New Cowboys coach Wade Phillips has returned former first-round pick Bobby Carpenter to inside linebacker, his position at Ohio State. There is no question that the rookie Carpenter struggled as an outside pass rusher last season.
“It's tough because Bill (Parcells) doesn't always communicate everything really well,” Carpenter said. “It was tough for me trying to get a feel for what was going on and what they expected out of me and what their goals were for me to be out on the field. They have done a good job this year of communicating what they want and what I need to do to get better.”
Phillips said he moved Carpenter to inside linebacker in his 3-4 scheme because he’s athletic and because he can run. Some believe the new defense is more flexible for a young player like Carpenter.
“Last year was a little difficult," Carpenter said. “But with this defense, it allows you to run and make more plays. It's not near the structure of how you have to play within the scheme. You get to let your athletic ability take over.”
Super Bowl redux
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones only beat Indianapolis by a vote of 17-15 in last week’s 2011 Super Bowl vote, and the tightness is a strong indicator of the divide between the big-market and small-market owners. Jones won because his new stadium will be able to have 30,000 more fans attend the championship game, whereas Indianapolis wowed many owners with a $25 million pot to alleviate any NFL expenses for the game.
There was a time, long, long ago when the Super Bowl went to the best city and venue. But when the late Pete Rozelle was commissioner, many cities began to include financial perks to the league to land the all-important game. I can remember writing in the mid-1980s the “selling of the Super Bowl” when Miami out-spent San Diego for the rights to XXIII, and Rozelle pulled me aside to explain the financial situation. The cities started by bidding a couple million dollars 20 years ago to now where Indy was prepared to spend $25 million simply to buy the NFL’s most-prestigious event.
It shows how valuable the game is to any city. And, also, how valuable the Super Bowl is to the NFL.
Hester looks great
The experiment never worked at the U. of Miami, but Chicago’s super return man, Devin Hester, looked like a natural at receiver in recent mini-camp work. The first two days of camp, he didn’t drop a pass. He ran solid, crisp routes and, basically, had his teammates and coaches raving about him.
Give head coach Lovie Smith high marks for convincing Hester to junk cornerback for being a wide receiver.
“It was more exciting than I really thought it would be,” Hester said. “Whenever a player gets his hands on the ball and knows what he can do with it, it's a lot of fun.”
After the catch, Hester routinely made players miss. The new dimension should be great for Rex Grossman and also alleviate the frustration that Hester, who returned six kicks for touchdowns last season, will face when punters and kickers kick away from during the season. The Bears needed to find a way for Hester to get more touches.
On kickoffs, Hester will be paired with safety Danieal Manning, former college kickoff specialist, in hopes they can form a 1-2 punch. He will still wear No. 23 and be listed as a running back/receiver.
Reggie helps again
Saints running back Reggie Bush matched his original $50,000 to Holy Rosary High School last year, which helped keep the school for learning-challenged youth open. Bush presented the New Orleans’ school with his second $50,000 gift last Friday.
“After last year, they did such a great job, and what they do is so important,” Bush said. “This is a school that needs to stay open.”
Holy Rosary serves the needs of students who face learning challenges in a typical classroom environment. The school offers hands-on learning and cross-curricula that is designed to provide students with alternative ways to learn mainstream subjects in a smaller classroom setting.
When I telephoned Jimmy Johnson this morning he was out fishing, which is his daily routine down in the Florida Keys.
Yes, Jimmy and Chargers owner Dean Spanos are good friends and if Jimmy wanted to coach, Dean would probably hire him in a New York second. But like Rhonda, Jimmy’s wife told me, Johnson is through with coaching. Jimmy has told me that a thousand times even though we both have laughed at all the money he’s turned down through the years.
Before the late John Butler hired Marty Schottenheimer, Spanos and Butler flew to the Keys to woo Jimmy and try to convince him to coach the Chargers. That was five years ago and, believe me, nothing has changed with Jimmy. He said no then and he knows that the daily NFL grind is too much to handle now, even if offered $10 million a year.
What Spanos and general manager A.J. Smith did yesterday, firing Schottenheimer, ranks as one of more bizarre front-office cases in recent NFL history.
Smith and Schottenheimer haven’t spoken to each other in more than a year. I wrote Schottenheimer was history if he lost in the playoffs, but the San Diego brain trust changed its mind and kept him for one final lame-duck season. What is so weird is that this relationship didn’t suddenly change simply because Marty wanted to hire his brother, Kurt, as defensive coordinator. And, who knows, Marty may have wanted to force their hands, knowing that being fired (and collecting his $3.7 million) might have been the result of trying to hire Kurt while also allowing so many good assistant coaches to take jobs elsewhere.
I mean, the 2007 season wasn’t going to be the greatest in Schottenheimer’s career, considering his relationship with Smith and the odds against actually winning 14 games once again.
This is why Spanos made a huge mistake in retaining Marty. He should have terminated Marty so that Smith could have elevated Wade Phillips into the job before Wade left last week to become head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. I mean, what a lost opportunity that was.
Remember, Smith was the one who hired Phillips and made him the defensive coordinator in San Diego, not Marty. Smith wanted to do the same thing as Schottenheimer attempted to put together a new staff, having lost his top four assistants.
There is no doubt that this could be one of the best jobs in the NFL -- if you can co-exist with Smith -- because the Chargers have three young stars in LaDainian Tomlinson, Philip Rivers and Shawne Merriman. Plus, who doesn’t want to work in San Diego. Schottenheimer just loves his ocean-view home there. And no matter your opinion of Smith, he and Buddy Nix rank among the top five personnel evaluators in the league right now. Heck, they could be No. 1.
Rex Ryan, Baltimore’s talented defensive coordinator, should top Smith’s list. Despite his background with a 4-3 defense, Chicago defensive coordinator Ron Rivera should also be on the interview list, considering his background in Buddy Ryan’s complicated and masterful 4-6 defense. The Chargers have a lot of talented defensive players and they should hire a defensive guy.
