommended, and thus that he wants out of
Jacksonville.
If Harris doesn't have final say over
personnel, he'd be able to leave the Jags, since the G.M. job in Atlanta
entails final say. But Harris used to have final say in Jacksonville,
at least as to the draft. So if he still has final say, he
couldn't have left, unless the Jags allowed him to do so.
Last week, Harris received a contract
extension. But he likely has experienced a drop in his overall
influence in light of the dismissal of pro personnel director Charles Bailey
and the elevation of Gene Smith. The likely cause? Harris
steadfastly supported quarterback Byron Leftwich, who was cut in August.
His replacement, David Garrard, came on strong in 2007, vindicating coach
Jack Del Rio's "all in" gamble.
POSTED 12:53 p.m. EST;
UPDATED 1:30 p.m. EST, January 25, 2008
BROWNS OFFER ANDERSON A THREE-YEAR DEAL
One of the biggest questions in the 2008
offseason will be whether the Browns will keep quarterback Derek Anderson
for one year as a restricted free agent, trade him, decide not to match an
offer sheet he signs with another team (for compensation), or sign him to a
long-term deal.
A three-year deal protects the team against
Anderson not delivering on the potential he showed in 2007. If he
regresses, the Browns would still be able to turn to Brady Quinn, who is
signed for four more years.
But Anderson needs to get paid while he can,
and a three-year deal likely won't carry with it significant guaranteed
money. Though the back end of many long-term deals is, to a large
extent, phony, the presence of a season four, five, and six gives teams more
salary cap years over which to spread signing bonus and/or option bonus
money.
Gauging Anderson's value will be a real
challenge. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo took a below-market deal, and
the Browns will likely argue that Anderson should get less than Romo.
But other contracts (e.g., Colts safety Bob Sanders) will allow
Anderson's people to push for more.
The only problem for Anderson is that there's
no other young quarterback poised to get a long-term deal that would rival
or exceed Romo's contract, unless the Steelers extend Ben Roethlisberger
despite having two years left on his contract. So Anderson will
possibly be stuck with the ceiling that Romo created, not matter how haywire
the market goes on February 29 for players at other positions.
SPRINTING TO THE SUPER BOWL
Our official telecommunications partner,
Sprint, also has a solid and extensive partnership with the greatest sports
league on the planet, the NFL. That extent of the partnership is no
more evident than at the Super Bowl.
Starting next week in Arizona, Sprint will
provide plenty of events and activities for folks in town for the game, and
those who aren't.
The full list of things to do for those who'll
be in and around Glendale is right here, at
the Sprint Super Bowl site.
Highlights include a Sprint Super Bowl Players
Forum with John Elway and our good friend (cough) Emmitt Smith, player
appearances at Sprint stores (featuring guys like Carson Palmer and Reggie
Wayne), and Phone-a-Friend, where players will make calls on a visitor's
Sprint phone. ("Hi, Mark? This is Grady Jackson. You're
wife won't be coming home tonight. I ate her.")
But if you're not in the area you can still
experience the Super Bowl with your Sprint phone. NFL Network
continuously streams on the Sprint handsets with PowerVision, and likely
will be talking about the Super Bowl. A little. Also, Sprint's
SEE TV provides the full Super Bowl week hook-up for entertainment and
events leading up to the game.
POSTED 11:16 a.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
JACOBS FINDS "FIRE" IN WILFORK FINGER
The last time the Giants and the Patriots
played, New England defensive tackle Vince Wilfork went "Moe" on New York
running back Brandon Jacobs, jamming a finger through Jacobs' face mask and
toward his eye.
Though the incident didn't result in an actual
poke of the white squishy thing through which Jacobs sees, the attempt will
contribute to Jacobs' motivation for the rematch in a little game known as
the Super Bowl.
"I'm excited
about it," Jacobs told the Newark Star-Ledger on Thursday.
"I couldn't tell you whether Vince wanted to do that or he
just wanted to point and didn't realize his hand was that
close. I don't want to go out and cost my team a major
penalty because that's not what I'm about.
But it's going to bring a little more fire to me."
But Jacobs
won't be looking to stick a finger in Wilfork's eye, and not
just because of his eye's close proximity to his mouth.
If Jacobs was able to restrain himself at the time, he'll
definitely be able to do it when they meet again.
"Yeah, I was
upset at the time, but I was cool about it," Jacobs said.
"He attempted and he didn't get it done. That helps me
out a lot that I didn't retaliate."
Wilfork was
fined $15,000 for the incident. We argued that the
penalty should have been stiffer.
POSTED 9:33 a.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
GRANT LOOKING TO LONG-TERM DEAL
by Michael David Smith
Fresh off a season in which he went from the
bottom of the Giants' depth chart to the top of the Packers' single-game
postseason rushing list, running back Ryan Grant and his agent appear to be
looking for a long-term deal.
"We'll see what happens," agent Alan Herman
said, per Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. "We'll see
if the organization is aggressive and wants to do the right thing, then you
certainly reward a player and try to
lock him up for the future."
The only problem is that Grant doesn't have a
lot of leverage. He has been out of college for three years, but he was
technically considered a rookie in 2007 because he spent his first year on
the Giants' practice squad and his second on the Giants' non-football injury
list. He made the league minimum of $310,000 in the 2007 season, and he
still has two years before he can be a free agent.
Dougherty reports that the Packers might
simply tender him at the second-year minimum of $370,000 in 2008, and the
third-year minimum of $460,000 in 2009.
Packers General Manager Ted Thompson wouldn't
address Grant's contract situation, other than to say, "We've spent a lot of
effort and time addressing some of the fellas that are a little bit more
veteran in terms of doing contract extensions, but as we grow as a team and
these young guys move through their initial contracts, we'll address those
as we go along, sure."
POSTED 8:30 a.m. EST,
January 25, 2008
SEYMOUR DENIES HEAD-BUTTING CHARGERS COACH
Chargers center Nick Hardwick says that
Patriots defensive end Richard Seymour head-butted a San Diego coach before
last Sunday's game. Seymour says he didn't.
"A
coach?" Seymour said on Thursday. "A coach that was out on the
field? I mean . . ."
You mean what, Rich? There was an
altercation between Seymour and someone not in a Chargers player uniform,
someone who intervened when Seymour and a Chargers player were jawing at
each other after the two teams took the field for the game. The only
question is whether Seymour made contact with the person not in a Chargers
uniform.
And we're learning that the interpretation of
the unlikely video evidence that someone posted on YouTube and someone else
forwarded to us is in the eye of the beholder. John Tomase of the
Boston Herald writes that the video "appeared to exonerate" Seymour.
Others agree. And others believe that Seymour jammed his facemask,
once or twice, into the head of the person not in a Chargers uniform.
Our take? We simply can't tell.
For anyone who
hasn't seen it, here's the video. The incident begins
at about the 2:48 mark.
Seymour insists that he's innocent.
"First of all,
it's not true, so I think the facts are the
facts," he said. "Secondly, I can't
control what others say or think. The
only thing I can do is control my actions,
the way that I approach the game, the things
that I'm able to do throughout the week.
For me, that won’t change and I think the
people that know me best know that’s
something that’s totally bogus."
This likely means that owner Dan Snyder wants
to visit with current Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who
isn't available to be interviewed until after the Super Bowl. Though
it's also possible that the Redskins are waiting for Pats offensive
coordinator Josh McDaniels, he previously said that he won't be looking for
any other gigs in 2008.
So why hasn't Fassel been hired? It
could be that Snyder is sensitive to the backlash that already has popped up
among fans. After all, they're the ones who buy the tickets and
hats and jerseys. If they reject Fassel before he even has the job, it
might not be the best move in customer relations to hire him.
Snyder apparently recognized the possibility
for local consternation over the potential hire of Fassel. Why else
would he have been a "mystery candidate"? In our view, Snyder wanted
to get a chance to assess Fassel on his own, without being consciously or
subconsciously influenced by the opinions that began to flow as soon as
Fassel's name got out.
Meanwhile, some league insiders wonder why
Cardinals offensive line coach Russ Grimm hasn't gotten a sniff for the job.
Last year, Grimm was a finalist for the Steelers job. This year, he
has fallen off the face of the football earth. But if any team should
have an interest in him, it would be the team with which he spent eleven NFL
seasons.
POSTED 8:25 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
FALCONS ASSEMBLING COACHING STAFF
by Michael David Smith
New Falcons head coach Mike Smith has
announced that he will retain at least three members of departed Falcons
coach Bobby Petrino's staff.
Emmitt Thomas, the defensive backs coach who
served as interim head coach for the final three games of the 2007 season
after Petrino bolted, will stick with the Falcons as assistant head coach.
Bill Musgrave, who has been with the Falcons since 2006, will remain
quarterbacks coach. And Brian VanGorder, Petrino's linebackers coach last
year, will come back to the Falcons as defensive coordinator.
The VanGorder case is an odd one, and a
demonstration of the vagaries of the coaching business.
VanGorder left the Falcons shortly after
Petrino did, accepting a job as Steve Spurrier's defensive coordinator at
South Carolina. At the time, he explained that he wanted to take the job
because "I'm
a college guy." When asked if he was sure he wouldn't leave South
Carolina, he said, "I've declared. I'm committed."
