The Sports Curmudgeon

Willie Nelson sang:

“Oh, the days dwindle down

To a precious few …”

Such is the condition for Football Fridays; after this one, there are only two left until the heat of summer.  So, I’ll savor the dwindling number of keystrokes remaining for this genre …  And that requires a review of last week’s “Betting Bundle” notwithstanding the miserable outcome:

• Spreads and Totals = 2-6-0  Yuck!
• Same Game Parlay = 0-1  Double Yuck!

On the assumption that I have rid my self of such stupidity, I press on …

 

College Football Commentary:

 

I have long held that there are way too many college football bowl games forcing teams with mediocre records to be paired one against the other simply because ESPN needs original programming to fill out airtime.  I have not changed by view there; at the same time, there are some things that happened in some of the myriad bowl games this year that should be worth noting:

BYU 36  Colorado 14:  The game was not nearly this close; BYU led by 27 and put the game on cruise control.

Ohio St. 41  Oregon 21:  The fact that Ohio St. won is not a surprise but the way the Buckeyes dominated the Ducks was completely unexpected.

Toledo 48  Pitt 46:  It took SIX overtimes to get to this result.

USF 41  San Jose St. 39:  It took FIVE overtimes to get this result.

Texas 39  Arizona St. 31:  It only took TWO overtimes here thanks to a great comeback attempt by ASU.

Navy 21  Oklahoma 20:  The Sooners finished the season with a losing record of 6-7.

Michigan 19  Alabama 13: Two surprises that no one expected back in August:

1. Michigan would beat Alabama and Ohio St. this year – – and – –
2. Alabama would lose 4 games in 2024.

Ole Miss 52  Duke 20:  Jaxon Dart looked like Superman in this game; why has he attracted almost no attention in NFL mock drafts?

Nebraska 20  BC 15:  My “sleeper team” for 2024 won a bowl game!

I will talk about the rumors related to Deion Sanders possibly becoming the coach of the Dallas Cowboys when I get to “NFL Commentary”, but I think it is also interesting to think about the situation in Colorado.  Colorado won 9 games in 2024; considering that they were 1-11 in 2022, that is an impressive turnaround.  Sanders was the magnet that brought talent to Boulder, CO and if he leaves that magnet will be gone.  Even if he stays at Colorado, there will be a need to replace his son, Shadeur, and Heisman Trophy winner, Travis Hunter which is no small task given that those two players could easily go in the Top 3 of this year’s NFL Draft.

But wait … there’s more.  If Sanders leaves, how many of the other talented players that he “attracted to” Colorado will avail themselves of the Transfer Portal and go elsewhere?  There could be an outbreak of some serious drama in and around Boulder, CO if Deion goes to Dallas.

 

CFP Final Game:

 

(Mon 7:30PM ET)  Ohio St. – 8 vs. Notre Dame (46):  The spread for this game opened at 9.5 points and has slowly eroded to this point as the week wore on; I would be surprised, however, if it dropped to or below 7 points by game time.  Let’s get one thing out of the way early on here; both teams have a very surprising loss on their record this year:

• Ohio St. lost to Michigan – – a team that lost 5 games in 2024
• Notre Dame lost to Northern Illinois – – a team in the MAC for Heaven’s sake

If you want to look at that and call this CFP Final Game some sort of “Redemption Bowl”, have at it.  I prefer to look at those two losses as hiccoughs along the way.  I think this game revolves around the Notre Dame defense which has been smothering during the playoffs and for the final few weeks of the season leading up to the playoffs.  For me the question is this:

• Is the Irish defense up to the challenge of “smothering” the Ohio St. offense – – or is the Ohio St. offense the best offense that defense has had to try to stop?

I lean to the second version of that question.  Having said that, I also believe that both teams will have to earn their points because neither defense is going to concede anything on the field.  So, here are the elements of the “Betting Bundle” for the CFP Final Game:

• I like Ohio St. – 8
• I like the game to stay UNDER
• I will also play both elements in a Same Game Parlay  $100 wager to win $264.