Good luck to Andy
Eagles coach Andy Reid, one of the real good guys in this game, is taking a leave of absence to deal with his two sons, Garrett and Britt, who both were stopped by police two weeks ago. Both sons apparently have drug problems, plus Britt was accused of pointing a gun at another driver after a traffic accident.
In situations like these, people want to point a finger at Reid for being an absentee father. But that isn’t the case; Andy has been active with his children. If he is guilty of anything, it is probably being too generous with his children, giving them freedom and not depriving them of anything. A lot of people in the league are hoping something very good comes out of Reid’s time at home.
Giant mess
We realize the Giants had to cut linebacker LaVar Arrington and left tackle Luke Petitgout loose on Monday for salary cap reasons. But doesn’t this team need Petitgout? When he wasn’t committing a dozen false start penalties in Seattle, Petitgout was a consistent blocker. Coming off an Achilles injury, Arrington might struggle. At least his future ability is cloudy at best.
But the bigger issue is how many free-agents want to come to New York with Tom Coughlin in a win-or-else situation? The Giants remain really close to reaching the Super Bowl if you believe in Eli Manning, but they need to replace these veteran players with proven talent, too.
Reinfeldt & personnel
Tennessee’s new general manager, Mike Reinfeldt, has been more of a salary-cap man and contract negotiator in his 20-plus years in the NFL. It remains unknown if Reinfeldt is going to have personnel power over head coach Jeff Fisher like Floyd Reese did in the past. But there is no question that Reinfeldt wants the personnel authority with the Titans based on his overture to Vincent Marino of the NFL’s Management Council to serve as his salary-cap man.
In Green Bay and Seattle, Reinfeldt never had the final say on any personnel matters. He is embarking on a new career, so to speak, and it will be interesting to see what unfolds in Tennessee. If he and Fisher can work together, it may all work out. But if Fisher still doesn’t have control over his 53-man roster why would he stay and sign a long-term contract?
Remember, outside of Bill Cowher, Fisher ranks as the most appealing of head coaches to a majority of NFL owners. Fisher would be a hot commodity on the open market next year.
Cowboys & Jerry
There is no question that the media support for Norv Turner in Dallas didn’t help his cause with Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. I think Jones was nervous about hiring Turner, who was close with Fort Worth columnist Randy Galloway and long-time Channel 8 sportscaster Dale Hansen. Both of these men have been covering the Cowboys since the days of Tom Landry, so they’ve seen it all.
New head coach Wade Phillips, like Turner, is being asked to retain several Cowboy assistant coaches from the Bill Parcells’ regime. This is never a good thing for a new head coach because those coaches, when trouble or controversy starts, tend to run to the boss, in this case Jerry Jones.
Their allegiances usually are to the owner who kept them employed, not the new head coach who was basically forced to keep them. This may not sound like a big deal, but it is within any coaching staff. Every assistant’s loyalties should be to the head coach, not the owner.
The Cowboys are looking at possibly matching up San Diego defensive coordinator Wade Phillips as their head coach, but only if they get Troy Aikman’s former backup, Jason Garrett, as offensive coordinator. Phillips is from Texas and his expertise is the 3-4 defense, the scheme that Bill Parcells installed.
Garrett has been the hot assistant coach for the past month. Nick Saban foolishly thought Garrett would follow him from Miami to Alabama while the Dolphins have wisely prevented him from interviewing elsewhere because new head coach Cam Cameron may want him to be his offensive coordinator.
What's really interesting is that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is also considering Garrett for the team's head coaching position. Jones, who remains close to Raiders owner Al Davis, may be taking a page out of Davis' playbook and going after the hot, young coaching candidate.
But the combination of Phillips and Garrett also makes a lot of sense because Jones really likes Garrett, who also has strong support from former coach Jimmy Johnson and Aikman. Phillips, though, is a wild card in all of this because many of the Cowboys’ front seven defenders are also suited for a 4-3 scheme.
Why not wait to interview Chicago defensive coordinator Ron Rivera?
Bears head coach Lovie Smith, who has one year remaining on his contract, has been linked to Big D, too, because he’s from Big Sandy, Tx. The Bears are currently involved in trying to figure out what kind of raise Smith deserves. It would be a horrible publicity mistake if Chicago actually traded Smith to Dallas for draft picks because they won’t pay him $5 million a season. Last week, the word was Smith would settle for $4.5 million before his team won the NFC championship.
Titans owner Bud Adams is on record that he won’t allow Jones to talk to his coach, Jeff Fisher, because he doesn’t want to part with him, even if he plans to install a GM over Fisher and give this new guy, just like he did with Floyd Reese, all the personnel power. Fisher finally gets rid of Reese and no way will be want to say and be bossed around by a new general manager?
The asking price for a head coach is pretty steep. Tampa Bay paid $8 million and two first-round and two second-round picks to Al Davis for Jon Gruden. Outside of winning a Super Bowl, that deal looks pretty poor these days. The Jets paid three top draft choices for Bill Parcells in 1997. The Patriots (a real bargain in today’s world) paid a mere first-round pick for Bill Belichick.
Now, I can see Jones parting with a first-round pick, but nothing more, for Fisher. He’d probably prefer a cash-only deal. And this is where Norv Turner fits the Cowboys.
If Jones can’t swing the Phillips-Garrett marriage, it makes a lot of sense for him to pay Turner $3 million (or whatever it would take) this season to be his head coach with the promise that he can collect the same amount of money in 2008 when Jones goes after Fisher or Bill Cowher. Turner would step down and be the offensive coordinator for whatever big-name coach Jones can hire or he can simply walk away with a huge severance check.