So why is he leaving South Carolina just a
month after saying that? One answer would be that it's because he's a
football coach, and jumping from job to job is what football coaches do.
VanGorder is an extreme example, though. The
Falcons defensive coordinator job is his sixth different job since 2004.
He's gone from defensive coordinator at Georgia to linebackers coach in
Jacksonville to head coach at Georgia Southern to linebackers coach in
Atlanta to defensive coordinator at South Carolina to defensive coordinator
in Atlanta.
Smith and VanGorder worked together on the
Jaguars' coaching staff, and Smith says they've already begun discussing
their plans for the Falcons' defense in 2008. So the Falcons have their
defensive coordinator. Until he gets a better offer.
POSTED 6:49 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
FAVRE TO SKIP PRO BOWL
by Michael David Smith
Packers quarterback Brett Favre is sitting out
the Pro Bowl.
It's not clear what Favre's reason is for
skipping the league's all-star game, although many players who don't feel
like playing in the game cite minor injuries as a reason to get out of it.
With Favre out of the Pro Bowl, it raises the
question of whether we've seen him on the football field for the last time.
Although Favre has indicated that he expects to play the 2008 season, he
hasn't said definitively that he is returning. Packers coach Mike McCarthy
has said he expects to hear Favre's decision in the
next seven to 10 days.
Favre was named the NFC's starter when Pro
Bowl rosters were released last month. It is not known whether Seahawks
quarterback Matt Hasselbeck or Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo will take
Favre's place as the starter on the NFC team.
Buccaneers quarterback Jeff Garcia has been
added to the roster as the NFC's
third quarterback.
The Buccaneers had previously been in the unusual position of being a
playoff team without a Pro Bowler.
POSTED 6:03 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
RYAN WILLING TO WORK FOR HARBAUGH
by Michael David Smith
Despite getting passed over for the head
coaching job in Baltimore, Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan says he's
content to stick around next year on the staff of new head coach John
Harbaugh.
"I know people in the organization, I'm not
uncomfortable with what happened, I know John Harbaugh and I like him. If I
don't get hired,
I'm glad he did," Ryan said today, per Jamison Hensley of the
Baltimore Sun.
Ryan is still under contract to the Ravens,
has been scouting for them at Senior Bowl practices this week, and he tells
Hensley that he's happy to stay there. He did hint that he would like a
raise, however.
"I hope everything works out financially, but
I'm going right to my office at the Ravens tomorrow," Ryan said.
Ryan has been discussed as a potential
candidate to become defensive coordinator of the Redskins if owner Dan
Snyder hires Jim Fassel as the head coach. Ryan and Fassel spent time on the
same coaching staff with the Ravens. Baltimore, however, can block
Ryan from leaving for another job.
Although there were some observers who thought
Harbaugh's lack of experience as an offensive or defensive coordinator made
him a surprising choice as the Ravens' head coach, he seems to be well
respected around the league. And if he's able to hang onto Ryan in addition
to yesterday's hiring of Cam Cameron as his offensive coordinator, the
Ravens will have put together an impressive coaching staff.
POSTED 5:14 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
IRELAND WON'T COMMIT TO THOMAS
by Michael David Smith
Dolphins General Manager Jeff Ireland wouldn't
commit on Wednesday to linebacker Zach Thomas having a future with the team,
leading to speculation that Thomas could be done in Miami.
Asked whether Thomas was in the Dolphins' plans for 2008, Ireland said,
"Right now, he's on our roster, so we certainly have plans for him. In terms
of tomorrow, the next day or six months down the line,
we're still in
the process of analyzing who's going to be a part of the future.''
Ireland said he has talked to some Dolphins
players, including defensive end Jason Taylor and quarterback John Beck, but
that he hasn't called Thomas.
''If I had the opportunity to talk to every
player individually, I would certainly try to do that,'' Ireland said, per
the Miami Herald. "I happened to call Jason, I just wanted to reach
out to him and say hello. I've talked to John. I haven't reached out to
Zach.
Considering that Thomas missed most of last
season after suffering a concussion and will turn 35 in September, it's
reasonable to wonder whether the seven-time Pro Bowler could be done. If so,
he could be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame five years from now.
POSTED 2:44 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
PITTMAN WILLING TO EXPLORE HIS OPTIONS
Bucs running back Michael Pittman is slated to
become a free agent on February 29. Though he has been with the team
for six seasons, Pittman is prepared to look around.
"I'm
really open to anything," said Pittman, according to our friends at
Pewter Report. "If the Bucs really want me on this team then I'll stay
here. It would be kind of difficult for me to leave Tampa, but it's
all about opportunities. If there's a better situation out there in
free agency for me then I'll probably do that. I'll definitely be
loyal to Tampa, my teammates and the coaching staff and give the Bucs the
first shot. If Tampa is interested I'll definitely sit back and listen
to what they have to say. I have a good relationship with Coach Gruden,
[General Manager] Bruce Allen and my teammates, of course. I'm one of
the last players from the Super Bowl team. I'll leave the ball in
their court."
Pittman became the starter after Cadillac
Williams went down with a torn patellar tendon. But an injury to
Pittman opened the door for Earnest Graham, who performed capably.
"I just want Coach Gruden and Bruce Allen to
know that I still have a lot left in the tank," Pittman said. "If they
believe in me in that sort of sense then I definitely want to come back to
Tampa. But I don't want to be one of those backs that's sitting on the
bench and earning a paycheck just to earn a paycheck. I want to help
us win and I know I can still play. It's really all about what Coach
Gruden has to say and what Bruce says my role will be. That's if they
even want me back. They may not want me back. It's definitely up
to them."
If the Bucs truly wanted to keep Pittman from
hitting the open market, they likely would have worked harder to keep him
from getting close enough to smell it. Then again, with the long-term
status of coach Jon Gruden and G.M. Bruce Allen up in the air only until the
past few days, locking up an aging running back with a history of
(allegedly)
playing real-life bumper cars with his spouse probably hasn't been a top
priority.
POSTED 2:16 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
NO BRADY AT PRACTICE
Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe reports
that Pats quarterback
Tom Brady wasn't present for the portion of the team's Thursday practice
that was open to the media.
Quarterbacks Matt Cassell and Matt Gutierrez
were the only signal-callers seen during the open-access portion of
practice.
Also absent were safety Rodney Harrison and
safety Mel Mitchell.
Brady's condition has been the subject of much
speculation, given his presence in New York with a walking boot on Monday,
cowboy boots on Monday night, and some other type of hard-soled shoe on
Tuesday, as he strolled for photographers to the unheard tune of Stayin'
Alive.
Brady reportedly has a mild high-ankle sprain.
The team isn't required to file its initial Super Bowl injury report until
January 30.
POSTED 12:23 p.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
RUMBLE BREWING IN BRISTOL?
A league source pointed out to us the catty
comments of ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli regarding the fact that Len's
colleague, Michael Smith, broke the story that Mike Smith would be the next
coach of the Falcons.
In critiquing the hiring of Mike Smith,
Pasquarelli takes a jab at Falcons G.M. Tom Dimitroff for leaking the news
to Michael Smith. (In hindsight, I probably should have assigned this
one to our own Michael David Smith.)
"Perhaps the only failure of Dimitroff in the
process was
allowing word of his choice to leak out," Len writes. "Michael
Smith of ESPN knew who the new coach was going to be long before Mike Smith
the new head coach did. But, hey, that was a win for the home team in
Bristol, and we'll take it."
Our source described the comment as
"childish."
"He's criticizing Dimitroff leaking the info
to ESPN's Smith," the source said. "It sounds like sour grapes.
Isn't that how [Pasquarelli] survives? I think he's jealous that Smith
broke the story and he, based in Atlanta, didn't."
We agree. ESPN would have nothing to
slap on the scroll as something that "Len Pasquarelli reports" if news only
flowed from releases and press conferences. If people don't allow
things to "leak out," there will be no cutting edge for ESPN or CBS or FOX
or NBC or PFT or BFD to try to ride.
And isn't it the goal of journalists to know
things before as many people as possible? Instead of chastising
Dimitroff for having loose lips (and thus potentially harming the ability of
Smith or anyone from ESPN to get pry information from Dimitroff in the
future), shouldn't Pasquarelli be praising Smith?
POSTED 11:49 a.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
FINS WILLING TO SWAP OUT OF TOP SPOT
Dolphins G.M. Jeff Ireland has made it known
that the No. 1 overall pick in the 2008 draft is available to any and all
interested parties.
"Rome wasn't built in a day, and this won't be
built in a day either," Ireland added. "The No. 1 pick is no different
from the 22nd pick. You've got to make the right selection. You
just can't miss on it. We're going to do everything in our power to
make the right choices, whether it be to take the pick or move down.
We'll listen to all offers."
The problem with trading into top spot is
that, as the price tag for signing the top pick continues to spiral north,
the notion of giving up 3,000 points in trade-chart value for the privilege
to pay an unproven player $35 million in guaranteed money isn't very
appealing.