 

NFL Commentary:

 

Picking up on the “Deion-to-Dallas” subject referenced above, those rumors/conjectures started about a millisecond after the Cowboys announced that they would not be resigning Mike McCarthy as their head coach.  The happiest class of people learning of that firing were sports-talk hosts; they could fill dozens of airtime segments with multiple variations on this theme:

• Is Deion ready for such a high-profile job?
• He has won everywhere else; can he win in the NFL?
• Can he co-exist with Jerry Jones?
• Whose ego is bigger, Jones or Sanders?
• You get the idea …

Let me try to be rational for a moment here.  I am not the least bit surprised that Sanders’ teams at Jackson St. won.  He had his son Shadeur and Travis Hunter on a team playing SWAC level competition.  A team with that kind of talent is going to win games in the SWAC unless the head coach is a certified dunderhead.

However, taking over the Colorado job – – and bringing Shadeur and Travis Hunter with him – – was a different story.  There was little to nothing for him to “build on” so he had to throw together a team almost like Dr. Victor Frankenstein creating a being out of random parts.  Getting Colorado to 9 wins as quickly as he did tells me that he can coach as well as he can recruit.  Granted, the assembly of an NFL roster is different than the process of assembling a college roster.  Moreover, that difference would be magnified greatly in Dallas where the owner is also the GM, and that owner/GM has an ego the size of Planet Jupiter.  Nonetheless, I don’t think Deion Sanders would be over his head in the coaching dimension at the NFL level..

My first reaction to hearing these rumors is that Jerry Jones would crave such an opportunity for a press conference announcing this hiring decision on his part.  As time proceeded – – as it always does – – my thinking changed slightly:

• Yes, Jerry Jones would and will love the limelight of that press conference and the follow-up interviews that would flow from it.
• HOW-EVAH, Jones may need to make this happen to avoid being the brunt of criticism.

Firing McCarthy who had three twelve-win seasons with the Cowboys sort of put the Cowboys in a position where they needed a new coach who would make at least a modest splash.  McCarthy provided some “splash” when he was hired since he had won a Super Bowl in Green Bay; similarly, Jones made news hiring Bill Parcells and Barry Switzer in the past.  And now, with the job open the splashiest of hiring possibilities – – and a former Cowboys’ player too – – gets linked to the job publicly.  If that does not work out in the end, I think some folks will lay some blame on Jerry Jones for “not getting it done” and I don’t think he will like that even a little bit.

Hang in there; this story still has a way to go …

Sometimes, just reading the news gives you an impression of someone you have never met or ever will meet.  Such is now the case with WR, Diontae Johnson.  He was drafted by the Steelers in the 3^rd round in 2019; in 5 seasons there he averaged about 80 receptions a year for 875 yards and 5 TDs per year.  Those are not Hall of Fame stats, but given the Steelers other WRs, this made Johnson valuable.

Last March, the Steelers traded Johnson to the Panthers for a CB and a fifth-round pick which looked like a good deal for the Panthers given their needs at WR.  That did not last long; in October the Panthers traded Johnson and a sixth-round pick to the Ravens for a fifth-round pick in return.  The Ravens are a much better team than the Panthers but like the Panthers they too were in need of WR upgrading.  That move looked like the Ravens stocking up on talent for a playoff run this year.

Not quite …  Six weeks later, the Ravens simply waived Diontae Johnson after he was suspended by the Ravens for a game when he refused to enter a game when told to go in by the coaches.

Pay attention now …  The Texans claimed Johnson off waivers just before Christmas; he appeared in 1 game for the Texans catching 2 passes for 12 yards.  The Texans waived him three weeks later.

Finally …  The Ravens claimed him again even though he will not be eligible to play for the Ravens in this post-season and he will be a free agent next Spring.

That saga tells me two things:

1. Diontae Johnson is a talented WR.
2. Diontae Johnson is a sufficiently large pain in the posterior that he can wear out his welcome quickly.

The Vikes lost last week to the Rams eliminating them from the playoffs after posting a 14-3 record in the regular season.  In addition to that outcome, I believe that Sam Darnold’s performance in that game had the same effect on Darnold’s checking account as lighting a steamer trunk full of hundred-dollar bills on fire.  Darnold had been amazing up until Week 18 and it looked as if he had established himself as a solid-if-not-great starting NFL QB.  I figured he might get a free agent offer something like Baker Mayfield got last year – – something in the range of 3 years and $90-100M total value.

His game in Week 18 against the Lions was bad; his game in the playoffs against the Rams was even worse.  In those two games, his completion percentage was 53% with 1 TD and 1 INT while he stood there and got sacked 11 times.  Those are numbers associated with the “Old Sam Darnold” and not the “New and Improved Sam Darnold”, and Old Sam ain’t gonna sniff $90M as an NFL QB.