Let me say that money is no object to Jerry Jones. He’d rather write a check than swap his draft choices. The thinking is that Jerry wants to win badly and knows he needs the draft to keep his team in line for the playoffs.
The Turner scenario makes a lot of sense, especially if he doesn’t mind working for Cowher in 2008 as the game’s highest-paid coordinator. Cowher-Turner or Fisher-Turner, either one of these marriages, is definitely better, on paper, than what Daniel Snyder has paid in Washington.
Pats will have to pay
New England has been operating within its own budget for many successful seasons, but the AFC Championship game loss to Indianapolis exposed some holes in that once mighty defense. The Big Three — Tedy Bruchi, Richard Seymour and Mike Vrabel — didn’t produce any major plays while combing for 14 tackles and one sack. Instead, they couldn’t hold a 21-3 halftime lead over Peyton Manning. A year ago, that would have been blasphemous to say, Belichick’s defense blowing such a margin.
But cornerback Asante Samuel proved his worth. He limited Marvin Harrison to four receptions and basically evolved into a shut-down cornerback. Unlike Ty Law before him, Samuel just turned 26 and is a lot younger than what Law was (30) when he left the Patriots to join the Jets in 2005. Samuel’s best football is ahead of him and if the Patriots don’t pay, some team definitely will.
With Bruschi considering retirement and he and Vrabel aren’t getting any younger. Bruschi will 34 next season and Vrabel will be 32. Yes, they are both quality players, but age is suddenly a factor.
I believe that there is a chance that Bill Parcells will return as coach of the Dallas Cowboys next season regardless of Terrell Owens’ employment status with owner Jerry Jones.
T.O. coming back to Big D may not drive Parcells to retirement in Saratoga, N.Y., but a team that can’t win the big game just might. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a Dallas playoff-bound team be embarrassed in consecutive home games by the likes of Drew Brees and Jeff Garcia. The score count in those two losses: 65-24.
The New Orleans Saints, once the laughingstock of the NFL for their general incompetence, humiliated the Cowboys in Texas Stadium. Now, the “no-shot Eagles,” like Jimmy Johnson likes to say, were beaten by a quarterback Owens once outted as an unmanly man.
Several things doomed the Cowboys from having a merry Christmas:
One, Marion Barber finished with negative yards in three goal-line carries late in the first quarter. Hey, Parcells loves going for it on fourth down and Barber is one determined running back. But when the kid can’t gain a foot in two attempts against a supposedly porous Philadelphia run defense maybe a light should go on and say, ‘Hey, these Eagles may know our run calls better than we’re blocking right now.’ If Dallas kicks the field goal, the Eagles don’t gain street cred for being Christmas bullies.
Two, Tony Romo didn’t look like a Pro Bowl quarterback. Granted, the NFC doesn’t have many good quarterbacks this season, but Romo struggled with Philadelphia’s blitz pressure and misfired, completing less than 50 percent of his attempts for 142 yards and had two interceptions against a rejuvenated Eagles’ secondary.
Three, Owens dropped another huge third-down ball down the left sidelines, with the score 16-7 and the Cowboys in desperate need of a big play. Owens said the defender interfered with him and then complained about not seeing enough passes his way early in the game. The thing about Dallas is that Romo is going to the open man and not every Dallas play, based on his 16 dropped passes this season, can be earmarked for Owens.
Packers need computer error
Supposedly, the Packers have a chance at the final NFC wild-card berth even if the New York Giants beat Washington this Saturday and the Packers upset division rival Chicago. I don’t see how. I mean, there would have to be a computer glitch or something.
Right now, the Giants have beaten seven teams who have won 46 games. The Packers have beaten six teams (Minnesota twice) who have won 33 games. And this is when the so-called strength of victory category that will come into play. Even by collecting 13 wins by beating the Bears, the Giants will collect 5 more wins by beating the Redskins. They’ll collect another win when Philadelphia and Atlanta play (they’ve beaten both of those teams) and there’s no way that Dallas will lose to Detroit. The Eagles swept the Cowboys.
To me, the Giants are in — even though I'm not sure they deserve to be going anywhere but home at the end of the season — by simply beating the Redskins.
One more year
It is looking more and more like Lions GM Matt Millen will return for one final season. Owner William Clay Ford hasn’t tipped his hand or said anything publicly on the subject, but Millen’s fate is probably hinged to head coach Rod Marinelli. Ford likes Marinelli and his no-nonsense approach to the players. Millen hired Marinelli and Ford probably thinks that it’s too early to dump Marinelli, who does have confidence in Millen.
One more year for Millen may make the rest of the NFL jealous of his status and salary, but that’s the way it goes in Motown.
Christmas Day afterthoughts
Please give safety Brian Dawkins as much credit as Jeff Garcia for this Philadelphia surge down the stretch.
Eric Mangini, the shocking hire of the season, proved not to be a youthful experiment by the Jets and transformed a winless road team into a 6-2 team this season. Simply amazing. Mangini should be the No. 1 challenge to Sean Payton for Coach of the Year.
No wonder Bill Parcells didn’t totally endorse Tony Romo’s Pro Bowl selection. The first-year starter is suddenly looking like an undrafted quarterback from Eastern Illinois.
Phil Simms knows better. And, by now, so should Chris Simms.
Does Phil really want his son playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next season? And why would the Bucs want Chris? He’s proven to be a very average West Coast quarterback and he needs to find a team with an offense like the one Norv Turner is operating in San Francisco. Chris needs a solid running game to allow him to throw deep off of play action.
Simms won’t under throw Joey Galloway like rookie Bruce Gradkowski did last Thursday in Texas Stadium. But he also can’t escape from pressure like Bucs coach Jon Gruden has pointed out repeatedly like Gradkowski.
I thought everyone named Simms was upset with the Bucs regarding how Chris ruptured against the Carolina Panthers and then needed four blood transfusions while doctors removed his spleen afterward. The critical situation was touch and go for Chris.