As the incoming rookies at the top of the
board begin to separate, however, there's a chance that the team at No. 4,
for example, might want to leap-frog the team at No. 2 for a guy they both
covet. Still, the team at No. 4 needs to be willing to give up the
four spot and another 1,200 points, which is equivalent to the No. 12
overall pick in the draft (and more than the top pick in each of the
remaining rounds, combined).
There might not be a guy in this year's class
that prompts such an offer. In fact, it's possible that no one will be
interested in making a move for the No. 1 overall pick unless and until
there's a can't-miss prospect (followed by a significant drop-off in
talent), a fundamental change to the way that rookie are paid (which is
desperately needed), and/or an adjustment to the trade chart. The
numbers that applied when Jimmy Johnson devised the thing in the 1990s might
simply not be realistic in 2008.
Still, if the Fins use the pick, it's pretty
safe to assume they'll emerge from the process with a great player.
Bill Parcells had several stellar drafts in Dallas; without him the 'Boys
will be back to taking the likes of Quincy Carter. So whether it's the
first pick or the 22nd or round five, the guys that Parcells and Ireland
bring to town are going to make the team better, sooner rather than later.
POSTED 11:28 a.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
REDSKINS, RAVENS 'RASSLE FOR RYAN
The Ravens hold the contractual rights to
defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, and would like for him to serve in that role
under new head coach John Harbaugh.
The Redskins want to hire Ryan as well for
that same position, but the Ravens can block the lateral move. And
although trades for head coaches are still permissible, compensation for
assistants is a no-no. (Then again, nothing prevents the Redskins from
simultaneously sending a fourth-round pick to the Ravens for their backup
punter.)
So the Redskins will get Ryan only if the
Ravens decide to let him leave.
Aaron Wilson of the Carroll County Times
reports that the Ravens are
expected to pursue Chargers linebackers coach Ron Rivera, if Ryan is
allowed to leave. Rivera was the Bears defensive coordinator through
2006 and one of the "it" candidates for a head-coaching job in the 2007
hiring cycle. When he didn't get a promotion, he wasn't retained by
the Bears.
The Jets also reportedly are interested in
Ryan.
POSTED 9:48 a.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
OSI STIRS THINGS UP
Though the greatest . . . team . . . ever
hardly needs a fresh supply of motivation as it prepares to face its next
foe, the New England Patriots have benefited from a constant stream of smack
from their opponents.
This time around, defensive end Osi Umenyiora
is the first member of the Giants to poke a stick into the hive, calling out
left tackle Matt Light for alleged dirty tactics in the Week Seventeen
meeting between the two teams.
Umenyiora made his remarks on this week's
Inside the NFL on HBO, via the Providence Journal.
"It
was a war out there," he said, "and to be honest with you, I'm not quite
sure that he thought he was going to see me again because of some of the
things he did and said during that game. But, you know, unfortunately
he does have to see me again."
Host Bob Costas
asked Osi for more details.
"He was doing a couple of things
that, you know, he shouldn't
have been," Umenyiora said.
"Like what?" Costas said.
"Hitting after the [play] and
trying to -- I don't know if he
was trying to intimidate me, I
don't know what he was trying to
do -- but he did a couple of
things that he shouldn't have
done, and, you know, now we are
really going to go at it this
time."
Umenyiora separately said this
week, "We know we can beat that
football team."
"We honestly feel we should have
won that football game we played
[last month]," he said.
"The Patriots are an exceptional
football team, no question.
We had them on the ropes.
We're gonna go into this game
thinking we can beat them."
Folks, the game is still ten
days away. If the Giants
don't tone it down, and if more
than a few folks in the media
openly pick the Giants to win
the game, this one could end up
being an old-fashioned Niners-Broncos
beat-down.
POSTED 9:14 a.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
IRELAND DOESN'T HAVE "FINAL SAY"?
The Miami Dolphins were able to finagle their
new G.M., Jeff Ireland, from the Cowboys because new V.P. of football
operations Bill Parcells doesn't have "final say" over personnel.
The Dolphins were careful to include language
to that effect in Parcells' contract, and likewise (we presume) included
appropriate words and phrases in Ireland's paperwork to vest him with the
authority to determine who will and won't play football for the team.
The only problem? There's an apparent
disconnect between the writing and the reality.
On Wednesday, Ireland essentially admitted
that he's not running the show. He admitted it.
"The
situation that we're in is that Bill does oversee everything," Ireland said.
"But yet I am the G.M. and we have a head coach, so there is going to be a
triangle of communication involved here.
Though
Ireland doesn't come out and say "I don't have final say," it's strongly
implied that he doesn't. Especially when he says, "I can't say that
Bill will have final say on everything."
It's a
startling revelation, made even more surprising by the fact that Parcells is
the dean of the "keep your f--king mouth shut" approach to pro football.
So if the
Dolphins are going to apply Parcells' patented "one voice" approach, the
"one voice" probably shouldn't be Ireland's. Unless and until he
learns how to use it.
It remains
to be seen what the fallout will be. In theory, Cowboys owner Jerry
Jones could ask the league to investigate the situation, and to compel the
Dolphins to compensate the Cowboys with draft picks if it's determined that
Ireland truly doesn't have final say. But to make that claim Jones
would have to implicitly acknowledge that he'd been hoodwinked by Parcells,
and not everyone has an ego that permits such a concession.
Frankly,
we're a little troubled by the manner in which Parcells has done business
since heading to Miami. Though the opinions expressed below aren't
necessarily the opinions of PFT, we think that the reader who sent in the
following e-mail on Wednesday makes some important points:
"An
average fan here who is curious about the underhanded tactics that Bill
Parcells continues to get away with.
"Let's be honest, Tony Sparano was offered the head coaching job in Miami
before league rules permitted, is there any question about that? . . .
Then there are the assistants, who turned down extensions from the Cowboys
to 'test the open waters'? Please. Can the league really believe
that Sparano didn't reach out and offer jobs to [Todd] Bowles, [Paul]
Pasqualoni, and [Kacy] Rodgers BEFORE their contracts expired this Sunday?
And did Sparano recruit these assistants while still employed by Jerry
Jones, under the orders of Bill Parcells? Of course he did.
"Mrs. Doubtfire has a long history of these unscrupulous tactics and clear
violations of league policies. How does he get away with it?"
Hey, that
e-mail was worth the price of admission solely for the Mrs. Doubtfire
reference. Priceless.
POSTED 8:48 a.m. EST,
January 24, 2008
CROWDER CHARGED
With the first annual Turd Watch game
potentially resulting in a mug-shot finish between Miami and Jacksonville,
Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder is doing what he can to provide his
team with some insurance points.
Hooray?
Crowder was cited on Wednesday for leaving the scene of an accident, a
misdemeanor that carries up to 60 days in jail and, more importantly, three
points in the Turd Watch standings.
The Turd Watch "game" ends on the Monday after
the Super Bowl.
For Crowder, the end result is far better than
it could have been, if he were under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
And the fact that guys can avoid a DUI merely by bolting from the scene of a
one-car accident tells us that the penalties for such behavior should be a
little more severe.
But Reid rolled the dice on a lesser charge
relating to the carrying of concealed weapon. At the conclusion of a
brief trial, he was acquitted.
Hooray?
He faces up to 10 years in prison on the drug
charge; any sentence imposed on the misdemeanor gun charge likely would have
run concurrently.
One of our moles in the Virginia Beach area
tells us that Reid testified at the trial "and really came across as a piece
of crap."
Reid was drafted by the Patriots in 2004, and
he was preparing a year ago at this time for an appearance in the Super
Bowl, which his Colts team won.
QUICK PROGRAMMING NOTE
Since we're too cheap to
advertise, we rely upon radio appearances to get the word out about
the site. And in return we try to get the word out to the folks who've
already found the site about the radio stations that allow us to stain their
air waves.
This morning, folks in the
D.C. area (or anyone with an Internet
connection, which would include, um, everyone reading this) can get an
audio dose of PFT with The Sports Junkies at 8:30 a.m. EST.
At 9:20 a.m. EST, tune in to
The Dan Patrick Show for a visit
from the idiot savant (emphasis on idiot) who runs the show here.
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers has had
surgery to repair his torn ACL. It was, as it almost always is
when it comes to a pro athlete, successful.
But Rivers will need six months of rehab.
Which means that he'll miss the entire offseason program. Which isn't
good.
Rivers tore the ligament on January 13 against
the Colts. The team concealed the severity of the injury, and Rivers
played the entire AFC title game without an ACL.
POSTED 8:35 p.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
FALCONS OFFER JOB TO SMITH
The Atlanta Falcons have taken a page from
George McFly.
They're just not sure they can take the
rejection.
How else can anyone explain the decision to
offer the head-coaching job to Jags defensive coordinator Mike Smith
before getting a shot at talking to Giants defensive coordinator Steve
Spagnuolo? With Bobby Petrino, Bill Parcells, and Jason Garrett each
telling the Falcons to get their beaks bent in the past six weeks, the
Falcons apparently opted not to set themselves up for yet another "no
thanks," this time from Spagnuolo.
Smith, to our recollection, had not previously
been a candidate for any NFL head-coaching gig, and the only team that
interviewed him in the current hiring cycle was Atlanta. He has been
with Jacksonville since 2003, and he previously spent four seasons with the
Ravens. Prior to that, he had been in the college ranks from 1982
through 1998.