Sam Darnold is a free agent this year; it will be interesting to see what sort of interest teams show in him.  This is not a great year for QBs in the Draft – – as compared to last year for example – – and there is not a font of quality free agent QBs on the market either.  I am sure this is not a full list of this year’s free agents, but these guys came to mind, and I was able to figure out that they will be available to teams this Spring:

• Justin Fields
• Jimmy Garoppolo
• Daniel Jones
• Russell Wilson
• Zach Wilson
• Jameis Winston

So, where does Sam Darnold fit into that list of free agents?  You make the call …

The Washington Commanders are both a good team and a lucky team.  That is a dangerous combination for any opponent to confront.  I ran across this note earlier this week at CBSSports.com:

“This [win over Bucs last weekend] is their sixth victory when tied or trailing in the final 10 seconds this season, the most since 2000. Washington has won four straight games in the final 10 seconds of regulation or overtime, a streak that seems improbable — and yet they have done it.”

Fans in the DC area are enamored with the Commanders’ team this year as they have not been for a long time in this part of the country.  Here is a link to a column by Sally Jenkins in the Washington Post where she identifies one of the elements of joy in the fanbase – – the fact that Dan Snyder isn’t here to revel in the winning.  If you don’t live around here, you may think that is overblown, but I do not.  It would be difficult to explain to someone who lives in a different time zone the distaste that is in the mouths of Commanders’ fans for Snyder.

The reason the Eagles are still alive in the playoffs is their defense.  Not only did they limit the Packers to 10 points in their game last week, but the defense also posted 3 INTs along the way.  The Eagles’ offense was – – how shall I put it – – inconsistent or sputtering or inefficient, but the defense bailed them out.

 

Games This Week:

 

(Sat. 4:30PM ET)  Texans at Chiefs – 9 (41.5):  The spread here opened the week at 7.5 points and has climbed steadily.  As of this morning, the spread is all over the place; you can find it at 7.5 points at one sportsbook and at 10 points at another – – with every half-point option between those extremes.  Nine points is the most prevalent number; so, I’ll use it here.  The Chiefs won 15 games this year; only 5 of those wins were by 9 points or more and those 5 opponents were:

• Saints
• Niners
• Panthers
• Browns
• Steelers

Only the Steelers were in the playoffs this year; the other four teams that lost to the Chiefs by more than 9 points were not all that good – – so now the Chiefs with the starters having to shake off some rust after 3 weeks off are 9-point favorites?  The Texans are not some sort of offensive juggernaut, but that defense throttled the Chargers last week and made Jim Harbaugh’s bully-ball offense look puny.  Here is a trend that may be relevant for this game:

• Chiefs are 0-6-1 against the spread this year when favored by 6 or more points.

I think the Chiefs will win the game and advance in the playoffs, but I like the Texans plus the points.  Put that in the “Betting Bundle”.  Also, I think that Total Line is too low; give me the game to go OVER; put that in the “Betting Bundle” too.

 

(Sat. 8:00PM ET)  Commanders at Lions – 9.5 (56):  I don’t think either defense will dominate the opposing offense in this game.  The Commanders lost 5 games this year; back in September, the Commanders lost the season opener to the Bucs by 17 points; that is their only loss that would represent a loss against this spread.  In fact, the Commanders have played “one-possession games” in 10 of the last 11 games on the schedule.  Can they keep it close against the Lions?  I think so …

I think the Lions will win and advance in the playoffs, but I like the Commanders plus the points; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Sun. 3:00PM ET)  Rams at Eagles – 6 (44):  When these teams met in Week 12, Saquon Barkley lit things up.  Barkley ran for 255 yards in the game and added another 47 yards receiving just for fun.  I suspect that the Rams’ defensive coaches have been focused on making sure that does not happen again.  And that creates the pivotal question for me in this game:

• Can the Eagles/Will the Eagles employ their well-above-average assets in the pass catching part of football this weekend?