In his last six starts, Simms averaged 195 yards passing a game and was a 58 percent passer while throwing five touchdowns with nine interceptions.
“The bottom line in what happened in that game,” said a NFC general manager, “is that Chris got hurt in the first quarter and kept playing on. Out of it, I know two things. That no one should ever dare call Chris not tough and that Jon Gruden will want to be involved in trying to get (Notre Dame’s) Brady Quinn.”
Cowher & Wolfpack?
The next rumor we are going to hear is that Steelers coach Bill Cowher will be the head coach at North Carolina State next season. Heck, it makes sense because Cowher’s family is already living near campus in Raleigh, N.C.
Now, Cowher knows that coaching in college is a LOT easier than dealing with professional players. But I can’t see him doing that. I can seem him retiring and relaxing for a season or two, waiting for Joe Gibbs to retire in Washington or for the some other rich owner to offer him what Mike Holmgren collects in Seattle.
Proehl Makes Sense
Ricky Proehl makes a lot of sense for the Indianapolis Colts because he is a realiable receiver who probably runs closer to a tight end than a speedy wide receiver these days.
The Colts could be minus Dallas Clark for more than a few games and Proehl could fill that void. If the Colts ever get Brandon Stokley back (high ankle sprain), Peyton Manning will have more than enough weapons to keep on winning.
One head case for another
Cowboys coach Bill Parcells is stepping out onto a pretty thin branch with the acquisition of Martin Gramatica.
We all know what a head case Mike Vanderjagt had become, but Gramatica lost his job in Tampa Bay because he was no more reliable than Vanderjagt was for the Cowboys. Gramatica missed six attempts between 30 and 39 yards in 12 attempts and even one attempt inside 30 yards. He was a 60 percent kicker in his last two seasons with Tampa Bay after winning a Super Bowl.
And here’s hoping Gramatica doesn’t pull a hamstring celebrating a game-winning kick for Parcells like he did for Jon Gruden.
Mooch to Arizona?
Phoenix isn’t California, but it’s only a short Southwest flight away.
I’m positive that’s what former head coach Steve Mariucci is thinking should the Arizona Cardinals come a calling. Mooch, who is a pregame analyst with the NFL Network, still is being paid by the Detroit Lions, but the Arizona job might lure him out of retirement.
Granted, the Cardinals have their hearts set on USC’s Pete Carroll, but I simply don’t see Carroll leaving the Trojans where he’s close to $4 million a season. Carroll has been through the NFL and he knows he probably has the best job in college football.
Nothing against Columbus, Ohio, but there is better weather and more to do in Los Angeles than Ohio.
The Cowboys have no choice but to stick with Tony Romo. They proved Monday night that they can’t protect Drew Bledsoe, plus the 14-year veteran proved that he’s still capable of making rookie-like mistakes like his silly interception to Sam Madison when Terry Glenn was never open at the end of the first half.
The other shocking revelation about the Cowboys is that they sure look like frauds on defense. In training camp, the defense looked awesome. Coach Bill Parcells believed his defense would be dominant. In fact, good enough to overcome Bledsoe’s miscues from game to game.
But Parcells was also aware that Romo was more athletic and definitely had an NFL arm. The worry since March was that Dallas didn’t have the offensive line to protect Bledsoe. Well, that theory has definitely come to fruition. The O-line proved that in the opening-season loss in Jacksonville. Remember, Bledsoe’s middle name is Statue.
Perhaps, that’s when Parcells should have made the switch to Romo. Yes, after the loss to the Jaguars. Conversely, it sure looked like a panicky move at halftime, down only five points to the Giants, on Monday night. Parcells was looking for a spark and instead Romo threw three interceptions, two of them mistakes that some playing-time experience could cure. Like Parcells said, Romo played careless with the football at times.
The Cowboys are up against it now in the NFC East. The Giants are now in control, plus Dallas has also lost to Philadelphia.
Does anyone think Bledsoe can survive Carolina’s pass rush on Sunday night? Romo can buy some time with his feet. But he needs all the practice repetitions this week and Bledsoe needs to stick around – don’t take his football and go home – and quit talking about retiring because he was benched.
Pretty weak argument
When the NFL realized a couple seasons ago that players were purchasing store-bought supplements that resulted in positive tests for performance-enhancing substances, the league did a generous thing and gave players a free pass on ephedrine and other dietary supplements for a year. They worked in conjunction with the Players Association on safe and legal supplements that anyone can buy in their local GNC stores. Those products have the league’s stamp of approval on them.
Players being players still buy bottles of supplements that aren’t approved. In those cases, all the player has to do is bring the product to their team trainers. The trainers can either check the list of ingredients or have the supplement tested for illegal substances. It’s pretty simple. I mean, who wouldn’t have something checked before ingesting a bunch of pills or mixing an unknown powdery substance if it meant losing your job or paychecks in the hundreds of thousands of dollars?
The Chargers’ Shawne Merriman was caught with nandrolone, a banned steroid substance, in his system. He and David Cornwell, his attorney, claim it came from a tainted over-the-counter supplement. Merriman’s argument is “why would I do anything wrong? I’m already in the spotlight?”
Give me a break.
What I would like to hear Merriman say is this: “Yes, I made a mistake. I took something I shouldn’t have. I should have had it tested. Heck, I’m a millionaire. I could have hired my own pharmacist to make sure I wasn’t taking nandrolone or anything else that is banned.”
Big Ben should play
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has said that he suffered a concussion when knocked out in the Atlanta game on Sunday. The Steelers and Coach Bill Cowher have listed their star quarterback, who returned to the sidelines after the hit and seemed fine to a lot of players, as questionable for Sunday’s game in Oakland.
