Pac-Man Jones is going to take a major hit in the wallet now that commissioner Roger Goodell has suspended him for the year without pay. But let's talk about the other people who will be heavily affected by this decision: The Tennessee Titans players, coaches and fans.
Remember how good everybody felt about the Tennessee Titans at the end of last season? There's now very little chance of that carrying over into 2007. Pac-Man Jones was a major distraction, but he was also the best player on that team. He wasn't a year or two away from being a shutdown corner -- he already was a shutdown corner, the best one in the NFL outside of Denver.
Our game charting numbers for 2006 are now very close to complete; we're missing eight games out of the entire season. Look at how Pac-Man Jones rated compared to the league's other corners.
Yards allowed per pass attempt (minimum 48 passes)
Pac-Man Jones, TEN: 5.4 yds/att
Jason Craft, NO: 5.5 yds/att
R.W. McQuarters, NYG: 5.6 yds/att
Walt Harris, SF: 5.9 yds/att
Nate Vasher, CHI: 5.9yds/att
Champ Bailey, DEN: 5.9 yds/att
Nick Harper, IND: 6.0 yds/att
Asante Samuel, NE: 6.2 yds/att
Stop rate (stopping plays short of 40% of yards on first, 60% on second, 100% on third)
Jason Craft, NO: 64%
Pac-Man Jones, TEN: 63%
Al Harris, GB: 62%
Champ Bailey, DEN: 61%
Courtland Finnegan, TEN: 61%
Charles Tillman, CHI: 60%
Mike McKenzie, NO: 60%
Chris McAlister, BAL: 60%
The Titans can take some solace in the fact that they already signed Nick Harper to be Pac-Man's partner if he stayed, and Pac-Man's replacement if he was suspended. But Harper allowed very few yards per pass in part because people were throwing ahead of him in zone coverage (we count those passes as half-credit). Courtland Finnegan is promising, but at 48 passes he barely hits the minimum here. Like Jason Craft and Mike McKenzie R.W. McQuarters (sorry about the earlier mistake, Saints fans -- Aaron), he's a nickel back usually facing lesser receivers. The other names here are practically a who's who of the best cornerbacks in the league, although it is missing Shawn Springs and Leigh Bodden (injured part of last year) and Nate Clements and Rashean Mathis (who are just below these rankings in both stats).
Say what you will about his personality, but Jones is an exceptionally talented football player. Very few starting cornerbacks reach this level of performance in their second year. He was only going to get better in 2007. Now he's gone, and a lot of Tennessee's playoff hopes are gone with him.
You might not feel bad for the Titans -- after all, didn't they know about Pac-Man's troubles when they drafted him? Yes, they did. But a lot of players who get in trouble in college at the age of 20 turn out to be fine when they get older. Plenty of NFL players come from bad neighborhoods, and have friends still in those neighborhoods, but clean up their act when they hit the pros. The Titans just had the bad luck to find one of those who didn't. The better he got as a player, the worse his act got off the field.
The NFL did the right thing, my only hope is that they keep the same faith throughout the rest of their decisions no matter who they are talking about. No matter how popular the player is.
I respect the NFL for standing up and saying we are not going to let you disrespect us. Now they need to continue it and be sure that they don't let anyone cross the line that they have drawn.
Nice to see buy in by the Players Assn.
Without by in and Standards that are set by a peer group this would have been an uphill battle.
Now with the Players themselves involved there is a Standard that will have to be lived up to.
Pacman was fast becoming one of the league's best. So what do the Titans do now? I think they'll draft a CB in the first or second round to compete with Hill for the starting spot opposite Harper. Has any team regressed more on paper this offseason than TN? Travis Henry, Drew Bennett, etc. all gone with no one signed to replace them. I was excited about the Titans after last season, but my confidence has faded fast.
The franchise now rests on the shoulders of Vince Young. That is a lot of weight on a second year quarterback with still so much to prove. But knowing what this kid can do on the field and how he handles himself gives me hope that the Titans will do okay next year. Keep hope alive!!
i just read where pacmans mom said how unfair it was that her son was punished. Dear Mrs .Jones, How are you? Look, your son is a freaking out of control ####. Nice job of parenting, you should be proud. Now as far as the unfair part goes, please explain that to the man and his family. What man? Oh, the one your son was responsible for paralyzing from the waist down, thats who. You and your garbage son should be ashamed . The next life you two deceide to take, please have it be your own
The Titans have done nothing but regress this off season. The only regret I have is Henry cause they could have kept him for a few million more. St. Louis gave Bennett a laughable contract and Wade got one too. If you see VY walking slumped over, that's the weight of the franchise on his back. The Titans should have been tougher with ADAM from the beginning, opened his eyes, make be responsible for some of his actions and maybe they wouldn't been backed into this corner. My feeling is he never plays football again cause he can't stay out of trouble for a year. Hell, he can't do it for a month....Go Preds!!
maybe if the titans had nipped this in the bud after say...oh i dont know....incident #4 or 5, they wouldnt be in this situation now. the TEAM didnt do anything to deter pacman from getting into trouble, so the league stepped in.
you see this all the time. rarely is a team going to suspend its own player for misconduct unless it gets pressure from the fans (hardly ever) the media (not likely) or the league (maybe).
if teams did more to keep their players out of trouble off the field, the league wouldnt need such a strict code of conduct.
each player is an employee of the team he plays for, and each team is essentially a subsidiary of the NFL itself (parent company).
it's kind of like if you're working for the local wal-mart and getting into trouble with the law and your store manager does nothing, then the PTB's step in and take care of the problem.
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