I think this game has the most “upset potential” of any this week so I’ll take the Rams plus the points even though there is snow in the forecast for Philly on Sunday and the Rams do not see “snow” often in their NFL West focused schedule.  Put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Sun. 6:30PM ET)  Ravens – 1 at Bills (51.5):  This is the Game of the Week and the weather forecast for Buffalo this weekend calls for rain/snow on Saturday with temps dropping to the teens overnight; then on Sunday the temperature will peak at 20 degrees and begin to drop to a low of 9 degrees with whatever snow remains in the area.  I mention this because Ravens’ QB, Lamar Jackson, bundles up in layered clothing for a game in the 30s and 40s; might he be look like the Michelin Man on Sunday night?  Both teams have outstanding QBs; the Ravens have Derrick Henry to run the ball, but the Bills have James Cook to run the ball for them and he may be the most overlooked player on any of the teams still in the playoffs.  The Bills’ rushing defense is their weak link and I think Darrick Henry can/will exploit it here just as he did when these teams met earlier this year, and he ran for 270 yards

I like the Ravens to win and cover even on the road in snowy Buffalo; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

So, let me review the ”Betting Bundle”:

• Ohio St. – 8 over Notre Dame
• Ohio St./Notre Dame UNDER 46
• Same Game Parlay of those two picks   $100 wager to win $264
• Texans +9 against Chiefs
• Texans/Chiefs OVER 41.5
• Commanders +9.5 against Lions
• Rams +6 against Eagles
• Ravens – 1 over Bills

And just for fun, here is a two-element Money Line Parlay:

• Ohio St. @ minus-360
• Rams @ +225     $100 Wager to win $315

Finally, here is Vince Lombardi on the importance of purpose:

“We run to win, not just to be in the race.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

The orbital mechanics of Planet Earth allow for the days to lengthen in the Northern Hemisphere at this point in the journey around the Sun.    The calendar mechanics for MLB are such that:

• Pitchers and catchers will be reporting to Spring Training sites in 4 weeks.  The Dodgers and the Rays report on Feb 11^th.  The other 28 teams report on or before Feb 13^th.
• Opening Day for MLB’s 2025 season is10 weeks from now – – at least for teams not named the Dodgers or Cubs.
• On March 18 and March 19, the Dodgers and Cubs will play their first two regular season games in Tokyo.
• The Dodgers and the Cubs will take advantage of being in Japan and each will play an exhibition game against the Hansin Tigers of the Japanese Central League.  The Dodgers will play the Tigers on March 15 and the Cubs will play the Tigers on March 16.
• [Aside:  2025 will be the 150^th year for the Cubs in the National League.]

The Rays’ stadium was destroyed by Hurricane Milton a few months ago and is inoperable at this time; so, the Rays will play their home games in 2025 in George Steinbrenner Field which is the home field for the Yankees during Spring Training.  The dislocation of the Rays and their need to play in a facility with limited seating capacity stems from an “act of God”.

Not so with the “Las Vegas/Oakland/Sacramento” A’s.  They will play their home games 2025 in Sacramento, CA; the reason the A’s are playing in a minor league facility is because the team is in the process of leaving Oakland to take up residence in Las Vegas and the new stadium there is nowhere near ready and may not be operable until 2028.

Three MLB teams will have new field managers in 2025.

1. The White Sox lost 121 games last year.  It is not surprising that they have a new manager.
2. The Marlins lost 100 games last year.  It is not surprising that they have a new manager.
3. The Reds’ record in 2024 was 77-85; that is not a laudable record, but it is certainly not in the same category as the ones posted by the White Sox and the Marlins.  And yet, they have a new manager.

I mention all this today because it will only require the days to get a little bit longer than they are now for fan to hear a welcome sound around the baseball world:

• Play ball!

Moving on …  I ran across an interesting historical tidbit I wanted to share.  In 1983, the Detroit Pistons defeated the Denver Nuggets in triple overtime by a score of 186-184.  That is the highest point total for two teams and the two individual highest team scores in NBA history.  Here are the tidbits that makes that score even more amazing:

• Four players scored 40 or more points in that game.  That is the only time that has happened in NBA history.
• This scoring tsunami involved only two 3-point field goals.  Each team made exactly one 3-pointer in the game.  Compare that to a typical NBA game in 2025 where teams combine to throw up about 60 3-point shots and make about 25 of them.
• NBA basketball was indeed a different game then…

According to a report at CBSSports.com, 41.5% of all the field goal attempts in NBA regular season games this season have been 3-point attempts.  In fact, as of now, the Celtics have attempted more 3-point shots than 2-point shots; since the Celtics are the reigning champions, there is some “copycat” strategy at work throughout the league.  The report says there has been “fan pushback” to that style of play; let me translate that for you by saying that TV ratings are in the dumpster.