The fact that the Ravens, who had Smith in the
building for four years, didn't give him a sniff for their own vacancy
should have sent up a red flag for the Falcons. Not to mention that
ill-fated decision to play the Pats deep -- and invite a slow death at the
hands of Tom Brady in the divisional round.
POSTED 5:53 p.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
JACOBSON DISCIPLINE SEEMS A LITTLE LIGHT
Several readers have asked us to chime in on
the news that ESPN host Dana Jacobson is being disciplined by the network
for "inappropriate
comments" that she made during a January 11 celebrity roast for Mike
Greenberg and Mike Golic.
And several readers are curious about what she
said, since the ESPN.com item announcing the move is silent on this fairly
important point.
Per our own MDS, who primarily works for a
somewhat larger joint known as AOL,
Jacobson "earned" a one-week suspension for saying "F--k Notre Dame,"
"F--k Touchdown Jesus," and "F--k Jesus."
Though MDS is inclined to cut her some slack
because the comments occurred at a roast, which is supposed to be a raunchy
exercise in one-up-manship, the reality is that her penalty matches the
sanction imposed on Sean Salisbury for allegedly taking cell-phone snapshots
of his manhood and showing it to colleagues. So the powers that be
must have thought that what she said merited significant punishment.
Maybe it's the twelve years of Catholic school
talking, but what she said is, in my opinion, bad. Real bad. The
only legitimate excuse for it would be demonic possession.
Her bigger crime might have been
allowing alcohol to influence her choices in attempted humor. If
the goal was to crack on Golic about the fact that he played football at
Notre Dame, she could have done so much better.
"Hey, Golic -- after last season, Touchdown
Jesus is now covering his eyes."
"Hey, Golic -- you don't need NutriSystem to
look thinner. Just go stand next to Charlie Weis."
"Hey, Golic -- did you take steroids when you
went to Notre Dame, or did you just eat extra communion?"
Those are kind of lame, too. But not as
lame as what Jacobson said. We're not suggesting that she should be
fired, but we can only imagine what the outcry would have been if the target
of the statement had been, say, the Rutgers women's basketball team.
That's presumably bad news for the team's
current offensive coordinator, Don Breaux. And for the team's
associate head coach-offense, Al Saunders.
The flirtation with Zorn is an apparent
precursor to the hiring of Jim Fassel to be the franchise's 27th head coach
(counting Joe Gibbs twice). And that's bad news for the team's current
defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams.
Zorn currently is the quarterbacks coach in
Seattle, where he has worked since 2001.
La Canfora also reports that the Redskins are
trying to pry away defensive coordinator Rex Ryan from the Ravens.
Despite reports that the Ravens fired their entire coaching staff, the
Ravens still hold the rights to Ryan, and could block any attempt by Ryan to
interview (or work) elsewhere in a position other than head coach.
But, as a practical matter, the Redskins were able to interview Ryan for the
position of defensive coordinator while ostensibly interviewing him for the
position of head coach.
Assuming that Saunders and Williams are
released by the Redskins, they'll certainly be in demand elsewhere.
Per the Free Press, Rogers will be
traded or released.
Rogers, a second-round pick in 2001, is signed
through 2010, at salaries of $4.25 million, $5.25 million, and $7 million
over the next three years, respectively.
POSTED 2:22 p.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
SEYMOUR HEAD-BUTT CAUGHT ON TAPE?
PFT Planet, we don't know what we'd do without
you.
In response to the item regarding the
contention of Chargers center Nick Hardwick that Pats defensive end Richard
Seymour applied a head butt to a Chargers coach, a reader sent to us a YouTube video that seems to capture the moment in question.
The apparent head-butt comes at about the 2:48
mark of the segment.
Though the NFL has implemented tight
restrictions regarding the interaction of players from opposing teams during
pre-game warmups, Seymour looks to be right in the thick of the Chargers'
players, jawing with a couple of them.
Also, the Nick Hardwick interview on XX Sports
Radio is now available
right here.
A reader tells us that Chargers center Nick
Hardwick claimed in an appearance on XX Sports Radio 1090 that the alleged
antics of Pats defensive end Richard Seymour on Sunday included applying a
head butt to a member of the Chargers' coaching staff.
We previously received an e-mail tip making
that same claim, and it appeared to have been written by a Chargers player.
But we couldn't corroborate the contention, so we left it alone.
Moments ago, we called the station to confirm
that the allegation had been made by Hardwick (wow, real journalistic work),
and we were told that the podcast containing the accusation will be posted
within the hour. The XX Sports Radio audio vault is
right here.
POSTED 12:22 p.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
CROWDER'S TRUCK FOUND WRECKED, ABANDONEDby Michael David
Smith
Local 10 news in South Florida is
reporting
that authorities are investigating a crash involving a vehicle owned by
Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder.
Florida Highway Patrol investigators found Crowder's wrecked truck abandoned
near the Hollywood Boulevard exit of Florida's Turnpike on Wednesday
morning. According to the report, the truck crashed into a tree and the
driver apparently fled the scene.
Dolphins officials say they don't know if Crowder was driving the truck at
the time of the crash.
Crowder had arthroscopic knee surgery last month, and the truck contained a
pair of crutches. Authorities also found a gun inside the truck.
Crowder got attention during the 2007 NFL
season when he said just prior to the team's trip to London that he didn't
know where London was and didn't know what language was spoken there. He
later said he was joking.
POSTED 9:55 a.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
RAVENS ADD CAMERONby Michael David
Smith
A league source tells PFT that the Baltimore
Ravens have added former Dolphins head coach Cam Cameron to their coaching
staff.
Although official word on Cameron's title has
not been released, it is assumed that he will be the Ravens' offensive
coordinator. Cameron had a five-year stint as the Chargers' offensive
coordinator before the Dolphins hired him a year ago.
Cameron is the first high-profile hiring of
new Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, who previously had been reported to be
close to hiring Eagles quarterbacks coach Pat Shurmur to be the Ravens'
offensive coordinator.
Next up for Harbaugh is securing a defensive
coordinator. The Ravens would like to keep Rex Ryan on the staff, but Ryan
may decide to head elsewhere after being passed over for the top job.
POSTED 9:26 a.m. EST;
UPDATED 9:42 a.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
FORMER TITAN RIEN LONG IN CRITICAL
CONDITION
by Michael David Smith
Former Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Rien
Long is in critical condition at Vanderbilt University Medical Center
following a single-car crash late Monday.
Long, who spent four seasons with the Titans
but has not been with an NFL team since reaching an injury settlement
with the club in September, drove his 2005 Ford Mustang from downtown
Nashville onto Interstate 40 "at
a high rate of speed," the Tennessean quotes the police report
saying.
At the bottom of an entrance ramp, the car hit
a wall, rolled over and fell back to the road, landing on its roof. A
passenger, former Middle Tennessee State football player Wesley Stephens,
was hospitalized but has been released.
The Titans released the following statement:
"We are aware of Rien's accident and several members of the organization
visited him [Monday] night. We would like to extend our thoughts and prayers
to Rien and his family during this difficult time. Any questions about his
condition will be handled by the hospital and Rien's family."
Long was the Titans' fourth-round draft pick
in 2003. He won the Outland Trophy, for college football's best lineman, at
Washington State.
WEDNESDAY MORNING
ONE-LINERS
by Michael David Smith
The agent for Browns coach
Romeo Crennel met with GM Phil Savage Tuesday and said, "I'd say
everything was positive. I'm optimistic that we'll be able to finish
this so that everyone's happy."
Steelers WR Cedrick Wilson has
filed for a protection-from-abuse order
against his girlfriend.
Says Chargers GM A.J. Smith of
the coming free agency period, "We're going to be a player. Always a player,
not a major player."
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones
hinted that assistant director of college scouting Tom Ciskowski is
likely to be promoted to fill the void created by the departure of Jeff
Ireland.
Writes Michael Wilbon in the
Washington Post of the Redskins' interviews with Gregg Williams,
"What would you think if your boss of four years needed to
interview you four times for a promotion?"
Bears coach Lovie Smith says,
"I don't think it's any secret that our quarterback situation
hasn't been settled."
Asked whether he'll have any
input into the 49ers' draft plans, offensive coordinator Mike Martz says,
"I'm coaching. I'm not
a personnel guy."
All signs point to Jim Mora
succeeding Mike Holmgren as the Seahawks'
next
head coach.
POSTED 8:13 a.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
SMITH TO FALCONS?
At a time when it appeared that the Atlanta
Falcons will wait for Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to become
available for an interview after the Super Bowl, it could be that the
Falcons will make a move in the short term to fill their head-coaching
vacancy.
According to Michael Smith of ESPN, the
Falcons could be hiring Jaguars defensive coordinator Mike Smith, as soon as
Wednesday.
Smith interviewed for the job after
Jacksonville's wild-card win over Pittsburgh, and then again after the Jags'
season ended. And, apparently, that ill-advised game plan, which took
away the deep ball and invited quarterback Tom Brady to complete 26 of 28
passes underneath, hasn't harmed Smith's prospects.