Granted, the Steelers may be able to beat the Raiders without Roethlisberger, but there are people close to the team who believe Ben can play if he wants to. A lot of his teammates will be keeping a close watch on what Ben decides to do.
Another interesting tidbit is that the NFL office didn’t believe that the Falcons’ Chauncey Davis’ tackle of Roethlisberger wasn’t a helmet-to-helmet hit based on a New York Times report. Falcons Coach Jim Mora believes Davis will not be fined for lowering his head and decking Roethlisberger.
There were several bad penalties called against the Steelers in that game, including a dubious false start penalty on the final play that cost Pittsburgh a chance to attempt a game-winning field goal.
“These officials should be ashamed of themselves," Steelers chairman Dan Rooney said. “That last call, you don't call that kind of call.”
What do Cardinals do?
OK, Denny Green is probably safe for the rest of the season. But Green does admit that he has talented personnel and that the Arizona Cardinals shouldn’t be 1-6. This is what the boss’s son, Michael Bidwill, believes, too.
The Bidwills have this habit of preferring not to pay an expensive head coach for not working. But at the end of the season, Green’s fate will be sealed by how the Cardinals perform in the final nine games. If the losing continues, you can bet Bidwill will make a run at USC head coach Pete Carroll. There are no guarantees that Carroll will ever leave USC. He’s well paid and his program, based on his recruiting skills, will probably always rank in the top five nationally.
But the Cardinals can easily offer Carroll total control of the football operations. And wouldn’t it be interesting having him coach his former Heisman quarterback Matt Leinart once again?
The Cowboys are too good to be 2-2. That’s what I believe, anyway.
But you have to tip your hat to the Philadelphia Eagles coaching staff and to quarterback Donovan McNabb. The Eagles out-schemed the Cowboys and McNabb performed marvelously under pressure and made touchdown throws to virtual unknowns that many thought were not possible.
McNabb correctly predicted the cornerback blitz on Sunday, a Dallas defensive play that isolated rookie receiver Hank Baskett on a safety. McNabb bought himself enough time in the pocket to complete a 50-yard throw. It was the play of the game, second only to McNabb’s earlier touchdown throw to Reggie Brown, who was covered by both Dallas safeties. Pro Bowl safety Roy Williams lost the flight of the ball because he basically did a 180-degree turn, the unnecessary movement just enough to get him out of position and prevent him from either intercepting or tipping the ball away.
Jim Johnson’s defense shot both center-guard gaps to get into Drew Bledsoe’s face all game long. Bledsoe was under siege most of the time. Still, Bledsoe made the big throw that had the Cowboys in position to tie the game at the end. Eagles safety Michael Lewis admitted he had no choice but to drag the intended receiver down for a 57-yard pass interference penalty.
This is partly why Bill Parcells is sticking with Bledsoe. Yes, maybe Tony Romo could have escaped some of Philadelphia’s pressure. But would he have made all the throws and won the game?
The bottom line in Dallas is that Parcells knows that if he rushes now to bench Bledsoe, the old quarterback may retire on the spot. I mean pack his bags and retire and with his wife and kids. He doesn’t need the money.
Bledsoe is a good man and he deserves every opportunity. If he can’t get the job done, he’ll realize it when Parcells does. The fans in Dallas, starting with Terrell Owens, believe Bledsoe has had bad games in the two Dallas defeats.
We are assuming Bledsoe will beat the Texans on Sunday. His deciding game will be Monday night at home against the Giants. He and the Cowboys must beat the Giants.
Protecting Rex
Yes, the Bears sure do look unbeatable. And there are some interesting statistics to support their 5-0 start.
First, quarterback Rex Grossman has been sacked the fewest times, or 2.6 percent of the time he drops back to throw. With the protection, Grossman has delivered. The Bears are converting 48 percent of their third-and-long plays or second-best in the NFL thus far. They trail only Peyton Manning and the Colts. Last season, despite winning 11 games, they were next-to-last in the league on third-and-long. Only the 49ers were worse.
Speaking of third-down conversions, the Carolina Panthers are 11 of 48 on the season after going 0-for-11 against mighty Cleveland on Sunday. Only – guess who? – the Raiders are worse.
Moss on the move?
Ok, the Raiders have had internal discussions about trading unhappy receiver Randy Moss, who is simply frustrated with offensive coordinator Tom Walsh’s offense. But it doesn’t look like Moss will be traded because the Raiders need to get more than simply a first-round draft pick as compensation.
But you have to wonder if the Seahawks and Falcons wouldn’t rather have Moss than Deion Branch and Ashley Lelie, respectively. The one team that Moss would help immediately is the Pittsburgh Steelers. He would open up that offense and definitely help Ben Roethlisberger. Big Ben is currently on his worse streak as a pro, losing three straight while producing zero touchdown passes with seven interceptions.
Former Vikings coach Mike Tice has pointed out those same possibilities to the people in Jacksonville. Moss does force teams to account for him everywhere, whether he’s giving effort or not. But teams like the Steelers don’t make trades like that. Neither do the Chicago Bears.
Bargain shoppers
Without a salary-cap hit, the Broncos simply went with the cheaper punter in Paul Ernster, whose salary is $302,590. Todd Sauerbrun’s salary for this season is $1.39 million or $82,059 every week over the course of a 17-week season. Even if Sauerbrun needed steroids or some other illegal supplement to help heal some injuries, how many teams want to risk a punter with two strikes against him?
Jets groaning
When you lose 41-0, like the Jets did on Sunday, there’s going to be a lot of moaning and groaning. Well, Laveranues Coles popped off Sunday about his lack of playing time and the face he only had three receptions for 19 yards. He entered the game against Jacksonville tied for the NFL receptions lead with 30. But how can you have any sympathy for Coles, who has had 50 passes thrown his way in five games? That’s the third-highest amount in the NFL behind only Torry Holt and Marvin Harrison.