Adam Silver to the rescue?  In an interview with Colin Cowherd, Silver said the league is “considering serious change” from a rules standpoint.  Let me offer some ideas here:

1. Simply moving back the 3-point line might have a short-term effect until players adjust to the new line.
2. Eliminate the corner jump shot for 3-points by changing the shape of the 3-point arc.  Have the arc extend as a curvature to the point where the existing line now drops straight down to the base line and instead have the line from that point go perpendicular to the sideline.
3. Test out a rule in the G-League where teams have a fixed allocation of 3-point shots in a game; once they have tried that number of 3-point shots, all future shot attempts are worth only 2 points no matter where they come from on the floor.
4. Test out a rule in the G-League where the ball must be in the possession of an offensive player in the 2-point zone at least once before a shot worth 3 points can be attempted no matter where on the floor that shot originates.  That rule will stop the offensive play of dribbling over the half-court line and just launching a long shot.

Finally, it is a rare occasion where I disagree with someone like Frank Deford but given this statement by M. Deford, I must object:

“In days of yore, Opening Day of the baseball season was special, signifying that spring had come at last. Today, however, Opening Day sort of dribbles into existence, and the spiritual start of spring now belongs to the Masters golf tournament, where the azaleas and magnolias and dogwood bloom.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports ………

 

 

After the Texans won their playoff game last weekend, I wondered if “Mattress Mack” might be running another of his gambling related promotions where he bets on a “Houston Team” to win a championship and runs a deal where people who buy specified furniture from him during a limited time span can get the furniture for free if he wins the bet.  Prior to the Texans’ demolition of the Chargers last weekend, the odds on the Texans winning the Super Bowl were +8000.  This morning, the odds range between +4200 and +4500.

I have mentioned here before that the “reader in Houston” – – in addition to being a guru for sports history and stats – – knows “Mattress Mack” in the flesh; so, I sent him an email asking if we might see another of his promotions.  Here is his response:

“He’s definitely going to do something like he did last year, when he bet $500,000 total on three wagers with Caesars, which he ended up losing: $210,000 on the money line to beat the Ravens (Texans lost, 34-10); $263,000 getting +9.5 vs. the Ravens, which the Texans didn’t cover; and $27,000 on the Texans to win the SB, which they never got to. I think he would have made a profit in the ballpark of 800 grand or so, if the Texans won all three bets.

“On a side note, he’s still mourning the $1.5 million he lost last week when he bet on Texas to win the national title with the Golden Nugget in Lake Charles, which is owned by our mutual friend, Tilman Fertitta. Mack actually made the bet before the Texas SEC Championship loss to Georgia in early December with odds of Texas +390. If Texas went all the way, he would have made $5.85 million profit.

“That’s the fourth straight year that Mack lost in college football:

2022: $6.15 million on money line Alabama vs. Georgia

2023: $3.1 million total on TCU (money line and +13 vs. Georgia)

2024: $1 million on Texas to win national title.

2025: $1.5 million on Texas to win national title”

“That’s a total of over $11 million … but it’s a little more than pocket money for Mack.”

Moving on …  The US House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday that would ban transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports in public schools and institutions that do not comply with that ban would lose public funding.  I am in favor of keeping post-pubescent males from competing as women in sports where strength and/or speed are the critical elements of success.  My position is not based on any sort of moral stance; I simply believe that it defeats the entire purpose of having “women’s sports” in the first place.

The bill – – nobly named as “The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act” – – would amend Title IX to define a person’s “sex” as “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”  The bill passed the House narrowly by a vote of 218 – 206 and now goes to the Senate where it will either die or provide an opportunity for lots of grandstanding – – or maybe both.  In one report I read about this at CBSSports.com, I found this sentence:

“Those against it [the bill up for debate] said it could lead to intrusive genital examinations of the student-athletes.”

If indeed that is the crux of the opposition here, it would seem easily to be circumvented by saying that to participate in women’s sports, an athlete’s birth certificate must indicate that the child is a female and that nothing will override that provision of the law.  No need to examine anyone – – male or female – – because the only thing that matters here is what the birth certificate says.  Now, if you want to be as exclusive as possible, you might also add that in the event that there is any ambiguity whatsoever regarding the birth certificate identification of gender, then the default is for the aspiring athlete to be declared a male.  The Bottom Line here is that I do not think this should be part of the law even though I agree with the intent of this bill – – and yet, here we are.