POSTED 8:07 a.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
FORGET THE ANKLE; BRADY BALDING?
The mysterious presence of a walking boot on
the foot of Pats quarterback Tom Brady has cemented his status as a
crossover star whose every move will be scrutinized by celebrity-obsessed
outlets like TMZ.com and PageSix.com.
The latest item from PageSix.com focuses on a
point that several readers have raised with us over the years: Is the
guy who wins most of his football games
also
losing his hair?
Readers have made their case to us by showing
various photos of Brady over the past six years. PageSix.com takes a
different approach -- they called the various medical offices in the
building into which Brady walked on Tuesday afternoon.
Two of the offices (a podiatrist and a
chiropractor) said that Brady hadn't entered. Another one, a hair
restoration clinic, said "no comment."
But PageSix.com doesn't say whether or not
there are more facilities in the building. Besides, maybe the hair
restoration clinic always says "no comment" in response to such questions.
Still, it's an example of the kind of scrutiny
that Brady is now going to face. At least until the Super Bowl.
The move was expected. In fact, there
was talk that Alstott would retire prior to the 2007 season. But the
rumor was that ownership instructed coach Jon Gruden to put Alstott on
injured reserve, so that he could collect his salary for one more season
before calling it quits.
Alstott spent his entire career with the Bucs,
starting in 1996 -- the final year of the old orange and red clown uniforms
with Inigo Montoya on the helmet.
In hindsight, however, they really don't look
so bad.
POSTED 7:20 a.m. EST,
January 23, 2008
COACHING "GRADUATIONS" A NEW TREND?
Never before (at least, never during the seven
seasons we've been covering the sport on a daily basis) has a coach entered
a season with the public aware that it's his final year.
In 2008, one coach already has declared that
the next season will be his farewell tour; another one is believed to be
doing a victory lap, even though his team is trying to dispel the notion
that 2008 is his last year.
In Seattle, Mike Holmgren has announced that
he'll spend one more year with the team. In Indy, Tony Dungy declared
on the meaningless, self-imposed deadline of January 21 that he'll return in
2008. Though the Colts are now trying to create the impression that
Dungy might stay beyond next season, they've already lined up his successor,
and we suspect that the franchise is merely trying at this point to avoid
the appearance that Dungy will be engaged in a farewell tour.
It'll be interesting to see how the status of
these two coaches affect the performance of their teams. In free
agency, some players might be leery about coming, or about staying.
They might want more money up front to go to Seattle or Indy, in order to
protect against the possibility that they'll eventually be displaced or
dismayed by a new regime.
It'll also be interesting to see whether more
coaches follow this trend in the future.
Frankly, we don't like it.
In Holmgren's case, however, announcing that
he's done after 2008 will avoid the distraction that would have arisen if he
had entered the final year of his deal without an extension. In
Dungy's case, he's now the coaching equivalent of Brett Favre, and we'll all
now be subjected to an annual game of will-he-or-won't-he? until Dungy
finally walks away.
Though how each man handles his business is
his own business, we respect the guys (players and coaches) who avoid
engaging in public speculation or debate regarding their status, and who
work until they're done and then walk away. Though we'll always be
trying to find out when a guy like, for example, Pats coach Bill Belichick
might be calling it quits, Belichick apparently realizes that he should
never let his own status become a distraction for the organization.
Indeed, the Pats won't even disclose the specific duration of his deal,
likely to avoid a situation in which everyone knows that the current season
could be his final one.
We've criticized this approach in the past,
because folks in each NFL city have a right to know how long the local head
coach is under contract. But if not knowing means that we won't have
to be pawns in a coach's effort (intentional or not) to grab headlines as he
deliberates on his future and then announces to the world that nothing has
changed, maybe we prefer ignorance.
POSTED 10:07 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
CADILLAC DONE?
One of the rumors making the rounds in Mobile
is that the career of Buccaneers running back Cadillac Williams could be
over.
Williams blew out a patellar tendon on
September 30, during a game against the Panthers.
If Williams can't return, it's another
argument against using a high first-round pick on a running back. The
financial investment is enormous, and the running back is always one play
away from a serious, if not permanent, injury.
POSTED 9:25 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
TIKI HAS NO REGRETS
Former Giants running back Tiki Barber claims
that he doesn't regret leaving the Giants a season before their Super Bowl
run.
"It's interesting," Tiki said on his Tuesday
night Sirius NFL Radio show, via the New York Daily News. "My
wife asked me that exact question. Ginny asked, ‘So you have to feel,
even just a little bit of remorse that you left early.’ I said 'Honey,
I’m trying to make myself think that and wish I was still there. But
I'm not.
I was done with football. In my heart I knew I didn't want to do
it anymore."
But Tiki presumes that, if he had
played in 2007, the Giants would still be getting ready to play in the Super
Bowl. Given the disruptive, divisive influence that Tiki had in the
locker room, we doubt that the team could have pulled together if he was
still pissing and/or moaning about whatever might have prompted him to piss
and/or moan at any given moment.
Besides, if Tiki hadn't retired, who would
have helped quarterback Eli Manning commence the process of coming out of
his shell? Tiki's preseason jabs at Manning arguably went a long way
toward getting Eli to develop as a leader, both on the field and off of it.
POSTED 9:11 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
CERRATO GETS A PROMOTION
The Washington
Redskins have
promoted V.P. of football operations Vinny Cerrato to the position of
Executive Vice President -- Football Operations.
"The appointment formalizes the structure the
team has operated under in recent years, and is recognition of the valuable
role Vinny has played this season, especially during a time of terrible
tragedy," said Redskins owner Dan Snyder. "During the past season we
were hit with an unprecedented number of injuries, and Vinny consistently
identified players who stepped in and stepped up to help take us to the
playoffs."
The move cements the top end of the power
structure in D.C., with Cerrato running the show -- and Snyder still having
significant input into the process.
It also means that the next coach must temper
his ambitions accordingly. For better or worse, Cerrato is entrenched
in the Redskins' front office. And no head coach is going to be able
to chew into that power -- unless and until he wins a Super Bowl or two.
Not bad for a guy who was fired by the team
when Marty Schottenheimer ran the show, and was later re-hired by Snyder.
POSTED 8:27 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
GRUDEN, ALLEN EXTEND THEIR STAYS
After a season in which they were arguably
working for their jobs, coach Jon Gruden and G.M. Bruce Allen have received
three-year
extensions from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The deals put them each under contract through
2011.
Per Adam Schefter of NFL Network, Gruden's
contract makes him one of the five highest-paid coaches in the league,
joining Mike Holmgren of the Seahawks, Bill Belichick of the Patriots, Jeff
Fisher of the Titans, and Mike Shanahan of the Broncos.
Gruden has been the head coach of the
Buccaneers since 2002. The Bucs won the Super Bowl in his first year
on the job, making them the only NFC team to win an NFL title this decade.
(Okay, the Rams technically won the Super Bowl in early 2000, but it
was the 1999 NFL championship.)
POSTED 8:08 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
FASSEL TO BE HIRED AS SOON AS WEDNESDAY?
Though some league insiders believe that Jim
Fassel will never be an NFL head coach again, Adam Schefter of NFL Network
reports that Fassel could be the head coach of the Washington Redskins as
soon as Wednesday.
And Fassel could be paired with former Ravens
defensive coordinator Rex Ryan, who is under consideration to return to the
Ravens in that same capacity -- and who also could end up coaching the
Falcons.
Left out in the cold would be current Redskins
defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who not long ago was given a healthy
raise to get him to refrain from pursuing other opportunities to become a
head coach elsewhere. Williams has been interviewed multiples times,
has spent four years in the building, and hasn't been offered the job.
That's not a good sign.
POSTED 7:51 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
EARLY SIGNS POINTING TO BLOWOUT?
With an early sense that the Super Bowl will
be a competitive game that the Giants might actually have a chance to win,
the stage could be set for a blowout by the Patriots.
Conventional wisdom is that the Giants, who
took the Pats to the brink in the regular-season finale, have improved since
losing to New England on December 29. So despite a double-digit point
spread, some league observers think that the Giants can win the thing
straight up.
Paul Zimmerman of Sports Illustrated
already is calling for the upset, even though the fact that he refers on
multiple occasions to Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo as "Spagnola."
(Once is a typo, twice is, well, not good.)
But as more and more folks become seduced by
the notion that the Giants will do better than their three-point, Super
Bowl-style loss to the Pats in Weekend Seventeen, Patriots coach Bill
Belichick will be ramping up for the ultimate pregame speech(es), during
which he essentially ask the players, "What else can we do to make these
people believe?"
As much as we'd love to see a competitive
Super Bowl that goes down to the wire, this Patriots team didn't get to 18-0
by accident. Though we're not making our official pick yet, the early
trend is setting the table for a big win by the Pats, who haven't covered
the spread since December 9.
POSTED 6:59 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
L.T. COULD HAVE PLAYED?
As reported on Tuesday night by ESPN, it was
announced in the press box at Sunday's Chargers-Patriots game that San Diego
running back LaDainian Tomlinson "can return" to the game.
There was no mention of L.T. being probable or
questionable or doubtful to return. The announcement was that he "can"
return. One media source told us that such a description is virtually
unprecedented.