Birthday boy
Happy Birthday to Brett Favre, who turns 37 today. But probably feels like 47, what with the pinched neck nerve and those four losses. Plus, Coach Mike McCarthy isn’t giving his players the week off like Mike Holmgren did last week in Seattle.
When examining Chicago’s schedule it makes total sense that 12 victories is a slam dunk unless their mauling of proud Seattle was a fluke. And I doubt that. Granted, they can’t afford for Brian Urlacher to get injured, but they may even be able to win another eight games without Rex Grossman. Then again, they won’t advance far in the playoffs without Rex.
John Madden said it best when he compared Grossman’s gambling style to that of Brett Favre’s. Grossman would rather go deep, risk the rewards of a big play rather than play it safe and dump it off for a measly five-yard gain. Grossman is all about going downtown.
The defense can’t be compared to the ’85 Bears merely because this is a different era and the styles are totally different. This team overall does appear to be a little quicker, but the ’85 Bears also had better outside pass rushers and also a smart, tackling machine in Mike Singletary. The safeties loved to hit and both were playmakers. Buddy Ryan was a defensive genius and he had all the right pieces to wreck havoc with the finest offenses of that era.
There is no question that Seattle, the reigning NFC champion, missed MVP Shaun Alexander and all-world guard Steve Hutchinson last Sunday. Seattle’s coaches will tell you that once they got into a passing game with the Bears, quarterback Matt Hasselbeck reverted to past mistakes and simply became unglued. It’s understandable, though, considering the tremendous inside pressure applied by Bears tackle Tommie Harris.
“What we weren’t expecting is how good Grossman played and that No. 80 (receiver Bernard Berrian),” said a Seahawks coach.
The Hutchinson story won’t die in the Northwest because the Seahawks really would rather pound the ball with Alexander (he may be back in two weeks) than evolve into a passing team. They really don’t want to live by the four-receiver formation. After this week’s bye, look for Deion Branch will be starting ahead of Nate Burleson.
Back to the Bears, though, their schedule is simply too easy, considering the weakness of the NFC North and three more games against the NFC West. They simply need to survive one weird three-game road stretch in November when they visit the Meadowlands for consecutive games against the Giants and Jets followed by a visit to New England on Nov. 26.
What the Bears have right now is potentially the tiebreaker for home-field advantage with the Seahawks because the good teams in the East and South figure to beat each other up.
Irate Dungy
Colts coach Tony Dungy was extremely upset with how the officiating crew in the Meadowlands last Sunday allowed the Jets to substitute in their no-huddle offense while preventing the Colts to do the same as Chad Pennington was permitted to rush his team to the line of scrimmage. The Colts were forced to use two timeouts in order to make their substitutions.
Dungy was planning to unleash Peyton Manning and Co. with similar tactics this Sunday against the Titans merely to prove a point. Dungy has never broken “the spirit” of the no-huddle rule even though his offense is the NFL’s best equipped to operate such a style. The league sent out a directive on Thursday that offenses will be warned – like the Jets should have been – for preventing the defense to substitute if they substitute. An offensive team will be penalized 15 yards if they do it a second time.
Only in the NFL does a player like receiver Koren Robinson appear in a Washington state court room for a probation violation and be allowed to serve his 90-day sentence in the off-season at the prison site of his choice (he must pay for his own incarceration if he does that) and then return to practice a day after sentencing with the Green Bay Packers. Robinson has also filed a grievance against the Vikings for releasing him after his August DUI arrest. And the Vikings could lose because they probably did waive him for his conduct rather than his playing performance.
In San Diego, safety Terrence Kiel, who supposedly has financial problems, is back practicing and playing while free on a $160,000 bond after being arrested by federal drug agents for shipping codeine-laced cough syrup across state lines.
Philly circus
Yes, it should be a circus in Philadelphia on Sunday with fans paying ten to 20 times the face value of tickets in order to witness the return of Terrell Owens to the City of Brotherly Love. It could get funny or ugly depending on your sense of humor. There are reports that four Eagle fans plan to dress in white nurse outfits and pelt Owens with generic pills when he steps onto the field.
The T.O. show
On Wednesday in the Dallas locker room, the media horde encircled Owens while four lockers away receiver Terry Glenn, their leading receiver, was basically ignored. That’s life with the Cowboys or any team that employs Owens.
Panther pride
Several Carolina players, including some of the coaches, felt that Saints linebacker Scott Fujita deliberately went after receiver Steve Smith’s legs last Sunday. Smith appeared to be sandwiched by two defenders with Fujita going low. Fujita, however, apologized to Smith immediately, saying he lost his balance and wasn’t trying to injure the star receiver. Smith apparently accepted the apology.
Scene of the crime
Jets quarterback Chad Pennington returns to Jacksonville this Sunday where he re-injured his surgically repaired right shoulder last season. Pennington hasn’t forgotten the hit by Jaguars defensive end Paul ####er. A photograph of ####er’s quarterback sack sits on Pennington’s desk at home.
Not a surprise
Panthers center Justin Hartwig was shocked by the foot stomping act of the Titans’ Albert Haynesworth on Andre Gurode of the Cowboys, but he wasn’t a least bit surprised. Before signing this year with Carolina, Hartwig was a teammate of Haynesworth for four seasons and had his own run-in with the defensive tackle.
“He's a guy that isn't in very good control of his emotions,” Hartwig said. “When he's getting beat he tends to lose control of his emotions and he gets irrational and he doesn't think straight.”
In training camp one year, Hartwig was blocking Haynesworth in a pass-rush drill. Haynesworth bull-rushed Hartwig over and then with the center on his knees, Haynesworth reared back and kicked Hartwig in the chest.
“I tried to grab his foot when he kicked me,” Hartwig said. “I was going to dump him on his back, but when I tried to pick up his foot one of the other offensive linemen came in and cleared him out. So it was basically a brawl after that.”