Next up …  The NFL “leaked” the first scheduling tidbit for the 2025 season last week.  There will be 3 “London Games” in 2025 and the host teams will be:

1. Browns
2. Jags
3. Jets

When I saw that list, this is the first thing that came to mind:

• Does the NFL secretly hate Londoners?

The combined record for those three teams in 2024 was 12-39 [win percentage = .235].  Not good …

Finally, I’ll close today with these words from Abraham Lincoln:

“Whatever you are, be a good one.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

When the football season begins in the summer as teams report to Training Camps around the country, fans experience formulaic sports commentary.  As they used to say at the start of the old Dragnet TV shows:

“Only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.”

There is always one player in every Training Camp who shows up 15 pounds heavier than he was in the last season and the story goes that he added that weight/strength so that he will better be able to withstand the physical rigors of the season.  Often, there is another player in camp who shows up 15 pounds lighter than he was in the last season and the story goes that he cut weight to make him faster.  The stories write themselves; most of them have next to no real content.

It is now approaching the end of the football season; you can count the remaining college and pro football games left in the season on two hands without using either thumb.  And at this time of year, we now see another manifestation of formulaic reporting.  I am referring to stories about the wonderfulness of the “Rooney Rule” and how it has been soiled by an evil team owner who adhered to the letter of the law but flouted its intent.

This year’s focus on Rooney Rule Reporting begins in New England with the Pats.  The team announced that it had completed interviews with two minority candidates – – Pep Hamilton and Byron Leftwich – – and in almost the same breath announced that they had hired Mike Vrabel as their new head coach.  As is always the case in this genre of reporting, the newly hired coach is a white male.

I think it is time to put this sort of reporting out to pasture.  Before someone accuses me of being a racist, let me outline why I think that should be done:

The “Rooney Rule” requires teams to interview at least 2 minority candidates for any head coaching or General Manager vacancies.  It’s stated intent is to give minority candidates an entry into the interview process which in turn gives them an opportunity to get one of those prestigious jobs.

• The “Rooney Rule” is well intentioned.  It provides a mechanism that seeks to provide equal opportunity for minority employment.
• The “Rooney Rule” has no real enforcement mechanism.  If a team owner has already made up his mind to fire his current coach and hire Joe Flabeetz – – a white male in this case – – then all his interviews with minority or majority candidates will be a sham.  However, as long as he “checks the box” with interviews of two minority candidates, he is free and clear of any punishment save for the cries of foul play in “Rooney Rule Reporting” stories.
• [Aside:  The Pats added fuel to this year’s fire by interviewing two minority candidates who were not openly proclaimed to be head coaches in waiting by the same reporters now engaged in “Rooney Rule Reporting”.]

There is a fundamental problem here.  The NFL does not assign incumbents to head coach or General Manager positions for the teams.  Were that the case, there would be no need for a “Rooney Rule” assuming that the folks at NFL HQs are people of good will; however, that is not the case and there is no real probability of it ever becoming the case.  The logical consequence of this condition is:

• Team owners will hire the people they want to hire for those positions every time they decide to go through that exercise.

At least once a year, a team and/or a team owner will be chastised for doing what the Pats did this year – – interviewing two minority candidates and then hiring the “white guy” that they had been rumored to want for the job for at least the last 6 weeks.

It has happened before; it happened now; it will happen again.  Lather … rinse … repeat.  The reporting here has no surprise element or informative element.

• The team fired last year’s coach – – who by the way was a Black male – – and set out to hire a new one.  That is old news.
• Previous reporting said that the team really wanted to hire Mike Vrabel who used to play for the team.  That is either old news or old speculation depending on the sources used by the reporters.
• The team hired the guy they “wanted” fulfilling the rumors.  That is news in the sense that the hiring decision was made, and it confirmed previous reporting.

And then the “Rooney Rule Reporting” tends to go off the rails:

• Some have called for the “Rooney Rule” to be scrapped because there is no enforcement, and owners make a joke of it.
• Some have imputed not-so-subtle racism inspired motives behind the firing of the previous Black coach and the hiring of the new White coach.

Getting rid of the “Rooney Rule” because it does not produce results that coincide with the beliefs of the reporters is tantamount to saying that it should never have been in force in the first place.  Think about that for a moment.  The rule is there to provide opportunity not certainty simply because certainty is reserved only for the owners who make these decisions and not the reporters of those decisions.  So, because the outcomes do not conform to reporters’ preferences, get rid of the rule itself.  That makes no sense at all.

