If by no means as a morale booster, Parcells does help.  I stopped to reading this article (“Parcells hiring doesn’t help Dolphins- http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7586460?var=one
&rand=710) at, "Cameron and Mueller deserve[] a second season..."  I'm not quite sure what you were watching this season under the genius of these two minds, but I'll tell you what Dolfans were watching: a catastrophic blow up in Miami.  Guess what they'll be watching next week in New England.

     Coach Camoron, as he's been called by some fans (who seem to have a knack for creating these little pet names for head coaches), in Miami, has not deserved the right to stay any longer than one season while also living up to his newfound name.  With the help of Randy Mueller (who was fired just to be re-hired), drafted Ted Ginn Jr. at pick number 9 and passed on Brady Quinn to get the miracle worker John Beck who, for those who don't know how miraculous Beck has been, threw 3 picks and 0 touchdowns in two starts only to be benched for former starter turned starter again, Cleo Lemon.

     Let's not forget that Coach Cameron was brought in to help productivity on offense, the same Miami 'O' that is 20th and 24th in total rush yards per game and total pass yards per game, respectively; the same Miami offense that was run by tight ends coach Mike Mularkey for a confirmed game, a move that would make even Nick Satan cringe; the same Miami offense that decided to take a kneel and play it safe to head into overtime against the Ravens.  (Really?  I would've thought at 0-13 there'd be nothing to lose).  Granted, the Dolphins received their first win that game, but it's the suspect play calling of Coach Cameron and Mike Mularkey that drowns this fish.

     Whether or not the Dolphins will see new coaches and coordinators is now up to Bill Parcells, a move that was expected at 0-10.  Not just the hiring of Bill Parcells, but anyone.  Would anybody in Miami be content with the same personnel going in to next season?

    With Parcells on board, the Dolphins may have a chance; just look at the team he built in Dallas.  Those players (with the exception of Ken Hamlin), are the same players Parcells brought into Big D.  Here's the difference maker, though, the Dallas Cowboys, under Coach Parcells, was 9-7.  Under Wade Philips, Dallas is 12-2 fighting for home-field in the playoffs.  Parcells knows talent, and he'll bring it in for whoever is the coach in Miami to build a solid team; but it's safe to say his coaching days are over, which is precisely why the Tuna is in a great situation evaluating talent for the Dolphins and not coaching it.

Hey guys,

I was on ESPN (sorry, fox) and stumbled into this article, which is very interesting and very informative.  Written by Sal Paolantonio, a great sports writer and Philly sports aficionado, he adds stats; very interesting tid-bits about McNabb's pro career; and statements, past and present, ranging from McNabb himself to, yes, Rush Limbaugh.  Nonetheless, it's a great article that was researched carefully and extensively.  Check it out; here's the link:

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?co
lumnist=paolantonio_sal&id=3030401

Through everything ranging from the day Donovan McNabb was drafted, to the Rush Limbaugh incident, to the TO fiasco, Donovan McNabb has settled the matters gracefully; at times, with a light heart; and, for the most part, silently.  He "[spoke] softy and [carried] a big stick," so to speak.  But now, whatever set him off drove him to speak his mind.

I'm sure that everyone heard what McNabb said, so we'll skip the interview.  The only comment of substance is this (thanks to CBS Sportsline): "There's not that many African-American quarterbacks, so we have to do a little bit extra. ... Because the percentage of us playing this position, which people didn't want us to play this position, is low, so we do a little extra."

Okay, so now we know the info. (for the uniformed).  I highlighted some key elements of his comments because they are important.  For one, if your Quarterback, the one playing in your town, is not putting "a little bit extra" into their play, whether it be by studying the playbook, giving more you have on the field, making extra steps to get a first down, or diving head first to do whatever it takes to help win a game, than I don't think I would want him as my QB.  Is it a black/ white issue for someone, or anyone for that matter, to want to put forth "a little extra" into their work to be successful?

Quick answer about owners, coaches, media, fans, or the general public not wanting African Americans to play the QB position: See Jamarcus Russell, Vince Young, Michael Vick.  They all were paid heavily.  Vick's jersey, at one point, was the top selling jersey in the U.S.  Vince Young is welcomed greatly in Tennessee, even nationally.

Back in the day, does McNabb remember when Ron "Jaws" Jaworski was getting booed by fans?  And those fans screaming for him to be replaced by the back-up, Randal Cunningham?

I'm not quite sure where these comments spurred from, but it's basically the old clique, "if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen."  We know Philadelphia fans and media alike are ruthless, but not because of skin color.  We know that you're the QB, you're going to get the blame for a lot of losses.  We know, McNabb, that you deserve all the criticism coming your way because after you lead your team to three NFC championship games, where you couldn't make the grade, you finally hit the Super Bowl on your fourth attempt.  And in that game, only more controversy surrounded you because of your clock management and your health; where you missed lost that one, too.

I'm not sure about McNabb, but I didn't hear Manning complain when he got bombarded with doubt and criticism, more than anyone for a long time, until he finally won one.  And I don't hear Eli Manning complain about the pressure put on him to be his brother by the NY media, or how, forever, he'll always be compared to his brother.