Panthers receiver Keyshawn Johnson said he never in his 11 seasons in the NFL had ever seen such an assault on another player. Keyshawn added that Haynesworth should have been suspended for the whole season. “I wouldn’t want him on my team,” Keyshawn said. “I’m not playing with a dude doing that on my team.”
Hartwig said he steered clear of Haynesworth off the field. He said there were incidents in practices with Haynesworth every year, accusing him of punching teammates when they weren’t looking.
“He’s just the kind of guy I stayed away from,” Hartwig said. “He just kind of loses his mind sometimes. That’s just him. I don’t put anything past the guy. He was reprimanded for things by the club in the past. A lot of it didn’t get out to the media.”
By Sunday we will be tired of hearing about T.O.’s return to Philadelphia, but what really matters is what kind of team is Philadelphia going to put on the field to face the vastly-improved Dallas Cowboys?
Believe me, the Eagles will be hard-pressed to beat the Cowboys if cornerbacks Lito Sheppard and Rod Hood are sidelined once again. It's one thing stopping the Green Bay Packers with NFL Europe star Joselio Hanson and Dexter Wynn playing in the secondary and quite another asking those guys to shutdown Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn.
Yes, the Eagles have scored 24 or more points in four consecutive games, but do you think they can hit that magic number once again without Brian Westbrook, Donte Stallworth and Reggie Brown? I mean, there is nobody in the Green Bay secondary that could start for the Cowboys. Well, maybe safety Nick Collins.
Westbrook’s inflamed right knee kept him on the sidelines Monday night and Stallworth left the game with a sore hamstring. Brown has a bruised shoulder.
The good news is that Greg Lewis, a former buddy of T.O.’s in Philadelphia, snapped out a slump with touchdown catches of 45 and 30 yards to break open a tight game with Green Bay in the third quarter. Eagles coach Andy Reid has had high hopes for Lewis and he finally delivered. Who knows if Lewis will play under control on Sunday?
Considering this game is as much about Donovan McNabb as it is Owens, fans should recognize that McNabb has played pretty well (138 attempts without an interception and second-lowest --2.17 -- interception ratio in league history) this season. Can McNabb, who definitely was questioned by some teammates over the feud with Owens, win this grudge game without a full complement of receivers, primarily Westbrook?
The word in Philly is that Westbrook rested Monday in order to give himself a chance to play the Cowboys.
Colts' special teams woes
Colts coach Tony Dungy needs to fix his special teams, but regardless of those concerns his team has showed a remarkable grittiness considering how many starters are ####ed up on defense.
Internally, though, the club is scratching its head on why defensive tackle Corey Simon, who was paid a ton of money to leave the Eagles, hasn’t dressed since arthroscopic left knee surgery almost two months ago. Simon continues to have more tests while Colts GM Bill Polian continues to say, “We just don’t know when he’ll be back.”
The Colts aren’t even sure he’ll play in three or four weeks in conference showdown games with Denver and New England. Believe me, there is some impatience in the front office with Simon.
Speaking of the Colts, New England running back Laurence Maroney was the player Polian wanted to draft in the first round and then the Colts tried to make a deal with Chicago (the Bears eventually traded with Buffalo) for its first-round pick, eyeing Carolina’s DeAngelo Williams. Maroney is off to a tremendous start in New England; just think how good he’d be in Indianapolis.
Kudos to the new commish
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell deserves high marks for suspending Tennessee defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth for five games without pay. His loss will further hurt the winless Titans while leaving the player short $190,000, an unprecedented amount and time for an on-field incident.
I said Sunday night that the financial punishment should start at $150,000, so Goodell went beyond that. The union and Haynesworth may appeal the punishment, but the league will vigorously defend its case against the player. Goodell and the league won’t back down.
There are enough physical traumas on the football field with injuries and concussions – just look at Chris Simms and Trent Green and Dan Morgan -- without condoning one player assaulting a defenseless player, which was exactly the case in Tennessee on Sunday.
Moss just doesn't care
Who knows what’s really going in Oakland, but Randy Moss sounded like he couldn't care less about the Raiders’ sad state of affairs on his weekly Fox Sports radio show. Moss was criticized by reporters for failing to make an effort on a deep pass and again for not contesting two other throws during Sunday’s loss to Cleveland. Moss basically said that he isn’t the only unhappy soul in the Raiders’ locker room, which makes you start wondering if the team shouldn’t make some trades and clean house a little.
Everyone’s heard that the Raiders might be interested in Chris Simms if the Bucs don’t sign him to a free-agent contract, but who says Simms would want to be in Oakland?
Mario gets his sack
It was great seeing No. 1 pick Mario Williams finally get a sack in the NFL and get excited. In fact, Williams finished with 1 ½ sacks of Daunte Culpepper last Sunday. But both plays were simply hustle plays by Williams. It wasn’t like he whacked an offensive tackle off his stride or put a Julius Peppers-like move on a Miami blocker. After neither play did I hear anyone say, "Wow, look at that!"
In fact, he was smiling and made a point of thanking the paramedics and the doctors who took care of him, claiming that he simply had an allergic reaction to a mixture of pain medication and legal supplements he took.
“The rumor of me taking 35 (pain) pills is absurd,” Owens said. “And it’s definitely untrue that I had my stomach pumped.”
Kim Etheridge, T.O.’s personal publicist, had a harder time explaining her alleged comments that she told police that her client was depressed. Owens said that Etheridge didn’t know that the rest of his pain pills were placed in a drawer and that’s why the bottle was empty.
“She made the (emergency) call out of her judgment,” Owens said.
Owens said he planned to practice Thursday and apparently was taking passes from both Drew Bledsoe and Tony Romo on Wednesday after practice.