Calling into question the owners’ racist motivations in hiring decisions – – explicitly or implicitly – – is less effective in having minority head coaches and GMs hired than the “Rooney Rule”.  If that is the “best shot” an owner needs to endure after hiring the coach he really wants, I imagine that he will lose about a nanosecond of sleep over it.

The “Rooney Rule” is not particularly effective, but it is better than nothing and it is the best thing we’ve got until someone comes up with something better.  So, I am not interested in joining the chorus of people who want to get rid of the “Rooney Rule”; rather, I would really like to see a moratorium on “Rooney Rule Reporting”.

Finally, the “Rooney Rule” is aspirational.  So, let me close with words about hope from FDR:

“We have always held to the hope, the belief, the conviction that there is a better life, a better world, beyond the horizon.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

             A friend called over the weekend and our discussion meandered to the subject of the NFL Playoffs that got underway on Saturday.  My friend’s position is that the Chiefs are a dynasty; I do not yet have them in such a lofty status – – although another Super Bowl victory this year would elevate them.  At some point, my friend asked what I thought the Chiefs lacked in terms of “dynastic stature”.

My answer had two parts:

1. I think the “Brady/Belichick Patriots were a dynasty because of the longevity of the excellence there spreading over about 15-18 seasons.  Even in years when the Pats were not playing in the Super Bowl, they were serious contenders to have been participants.  The Chiefs are getting close to being today what the Patriots were in pre-COVID years, but I think they need more “aging” in that status.
2. I think dynasties produce a wide variety of “truly great players” – – not sort of great ones but really great ones – – and again the Chiefs are close but not quite there.

My friend accepted Part 1 but pushed back on Part 2.  So, I explained my feeling that the Chiefs roster of late had not produced a wide variety of great players, that did not detract from the greatness of several individual players – – Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones to be specific.  I believe that all three of those players will be in the Hall of Fame sometime in the future but as a way to draw a comparison, I suggested a look back at the Steelers’ dynasty in the 1970s.

• QB = Terry Bradshaw – – Hall of Fame
• RB = Franco Harris – – Hall of Fame
• WR = Lynn Swann and John Stallworth – – both in the Hall of Fame
• OL = Mike Webster – – Hall of Fame
• DL = Joe Greene – – Hall of Fame [Aside:  The rest of the “Steel Curtain” front four were awfully close to Hall of Fame caliber too.]
• LB = Jack Ham and Jack Lambert – – both in the Hall of Fame
• DB = Mel Blount and Donnie Shell – – both in the Hall of Fame

The only position group not represented here is Tight End; I could not recall who was a tight end for the Steelers in the 1970s but I used Google to check and the only Steelers’ tight end from that era that I can remember even when presented with a list was Bennie Cunningham who was a good player but not a Hall of Fame caliber player.

The thing about the 10 players cited above, is that they came from every position group on the team; there were no significant weaknesses on those Steelers’ teams.  As of now, I do not see the same spread of greatness over the rosters of the Chiefs over the past several seasons.  Now, if someone wanted to compare the Steelers of the 1970s to the Bill Walsh/George Siefert Niners teams of the 80s and early 90s, I think that would be an interesting discussion.

I’ll close today with some observations by Chuck Noll – – the guy who coached those Steelers in the 1970s:

“Everyone’s job is important, but no one is indispensable.”

And …

“Before you can win a game, you have to not lose it.”

And …

“The critics are always right. The only way you shut them up is by winning.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

This is the time of the year when the football season – – which began in August with Georgia Tech beating Florida St. in Dublin, Ireland – – sheds all the baggage and has the best teams stepping forward for action.  In terms of quantity and quality together, this is the best football weekend of the season.  Counting last night’s CFP game, in a 96-hour timespan, there schedule holds two excellent college football matchups, and 6 NFL playoff games scheduled such that no two games overlap in time – – pending the need to reschedule the game in LA due to wildfires.  It is an orgy of football.

Ergo this is not merely a Football Friday; consider this an orgiastic version of Football Friday.  Don’t just let the good times roll; kick it up a notch [Hat tip to Emeril Lagasse] and revel in the pure football hedonism this weekend represents.