Don't get me wrong, there was a time when a black QB was scrutinized, but we've come a long way; it's different.  We celebrated when Dungy became the first African American coach to win a Super Bowl, and we're going to celebrate when the first African American QB wins the big one.  Today, in a "what-have-you-done-for-me-lately?" league, the QB will always get critiqued the worst: black, white, green, red, or orange.

            Just before 12:00 AM here on the east coast, a baseball bat cracks sending one over the fence at A####mp;T Park.  Bonds at the plate watches.  The bat slips from his grip.  Arms fly up, cheers break out.  Fireworks shoot out from the scoreboard as number 25 rounds the bases after a fan catches number 756.

            Bonds’ son hops over the dugout.  Wife steps onto the field.  “Say Hey” Willie Mays gives him a hug and a microphone.  Bud Selig, this time, is not forced to look like a deer in head lights on national TV when Bonds belts the go ahead Home Run out of the park.  Soon, the attention of the audience is directed at an electronic screen on the scoreboard where the face of one Hank Aaron plays his role in congratulating Barry Bonds.  A cameraman for ESPN catches a beautiful shot from behind Bonds’ ballooned head of Bonds watching Aaron wishing him his best.

            With Aaron completing his speech, it’s time for Bonds to do one of his own.  Bonds keeps it sweet and short, only thanking a select few of people, omitting BALCO, Victor Conte, or “the guy” who put him on his program.

            And like Bonds’ speech, this blog will hopefully be sweet (for readers), but certainly short.

            While some celebrate, some question.  While some will remember forever, others will want to forget…right now.  In 30 years, a grandfather will tell his grandson his personal story of witnessing baseball history.  Another will tell his about witnessing the greatest controversial home run in baseball history.  It’s all about perception.  No matter how YOU see it, this day is special in a lot of ways.  For me, I’m the fan hoping that in 30 years, I’ll be telling my grandson about the history making Home Run A-Rod hit.

Do you remember when Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth's All time Home Run record?  Do you remember watching the two fans who ran out on the field and pat Aaron on the back as he rounded second base?  It’s a great memory for sports fans and Hank Aaron was one of the only men whom one could rally behind and cheer for.  Today, controversial power hitter Barry Bonds sits three home runs back in the effort to take the crown from Aaron.  But one thing remains: Bonds won’t land the warm congratulations that Aaron received.

“Records are meant to be broken,” which one can assume can go hand-in-hand with the saying “rules are meant to be broken;” especially in this case.  Now while there is no clear evidence that Barry Bonds went beyond the rules and used anabolic steroids to improve his performance, mainly his hitting, Bonds is wearing the scarlet letter.  Just the speculation that Bonds might have used performance enhancers is enough for anyone to wonder whether or not that asterisk should be placed above the “s” in his last name when he inevitably towers above Hank Aaron’s name in the record books.  But it doesn’t take an abuser or muscle maniac to see Bonds’ physique transform the way it did throughout the years.  It also doesn’t help when a chemist known for his creation, “the clear,” discloses that Victor Conte, founder of BALCO, helped Bonds with his “program,” or that MLB commissioner Bud Selig tried to ignore the home run record and Bonds himself entirely.  Though the question doesn’t lie with the creators of drugs, or even the commissioner, it lies with the fans.

Without fans, there would be no league.  Though extremely cliché, it is extremely true.  The true determination of Bonds’ ever driving journey will lie with us and how we react when Bonds breaks the record.  How will the fans look at Bonds when number 756 is hit over the wall?  Will we decide to overlook the accusations of Bonds’ steroid abuse or decide to delve right into them?  Will we choose to believe Bonds cheated his way into the record books?  If you're looking for an answer, I have an uplifting feeling that many might just hope A-Rod, in years to come, breaks Bonds’ record.

Okay, so he's not really giving his wealth to himself, but a man in Portland believes he deserves some of Jordan's moo-lah because after all, the man does have a striking resemblance to Michael.  The man from Oregon, Allen Heckard, is suing both the Hoops' star and Nike founder Phil Knight.  Why, you might ask?  Because he is tried of having the comparisons to the greatest ball player of all time.

WHAT?

Mr. Heckard says that he is permanent injured-emotional pain and suffering.

WHAT?

I'm not too sure about all of you, but if someone approached me and told me I looked like Michael Jordan, I'd be ecstatic!  And I'm not even black!

Let's get to the financial business for a minute; the lawsuit would grant Allen a lump sum of $832 million dollars.  That's funny, I'm currently suing CNN $850 million for providing the news!

I have to say, earlier today I was watching that documentary "Super Size Me", where this gentleman eats McDonald's for 30 days straight and later analyzes what effect the food had on his body.  During that program, the man mentioned two women were suing McDonald's for making them fat.  The #### eating all of the Mickey D's took to the streets and gathered various responses to the lawsuit.  A French woman referred to it as "The American Way", and personally, I felt disappointed at her answer.  Now I realize that it IS probably "The American Way", or the "Get-Rich-Quick" scheme.