This story hasn’t made sense since I first heard it at 10 p.m. Tuesday. There is no question that Owens has been a troubled player during his career in his search for either a better contract or a better team in order to maximize his image. But there seems to be no end to the distractions. This entire incident sounds totally plausible, but we all know there are fans who really don't know what to believe.
Now, if Owens can convince Bill Parcells and the team’s physicians that he’s all right, mentally and physically, I bet he plays on Sunday in Tennessee.
“I’m not depressed by any means,” Owens said. “I’m here to get this team on a roll. I was just kind of out of it.”
Yep, that's what Cowboys head coach Bill Parcells said about Terrell Owens, his $10 million receiver.
Parcells said he hadn't spoken with T.O. last night or today and that he basically didn't know whether Owens actually attempted suicide Tuesday evening. "Most of the people here probably know more than I do," Parcells said, referring to reporters at his press conference. "I really don't think this is a team distraction. I think this is simply an unfortunate set of circumstances."
Parcells said that he needed to get a clearer picture of what really is happening with Owens and said that he didn't believe his team was distracted during its two-hour practice this morning.
"I know it's a story, but you're talking to someone who doesn't have the best working knowledge of the subject," Parcells said.
Parcells was asked if the team ever considered any psychological tests of Owens prior to signing him.
"Look, you're going into places I'm not going," the coach replied. Parcells also said that he would listen to his medical staff's opinion on Owens before considering whether to play him this weekend in Tennessee.
Believe me, it is shocking that almost 18 hours after such a bizarre incident that Parcells hadn't spoken to Owens. And if Jerry Jones has spoken with Owens, the Cowboys owner wasn't saying. Jones wasn't made available.
The latest T.O. story doesn't make sense. The Cowboys haven't pressured Terrell Owens to perform; he's the one who has demanded the spotlight and reached for the $10 million check for this season. He's the one who has told us how great he is. He's the one who wanted out of San Francisco and Philadelphia.
However, there is no question that both the 49ers and the Eagles asked the star wide receiver to undergo counseling or even take certain psychological tests simply to have a better understanding of the player's mood swings and unexplainable actions. They wanted to help T.O.
"One on one he was a really good person to be around when he was with us," said one executive. "But in a team setting, he wasn't always the same guy. He was just different. It's hard to explain. He became jealous of our quarterback. It didn't make sense how he acted or what he would say. We couldn't figure what he really wanted."
At the moment, everybody else is in denial.
Spokesmen for the Dallas police and Dallas Fire and Rescue and his publicist, Kim Etheridge, are basically either declining to comment or flatly denying a Dallas television report that Owens made a suicide attempt last evening. For the cops, their best explanation is that attempted suicide is not a criminal offense nor does it require further investigation.
But WFAA in Dallas got its hands on a preliminary police report that stated Owens had ingested as many as 35 prescription pain pills and that a 911 call was made by his publicist Kim Etheridge.
"This is a medical situation," said Lt. Rick Watson, spokesman for the Dallas Police Department.
The Cowboys are not ruling out that Owens could return to practice on Thursday and that there remains a possibility he could play Sunday in Tennessee. Owens did catch some passes on Tuesday and then complained of more pain. Owens has a broken bone below the knuckle of his right hand.
According to sources, Kim Etheridge was the one who telephoned 911 asking for an ambulance and help for Owens. Owens has been released from Baylor University Medical Center and is expected to have a press conference later today.
Redskins owner Daniel Snyder was in the news last week by coming to the financial aid (First and Goal LLC production company) of actor Tom Cruise, who was bounced by Paramount Studios. But the rest of the NFL also turned heads when Forbes magazine listed Snyder’s Redskins tops again with a value of $1.423 billion.
When Snyder bought the Redskins, beating out John Cooke, the late owner’s son, in 1999 for $800 million, the sports world took notice. There also was a huge gasp because few believed an NFL team was worth that much. A lot of people, including myself, thought Snyder had paid way too much.
But then no franchise works harder at marketing and selling tickets than the Redskins. Remember, Snyder was able to secure more than $200 million from FedEx for the naming rights of Jack Kent Cooke Stadium.
Snyder, who has forever done everything in a big way, is having the last laugh. Snyder has set the market for franchises and the value of head coaches. He paid Steve Spurrier $5 million a season when no one believed the old ball coach would ever leave Florida. He reportedly is paying Joe Gibbs close to $6 million to coach this season.
He signed Deion Sanders and Bruce Smith at the end of their primes. His coaching staff also has the league’s two highest-paid assistants in Gregg Williams and Al Saunders, at $2.6 and $2 million, respectively. By comparison, the Bears pay head coach Lovie Smith $1.2 million a year and he was NFL Coach of the Year last season.
Now, if Snyder can find a buyer for his Redskins, he can almost double his investment.
Forbes listed New England, Dallas, Houston and Philadelphia as the other franchises worth more than $1 billion.
Interest in Branch
The New England Patriots could be in trouble because it’s always difficult to predict what an arbitrator will rule. But Deion Branch’s agent was able to secure a long-term contract worth between $36 and $39 million from the New York Jets and there’s a good chance that Seattle would match that offer if asked to surrender only a second-round pick.
The Patriots have been asking for a first-rounder and more. Still, the team gave its word to Branch that they would consider a trade if he could beat the Patriots’ last contract offer. He did that by securing about $23 million in the first three years. The Pats’ final offer was basically $19 million over four.
There have been three recent trades of wide receivers. Two players were moved for third-round picks while Javon Walker, whose best single season is better than anything Branch ever did, was traded to Denver by the Packers for a second-round pick. The Walker trade could serve as a precedent for any Branch decision. Then again, how can an arbitrator force the Patriots to trade Branch, who is under contract and has been a holdout all summer?
The Seahawks are interested because top receiver Darrell Jackson (left knee) hasn’t practiced much this summer and the club doesn’t know how productive he will be this season.