And thus his failure to return fairly can be
regarded as a decision made by Tomlinson, and no one else.
The source has expressed to us a belief that
the Patriots were targeting Tomlinson's knees during his limited time on the
field, and that this prompted Tomlinson to opt for the sidelines.
So while the pissing match between Deion
Sanders and Tomlinson is grabbing much of the attention, the broader issue
is whether Tomlinson could have played, and whether he simply chose not to.
Brady was spotted twice on Tuesday without a
walking boot.
The first injury report for Super Bowl week
isn't due until next week. Though it's unclear what if anything will
be disclosed about Brady's leg, it's a safe bet that he'll at least be
listed as "probable (right shoulder)."
POSTED 5:08 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
CAST STILL OFF
In a video clip that conjures images of the
opening credits of Saturday Night Fever, Pats quarterback Tom Brady
can be seen walking in Manhattan . . . without a walking boot.
He had the contraption on his foot on Monday,
but it was gone by Monday night. He appears to be wearing cowboy boots
instead. A reader tells us that the hard sole of a cowboy boot creates
the same effect as a walking boot -- i.e., stabilization of the foot.
The video has a surreal quality. Hounded
for comment, Brady acts as if nothing is happening, and says not a word.
POSTED 4:52 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
ROOF TO BE OPEN, FOR NOW
Our pals P.A. and Dubay of KFAN raised a great
question during the weekly PFT visit on Tuesday.
Will the retractable roof at the University of
Phoenix Stadium be set to "open" for Super Bowl XLII -- and who makes the
decision as to whether it's opened or closed?
Per NFL spokesman Greg Aiello, the roof will
be open, unless the league anticipates game-time conditions that would make
it advisable to slide the lid shut.
The final decision will be made by the
Commissioner.
A quick Googling of the venue reveals that the
roof can be closed in 10-15 minutes.
POSTED 4:40 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
LOFTON GETS THE HEAVE-HO
Chargers receivers coach James Lofton is a
member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and he has been considered in the
past for head-coaching gigs.
"I don't have any idea," Lofton said as to the
reason for the move. "I was stunned. He just said he was going
in a different direction."
It's possible (and we're only speculating
here) that Lofton was trying to muster support to take over the team, in the
event that Turner happened to be relieved of his duties at some point during
the 2007 season. And it's possible that Turner caught wind of it,
opting to bide his time until the season ended. Now that Turner has
taken the team to an AFC title game, he can begin to impose his agenda.
Regardless of the actual reason for the
termination, the move doesn't make much sense. Vincent Jackson has
developed into the next great NFL receiver (along with Greg Jennings), and
Chris Chambers recently said that Lofton is "one of the greatest receiving
coaches in the game."
POSTED 2:52 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
BIG SHOW MUST GO ON
Adam Schefter of NFL Network reports that
Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren will return for another season with the team.
On Sunday, Jay Glazer of FOX reported that
Holmgren won't be extending his contract, which runs through the 2008
season.
Holmgren has coached the Seahawks for nine
seasons. Before that, he spent seven seasons as head coach of the
Packers.
POSTED 2:44 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
TUNA WANTS TRENT?
When quarterback Trent Green was placed on
injured reserve by the Dolphins after suffering his second severe concussion
in two seasons, most assumed that Green's brief time in Miami had ended.
Green is scheduled to earn $2.8 million and
$3.5 million over the next two seasons, respectively.
The decision to attempt to keep Green is
confusing, given that he was added by the prior regime, and that he's a
constant reminder of its failures. Besides, the risk of another major
bell-ringing might be too much to bear for a team that is trying to focus on
the positive moving forward.
It could be that the news was deliberately
leaked, in an effort to conjure up a trade market for Green. With
plenty of needs on both sides of the ball, the Fins can use every extra
draft pick that they can muster. And even if they only get a
seventh-rounder for Green, that's more than they'll get if they cut him
loose.
POSTED 2:21 p.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
JONES SAYS OWENS WILL BE BACK
For all those Cowboys fans with leftover
popcorn, you might be able to still eat it next football season.
If it keeps for that long.
Per Alex Marvez of FOXSports.com, Cowboys
owner Jerry Jones said on Tuesday after a morning Senior Bowl practice that
receiver Terrell Owens will be back for his third season with the team.
Owens is scheduled to earn $7 million in 2008,
via a $3 million roster bonus and a $4 million salary.
The deeper question, though, is whether Owens
needs more than seven million reasons to live -- and to continue to play for
the Cowboys.
Once Pats receiver Randy Moss gets his new
contract, Owens will surely want one of his own. Especially since
Owens has to make it through the entire 2008 season without suffering a
serious injury before he can seriously cash in.
Jones says that the team has yet to decide
whether to extend Owens' deal. The smart move, if the Cowboys want to
keep him, is to get a deal done now, before the market goes haywire (again)
with the next wave of free-agent signings.
POSTED 12:08 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
CAST ON . . . CAST OFF?
Okay, we're now starting to think that Tom
Brady is just messing with us.
On the same day that Brady hobbled to his
girlfriend's apartment in a walking boot, Brady apparently was walking
around Manhattan in a cowboy boot.
TMZ.com (which is getting mentioned way
too much of late on a pro football site)
has the photo.
POSTED 11:58 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
REDSKINS' MYSTERY IS SOLVED
Jay Glazer of FOXSports.com reports that the
mystery candidate in Washington is none other than
former Giants coach Jim
Fassel.
There were rumors on Monday of a Redskins
plane in Green Bay; apparently, the plane was there to bring Fassel, who
worked the game for Westwood One, to town.
Glazer says that Fassel actually has been
interviewed twice. When owner Dan Snyder and V.P. of football
operations Vinny Cerrato went to Arizona earlier this month ostensibly to
interview Cardinals assistant Russ Grimm, they actually were meeting with
Fassel.
Fassel was fired by the Giants after the 2003
season. He then worked for the Ravens, but he was fired as offensive
coordinator during the 2006 season by close friend Brian Billick.
Apparently, the friendship has survived the
termination. The ultimate irony, then, would be Fassel getting the
Redskins' job and hiring Billick as an offensive consultant.
Chargers QB Philip Rivers actually
had knee surgery last week. (And he got into a shouting match with
the folks who were watching the procedure from the gallery.)
Several readers have asked if Turd Watch
applies to the spouses of NFL players,
or their
significant others.
Coach Chin's recommendation that the
Chargers
should change quarterbacks at intermission brings back into question his
stubborn refusal to bench Big Ben when the Steelers were trailing the Pats
by 21 at halftime of the 2004 AFC title game.
Colts coach Tony Dungy
isn't restricting his career to one more season with the team. (In
unrelated news, Colts assistant head coach Jim Caldwell has requested a
mulligan from the Falcons and the Redskins.)
The
Eagles are undecided as to whether they'll use the franchise tag on TE
L.J. Smith, which would result in a one-year guaranteed salary of $4.73
million.
POSTED 10:16 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
SPAGNUOLO'S STAR IS RISING
Though the two-week delay due to a Super Bowl
appearance could prompt one of the two remaining teams with a vacancy to
make other plans, a tug-o-war currently is on the horizon between the
Falcons and Redskins for the services of Giants defensive coordinator Steve
Spagnuolo.
According to the New York Daily News,
both teams are interested in Spagnuolo, the former Eagles assistant who
is a first-year coordinator with the NFC champions. The Falcons
reportedly are pulling the plug on their search until Spagnuolo is
available.
It's quite a rise for a guy whose defense gave
up 80 points in the first two games of the regular season.
And we're still amazed by the fact that
assistant coaches with little or no experience as offensive or defensive
coordinators are getting hired while guys with NFL head-coaching experience
can barely get a sniff.
We're not faulting the Dolphins for hiring
Tony Sparano or the Ravens for hiring John Harbaugh or the Falcons and
Redskins waiting for Steve Spagnuolo. But with five of the final eight
teams in the 2007 playoffs being coached by guys who were once fired by
another NFL team, it's hard to justify not giving such guys serious
consideration.
POSTED 10:03 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
TBS BAILED OUT ELI
As it turns out, Giants quarterback Eli
Manning didn't need the local FOX affiliate or a pricey gift from Sony to
allow him to watch Seinfeld over the weekend.
The hotel at which the Giants were staying
took care of Eli's needs.
"The funniest thing is that I was in the
hotel, flipping through the stations and there was 'Seinfeld,'
it was on TBS," Manning said, according to the
New York Daily News.
He's right. The PFT mobile office was
rolling over the weekend, and I watched a little Seinfeld on TBS
early Saturday night in the hotel room. The one about the Kenny Rogers
restaurant was on at 6:00 p.m. EST, and the one where George gets smart when
his girlfriend thinks she has mono (and is thus unavailable) was on
at 6:30 p.m. EST.
The move by the FOX affiliate still doesn't
make any sense to us. Someone was apparently trying to be cute.
In hindsight, it simply made them look stoopid.
POSTED 9:43 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
BIG SHOW DECISION COMING TODAY?
Tuesday could be the day that Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren announces
whether he'll be back for another season, or whether he'll pack it in.