The lawsuit against Jordan really opened my eyes.  It showed me 2 things-that people will try anything to get money and America is worse off than I thought.

On today's edition of The Greatest of All-Time, where we analyze the greatest sports players in history, I want to look at the Greatest players who never where.  In other words, I would like to seek out the Greatest players who never won a title in their respective sport.

To start off, the first person to come to mind is Dan "The Man" Marino.  Dan Marino has to be the best quarterback, maybe even the best football player, to never win a Super Bowl.  Here's a little of what Dan Marino did as Miami's greatest QB: 

Most Yards Passing, Career: 61,361
Most Touchdown Passes, Career: 420
Highest Pass Rating, Rookie Season: 96.0 in 1983

Selected to nine Pro Bowls (1983-87, 1991-92, 1994-95), including seven as a starter (1983-86, 1992, 1994-95).

Selected in 2005 to the NFL Hall of Fame

And this is only a very, very small percentage of Dan's success.

Another athlete that rings a bell to this topic is Sir Charles Barkley.  Barkley was one of the best forwards in the NBA, and he had everything a great player needed; the best aspect of Barkley was that he played with more passion than maybe everyone in the league today.  Charles truly appreciated the game he played.  Here's some highlights of Barkley's career:

MVP in 1992-1993 season

All-Rookie Team

1987-88 season-averaged 28.3 points a game; named to the All-NBA team for the first of four consecutive years.

Inducted into Hall of Fame as Player in 2006

Speaking of the NBA, I have to add John Stockton and Karl Malone to the list of greats without a title, but I know I'm missing plenty of sport greats and that's where you all come in.  Let's see some athletes who YOU believe deserves a mention in this thread.  Have fun.

Mark it on your calendar everybody.  May 20th, 2006 marks the day Barry Bonds hit his 714 homerun to tie the Babe.  In the days leading up to this event, there were many different reactions to how one might celebrate this historic event.  Some people were going give Bonds a standing ovation, others would have booed profoundly, and a few, or maybe more, wouldn't have cared.

I personally feel Barry Bonds doesn't deserve an ovation, or a party, or even recognition for overcoming such a monumental leap in MLB history.  Apparently I'm not the only one, either.  Phillies pitcher Cory Lidle had this to say,

"It's sad," Lidle says, "I'm not a player-hater. I like to see players get paid as much as they can. But without friggin' cheating."

Houston Pitcher Russ Springer showed his love for Barry as he nailed Bonds when he was at bat on Tuesday, and Springer was suspended for four games three days later.

Hello, and welcome to THE Sports Blog on Foxsports.  I'm your host, MiamiSports, but you can call me Pat, and I'll touch on all sorts of topics ranging from the NBA to NFL, so how about we start it with the NBA playoffs?

Last night, on May 19th, two different games were played; the Pistons trying to hold on to their playoff life as they played the Cavs, and the Spurs who tried to stretch their series against the Dallas Mavericks to game 7.  Today, I'll turn my attention to the game played in Quicken Loans Arena where the Pistons held on in a close one to win, 84-82.  The Spurs meanwhile, succeeded in taking game 6, 91-86.

So the Miami Heat wait and watch to see who they will have to face in the Eastern Conference Finals, while the Cleveland Cavaliers played host the Detroit Pistons as the Cavs tried to make it one step further.  Lebron James did what he could putting up 32 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists, but in the end, it came down to grabbing the loose ball.

In the last two minutes of play, The Pistons rumbled down court looking to play some outstanding offense, but who knew it would come down to Detroit playing their best defense?  Ben Wallace snatched one offensive rebound after another and eventually forced Cleveland to use their fouls just to get some offense going, but it didn't work.  After a missed basket by Wallace, Richard Hamilton came up with yet another Piston rebound, which only kept draining the clock and the Cavs hopes of winning.

In the last 12 seconds of the game, Lebron grabs his 11th rebound, and flies down court.  On a pass to Damon Jones, the officials call a foul on Detroit, and it sends Lebron to the foul line.  The score at that point was 84-81 with 1.4 seconds on the clock, and Lebron needed to work his magic.  He drains the first free throw and intentionally misses the second, only to see the ball bounce off the rim, catch the tip of Chauncey Billups' fingers, pop up, and come down short of the net.

Though Lebron played his best, it was not good enough as 4 different Pistons' had at least 15 points.  Detroit's' top scorer was Rasheed Wallace, who posted 24 points.  Rasheed was asked what the Pistons did different to win, and came out with a simple answer: "we just executed". 

Wallace, who is known for making guarantees, left the court somewhat speechless, but LeBron did remind everybody of one thing,

"we've proven doubters wrong, so it's time to prove some others wrong."

Game 7 should prove to be an exciting one as both teams are in a "win or go home" situation, but the only thing that'll matter at the end of the day will be who was victorious?  This is where I'd like to hear from all of you; do the Cavs stand a chance?  Can the Pistons play their game of basketball at home?  Your turn.