Over the weekend, Jay Glazer of FOX reported
that there won't be an extension of Holmgren's contract, which runs through
the 2008 campaign.
It has been widely rumored over the past
several years that Holmgren could be close to calling it quits. Some
believed that 2005 would be his final year. A Super Bowl appearance
followed by a big-money extension has kept him around.
If he leaves, Jim Mora could get the job.
But absent a written commitment that Mora will get the job (scroll down),
the Seahawks will be required to comply with the Rooney Rule. And with
Mora perceived to be Holmgren's successor, it could be hard for the Seahawks
to find minority candidates who are willing to sit for what could be sham
interviews.
POSTED 9:28 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
KIFFIN, RYAN AT ODDS?
One of the rumors making the rounds at the
Senior Bowl practice sessions is that there's trouble still brewing in
Oakland.
Per a league source, the rumor is that head
coach Lane Kiffin and defensive coordinator Rob Ryan aren't on speaking
terms, and that owner Al Davis prefers Ryan because he has won over the
players.
Several weeks ago, there were reports that the
Raiders were preparing to fire Ryan. It also was reported that
Ryan would be landing with the Jets. The team issued a strong denial,
and all has been quiet since then.
It could be that Kiffin is in trouble, and
that Davis is waiting for the dust to settle as to other head-coaching jobs
or offensive coordinator positions at the NFL and NCAA level before cutting
Kiffin loose.
If Kiffin is terminated, he would be owed two
years of pay, if he doesn't find other work in coaching. Contrary to
reports that he is only signed through 2008, Kiffin is under contract for
two more seasons, with team options that could trigger at least two more
years.
POSTED 9:15 a.m. EST,
January 22, 2008
BATTLE BREWING OVER POSSIBLE GARRETT
PROMOTION
The Rooney Rule requires all NFL teams to
interview at least one minority candidate when hiring a head coach.
The Rooney Rule has an exception, however. When there is an assistant
coach who has a pre-existing deal as part of his written contract to become
the head coach at some point in the future, the Rooney Rule does not apply.
No team has yet to attempt to utilize this
exception. If/when it happens, there could be trouble.
According to the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram,
the chairman of the Fritz Pollard Alliance believes that such a commitment
needs to appear
in the assistant's original contract, and that it can't be added after
the fact to persuade the assistant not to take a job elsewhere.
"I wouldn't accept it with Garrett right now,"
said John Wooten. "He has been here. If he didn't have [the
guarantee] then, he can't put it in now."
But NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told the
Star-Telegram that the exception to the Rooney Rule does not distinguish
between the assistant's original contract or any revision thereto.
In Garrett's case, the issue is presently
irrelevant because there's no evidence that his new contract contains a
written commitment to make him the head coach. Thus, if Garrett is
still with the team when Wade Phillips leaves, the Cowboys will be required
to comply with the Rooney Rule.
Of course, there's always a chance that
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will try to apply the exception literally,
altering Garrett's written contract to include the commitment on the eve of
Phillips' departure. Since the exception apparently has no deadline
for the striking of a deal with an assistant coach, Jones likely would get
away with it.
Once.
Then the rule would be changed to prevent it
from happening again, just as the rule was changed to require face-to-face
meetings after Jones conducted only a phone interview with Dennis Green
before hiring Bill Parcells in 2003.
The irony here is that the Colts have become
the first NFL team since the creation of the Rooney Rule to establish an
in-house succession plan for a head coach, and that in the Colts' case both
the current coach and the next coach are minorities.
Our guess is that the exception was put in
place in an effort to placate the "I'll hire who I damn well want to hire,
and if Johnnie Cochran doesn't like it he can sue me" crowd. But
without firm guidelines as to its intended use, it invites eventual abuse,
and controversy.
POSTED 10:19 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
SUNSHINE IS ASKED ABOUT HIS NICKNAME
Several readers tell us that Joe Theismann was
asked point-blank today on TSN in Canada whether it bothers him that
ProFootballTalk.com refers to him as "Joey Sunshine."
Apparently, Thiesmann was initially taken
aback by the question, but then said that he's happy to bring sunshine to
people's lives.
As one reader put it: "Only when you
were fired, Joe. Only when you were fired."
POSTED 10:08 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
AND THE WINNER IS . . . .
We're pleased to announce that the grand-prize
winner of the first annual PFT Pick Challenge is Frank Gallagher of
Wyomissing, Pennsylvania.
Frank, along with every other Pick Challenge
participant, has each correct game pick converted to a ticket in the
grand-prize drawing. And the winning ticket, randomly selected by the
computer program utilized by our tech support contractor, belonged to him.
So Frank gets two tickets to a football game
that will be played in 13 days in Arizona. The tickets were made
available to us at face value by our friends at NFL.com. (Mike Tice
offered two more to us, but at a slight markup.)
Congrats to Frank, and thanks to everyone who
played.
The photo and video apparently were taken on
Monday, one day after the Pats won their 18th game of the season, and
advanced to the Super Bowl.
Brady presumably suffered the injury on
Sunday, but there's a chance that Brady entered the game with the injury,
and that the team merely concealed it.
POSTED 5:06 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
RIVERS PULLED A DIXON
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers didn't play
on Sunday with a partially torn ACL. Like Oregon quarterback Dennis
Dixon in November, Rivers played with no ACL at all.
According to Kevin Acee of the San Diego
Union-Tribune, Rivers' ACL in his right knee is "totally
gone," and he'll have reconstructive surgery on it soon.
Though the Chargers revealed that Rivers
suffered a knee injury against the Colts, the team called it a sprained MCL.
They specifically concealed the status of the ACL.
Media reports prior to the AFC title game
indicated that Rivers had a partially torn ACL. He was listed on the
injury report as doubtful, but he played the entire game.
Though Rivers reportedly will be 100 percent
in time for training camp, he'll likely miss all or part of the increasingly
important offseason program, during which many of the preparations are made
for the coming football season.
POSTED 4:07 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
HARRIS HAS SAME JOB, BUT LESS JUICE
Despite a published report suggesting that
Jaguars V.P. of player personnel James "Shack" Harris was essentially
demoted as a result of the purge of director of pro personnel Charles Bailey
and promotion of new executive director of pro and college personnel Gene
Smith, Harris
hasn't experienced a change in title.
As a practical matter, however, Harris now has
less influence. As one media source told us on Sunday, "Shack now
appears to be a figurehead because [coach Jack] Del Rio and Gene Smith will
likely call the shots now."
The tipping point in the Del Rio-Harris power
struggle was the decision of Del Rio to dump quarterback Byron Leftwich in
favor of backup David Garrard. Said the source, "Harris didn't want to
cut Leftwich and passed up Brady Quinn plus wasted most of his first-round
picks. That gave Del Rio the opening to lobby for Gene Smith to be
promoted. . . . Shack survives but Del Rio and Smith will run the show
because they have [owner Wayne] Weaver's ear. Even if Shack objects to
something, Weaver is likely to back Del Rio and Smith."
Another source tells us that Harris has
received a contract extension as a result of these maneuverings.
POSTED 3:41 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
ONE MORE YEAR FOR DUNGY
Adam Schefter of NFL Network reports that
Colts coach Tony Dungy has decided to stay with the team for one more year,
and then to hand the reins over to assistant head coach Jim Caldwell.
So our report from a week ago was right in
content, wr-wr-wr-wr-erroneous in timing. We apologize for the error.
Though we suppose we could say that our report
is right because our source genuinely thought that Dungy was leaving now, we
won't. Our source was wrong, and thus by trusting that our source was
right, we were wrong.
And it doesn't matter whether the source sat
in a steam room with Caldwell as the head-coach-in-waiting confessed that
Dungy is leaving now. The report was wrong, and that's our
responsibility, no one else's.
Back to the decision (i.e., changing
the subject), we can't recall another situation like this at the NFL level,
where a head coach consciously took a publicly-known farewell tour/victory
lap with his hand-picked successor already on the job and ready to roll.
Meanwhile, we think that Dungy could
eventually return to the NFL in a Bill Parcells-type of a position with the
Buccaneers or another team in relatively close proximity to Tampa.
UPDATE:
We misunderstood Schefter's report.
Apparently, Dungy isn't limiting himself to one year. Which means
he'll now be the Brett Favre of coaching.
POSTED 2:48 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
DUNGY ANNOUNCEMENT COMING LATER TODAY
The Indianapolis Colts have announced that a
press conference will be held at 4:30 p.m. EST on Monday, and that the
"participants" will be owner Jim Irsay, president and G.M. Bill Polian, head
coach Tony Dungy, and assistant head coach Jim Caldwell.
Unless the Colts are trying to build drama
regarding the possibility that Dungy is leaving, there's no real reason for
Caldwell to "participate" unless Dungy will be passing the baton to him at
that time.
As one media insider observed in response to
the news, "Looks like he's gone."
POSTED 2:40 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
LEAGUE SATISFIED WITH CHARGERS' INJURY
REPORT
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello tells us that the
league won't be looking into whether the Chargers fudged the injury report
regarding running back LaDainian Tomlinson.
"He was
listed in the Chargers' injury report on Wednesday and Thursday with a knee
injury," Aiello told us by e-mail on Monday. "He started yesterday and
re-injured the knee."
The league's conclusion
meshes with Tomlinson's post-game comments, which indicate that the 2006 NFL
MVP re-injured the knee on the first play from scrimmage.
"It
was just the impact of getting hit that first play, right on it,''
Tomlinson said. "I thought that would be the test, taking a hit on it.
I don't know how I get direct hits on it . . . it's just been two bad weeks
for me. I usually don't take shots like that. It just
happened.''
Still, we wonder how much the coaching staff
knew about the knee before the game. Even though Tomlinson was listed
on two of the three injury reports, he fully participated in practice on
Thursday and Friday. And in the final Friday report, he was deemed to
be so healthy that he wasn't even mentioned.
But coach Norv Turner talked after the game as
if Tomlinson was still injured when the game started, suggesting it was less
of a re-injury than it was an injury that really hadn't healed.
Complicating matters is that L.T.'s in-game status was described not as an
injury but as a "coach's decision," which implied that Tomlinson could have
returned.
So there's something funny going on here, in
our view. Then again, plenty of funny things go on, in our view, with
the league's far-from-perfect procedure for ensuring that inside information
isn't available to gamblers. The core of the problem is that there's
only so much that the league can do to force teams to be forthcoming.
And while the system might not be perfect, it might also be the best thing
that the league can devise.
Our pal Gregg Rosenthal of Rotoworld.com and
NBCSports.com tells us that NFL Network reported Dungy met with his staff on
Monday morning, and that he'd later meet with Irsay.
We can't tell whether the order of the two
meetings has any meaning. We'd like to think he'd break the news,
whatever it might be, to the owner before telling his staff.
Unless, of course, Dungy is leaving and he
wants to inspire a stronger sense of loyalty among some of the assistants
for whom he'll come calling if/when he decides to return to the sidelines.
Or to take on a Bill Parcells-style non-coaching role with a team.
Anyway, stay tuned for the official word.
Until then, we're not backing off on our report that Dungy is out. If,
in the end, Dungy stays, it could be news to the person who was saying
otherwise last week. And that's the same person who pulled his name
from consideration for other jobs on the express understanding that he'd be
taking over the Colts. Not in a year or two, but now.
POSTED 12:48 p.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
KROENKE BOUGHT A PATH TO MAJORITY OWNERSHIP
A league source tells us that Rams minority
owner Stan Kroenke acquired when he purchased 40 percent of the team in 1995
the ability to become majority owner at some point after the death of
Georgia Frontiere, who passed on January 18 at the age of 80.
Though the details are faded and sketchy,
Kroenke is thought to have, at a minimum, the ability to buy 10 or more of
the 60 percent held by Frontiere's estate, if her heirs opt to sell the
team.
It's unknown what, if anything, has happened
to Kroenke's rights in this regard following his purchase of the NBA's
Denver Nuggets and the NHL's Colorado Avalanche. Per league rules,
Kroenke can't be the majority owner of the Rams if he owns professional
franchises in markets housing other NFL clubs.
It's also unknown whether either of
Frontiere's children really want to run an NFL team. It's possible
that they each could sell a shade over five of the 30 points they'll inherit
from their mother, giving Kroenke enough of an interest to run the team.
If, of course, he'll either sell his Denver
teams or finagle an exception to the cross-ownership rule.
Don't rule out the latter. Kroenke has
real juice. And money. He married one of Sam Walton's daughters,
and he owns THF, a company that buys and develops the sites of many Wal-Mart
stores.
Also, he has been a regular attendee at league
meetings with Rams president John Shaw, so he might be able to put together
the kind of coalition necessary to allow him to own the Rams, Avalanche, and
Nuggets. Much of the outcome surely would hinge on Kroenke's
relationship with Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, who owns the NFL team in the
market that already has been infiltrated by Kroenke.
POSTED 11:29 a.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
SPAGNUOLO OR RYAN FOR FALCONS?
Jay Glazer of FOX reported during Sunday's
pregame show that the Falcons will choose between Giants defensive
coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and former Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan
to become the team's new head coach.
The complication that occurred after Glazer's
report was that the Giants beat the Packers, making Spagnuolo unavailable
for two more weeks.
The process has moved more deliberately since
Tom Dimitroff arrived as G.M. Cowboys offensive coordinator Jason
Garrett and Ryan have each interviewed twice. The fact that Ryan has
yet to be offered the job has prompted some to believe that he won't be.
Also, there was talk in league circles on
Friday that the Falcons are eyeing a mystery candidate. We've heard
nothing more about that in the three days since.
POSTED 10:18 a.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
DID CHARGERS VIOLATE THE INJURY REPORTING
RULES?
One of the ten items tackled in a
Sporting News Ten-Pack that was typed with tired hands and bleary eyes
(I can feel your pity) is whether the San Diego Chargers fibbed on their
injury report.
The final report strongly implied that L.T.
was 100 percent. Coach Norv Turner's post-game remarks suggest
otherwise.
Other topics include Tom Brady's
not-so-stellar spot as a postseason passer, the sudden emergence (after only
eight years) of Plaxico Burress, the Packers' home-field disadvantage during
the playoffs at Lambeau, the fact that the overtime rules won't be changed
until someone gets screwed in a championship game, and whether Colts coach
Tony Dungy is trying to upstage the Pats -- and whether it's even
appropriate to suggest it.
POSTED 9:58 a.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
MYSTERY CANDIDATE IN D.C.?
On Friday, we caught wind of rumors that
there's a mystery candidate for the head-coaching vacancy in Atlanta.
Now, Jay Glazer of FOX reports that a mystery candidate has emerged in
Washington.
In our view, the term "mystery candidate" is
usually code for a college head coach who's hoping not to disrupt his
recruiting effort if he doesn't get the job. But after the team's
experiences with Steve Spurrier, it's hard to think that owner Dan Snyder
would want to give another college coach a try.
Glazer says that the Redskins' mystery
candidate will be interviewed on Monday or Tuesday.
Also, Glazer reports that Seahawks assistant
Jim Mora would have gotten the job if he had wanted it. Some have
speculated that Mora withdrew his name from consideration after he learned
that he wouldn't get the gig.
POSTED 9:53 a.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
NO EXTENSION FOR BIG SHOW
Jay Glazer of FOX reported during Sunday's
pregame that Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren won't be getting a contract
extension, which means that his career with the team will end after the 2008
season, at the latest.
It's unclear whether the decision not to
extend Holmgren was his, the team's, or mutual. Regardless, the
curtain will drop on the Big Show a year from now.
Or maybe sooner. Glazer also reported
that Holmgren has told former players, including Packers receiver Koren
Robinson, that it's time for Holmgren to ride off into the sunset.
POSTED 9:35 a.m. EST,
January 21, 2008
ELI OUTSHINES PEYTON, TIKI
One of the best subplots of the 2007 playoffs
is that the unexpected ascension of the Giants has allowed quarterback Eli
Manning to do in four seasons that which his big brother Peyton required
nine to accomplish -- secure a berth in the Super Bowl.
The transformation has been stunning.
For the first three years of his career, Eli displayed the demeanor of a
pimply-faced kid at his first high-school dance: Uncertain,
unconfident, and ultimately disinterested. Now, he's loose and relaxed
and performing like never before.
He hasn't become Dan Marino. But he's a
step or two (or three) above Trent Dilfer, the game-manager who won a Super
Bowl with the help of a tremendous defense. Eli Manning is making good
decisions, not making mistakes, and inspiring confidence in those around
him.
Eli actually looks a lot like Tom Brady, circa
2001, before Brady blew up and became one of the great quarterbacks of all
time. Like Brady, Eli could use his team's success as the fuel to get
a lot better over the next several years.
So why did it take so long? For a while,
we got the impression that Eli simply didn't love football, that he had been
pushed into the family business without regard to what he truly wanted to do
with his life. And though there might have been some truth to that, we
also think that Eli couldn't compete with the personality and presence of
former Giants running back Tiki Barber, who surely used verbal and
non-verbal tactics to keep Eli from getting a big head (figuratively, not
literally . . . though Eli's noggin can't compete with Peyton's, it's still
pretty impressive).
What Barber didn't realize is that his likely
handling of the younger Manning was contributing to his struggles. In
the end, it was Barber's departure -- and the harsh words he hurled at
Manning after he left -- that helped Eli as much or more than anything else.
And
Eli's reaction to Tiki's barbs might have been the moment when Eli came
into his own. Peyton would have handled the criticism by cracking a
joke, at worst suggesting that Barber had been "liquored
up." (Inside, however, Peyton would have been fuming.) But
Eli wasn't afraid to be himself, and to openly comment on the irony in
Barber's criticism of Eli's leadership skills, given the manner in which
Barber's antics during the 2006 season caused the team to come apart.
So while we've never really cared all that
much for Peyton Manning and his head-shake-and-half-frown routine, we really
like Eli. It's a great story. The kid who was overlooked,
doubted, and disrespected has grown up before our eyes. And while he
could rub some faces in his success, he won't do it -- publicly or
privately. He comes off as a nice guy, and he deserves the success
he's now experiencing, especially in light of what he's been through.
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