Having said that, I must begin this week on a down note.  There was no “Betting Bundle” last week but I did propose a four-legged Money Line Parlay then.  That wager bit the dust when the Atlanta Falcons lost by giving up 44 points to the Carolina Panthers.  But enough negativity …

 

College Football Commentary:

 

Over the last several years of conference realignments, there have been some big geographic swings as the major conferences have acquired larger and larger footprints.  Every time I see Stanford or Cal playing in an Atlantic Coast Conference game a shiver goes down my spine.  Well, it appears as if that contagion has spread to the minor collegiate conferences now.  Earlier this week came the announcement that the Huskies of Northern Illinois will not be playing MAC football beyond next season; instead, Northern Illinois will join the Mountain West Conference for football competition.

Ever since Michigan upset Ohio St. right after Thanksgiving, there have been reports saying that there is unhappiness among the supporters of Buckeyes’ football about Ryan Day as the leader of the program.  Ryan Day’s record at Ohio St. is 68-10; yes, Ohio St. always schedules a couple of cupcake games, but in his 6 years on the job in Columbus, Ryan Day has beaten 87% of the opponents presented to him and his team.  Yes, he has lost 4 consecutive games to Michigan; no, it is unreasonable to label him as “sufficiently deficient” and thereby justify firing him.

I know this will not happen, but I can still wish for it to happen.  As of this moment, I am rooting for Ohio St. to win the CFP and be crowned as the National Champion.  And when they hand the trophy to Ryan Day and put a microphone in front of him, I would love for him to tell everyone in Columbus to take a hike because he has had enough of their negativity, and he is going to go and find a coaching job elsewhere.  If done in a quiet and measured tone of voice, he need not amplify his message with an extended middle finger in the face of those who think he is less than satisfactory.

Before we get to the games this weekend, I want to comment on two events related to the college football coaches’ game of musical chairs that takes place every December/January.  I know that Bill Belichick going to UNC is the biggest element in that saga, but there are two other events that have coaches “going home”:

• Scott Frost is returning to UCF next year. He was the coach there in 2016 and 2017; he went to bowl games both years and UCF posted a 13-0 record in 2017.  Frost played QB for Nebraska, and that undefeated season at UCF got him the job leading the Cornhuskers starting in 2018.  That simply did not work out at all; he was fired in the middle of his fifth season at Nebraska and had a record of 16-31 there.  Now he is going back to Orlando to resume his coaching career at UCF.  He will find one big difference when he gets there.  Back in 2016 and 2017, UCF played against American Athletic Conference opponents; in 2025, UCF will play against Big-12 Conference opponents.
• Rich Rodriguez is returning to West Virginia; those country roads have taken him home.  Rodriguez coached the Mountaineers for 7 years about 20 years ago posting a cumulative record of 61-26 there and winning the Big East Conference championship 4 times.  He left West Virginia to take the job at Michigan and his departure sparked lawsuits and rancor; his three years at Michigan were unproductive with an overall record of 15-22.  After that he spent 6 years at Arizona with middling success.  Then after a 5-year hiatus, he went to Division 1-AA Jax St. where his teams went 27-10 and won their conference twice.  As in Scott Frost’s case, Rodriguez will not find a “Big East Schedule” in front of him in 2025; West Virginia is now in the Big 12.

And, as luck would have it, UCF and West Virginia will play each other in Orlando next year.  It’s like a Hollywood screenplay…

There was one situation where a coach was not fired when I expected him to be fired.  Trent Dilfer has been the coach at UAB for two seasons; the cumulative record there is 7-17 and in 2024 there were some truly ugly losses such as:

• La-Monroe 32 UAB 6
• Navy 41 UAB 18
• Tulane 71 UAB 20
• Army 44 UAB 10
• Memphis 53 UAB 18

The decision at UAB is to run it back at least one more time with Trent Dilfer on the sidelines.  I suspect the results next year will have to be a tad more competitive when the team loses…

 

CFP Games

 

            Last night, Notre Dame advanced to the CFP Final Game beating Penn St. 27-24.  A few observations:

• For about the first 25 minutes, Penn St. was in charge.  For about the next 25 minutes, Notre Dame was in charge.  The game was tied 10-10 going into the 4^th quarter.
• Notre Dame was clearly the better team in the 4^th quarter.
• If you like Micah Parsons as an edge rusher in the NFL, you ought to like Penn St. DE, Abdul Carter too.
• Some commentators have suggested that the Lions’ QB, Drew Allar, should reconsider his decision to come back to college football next year; he should declare for the Draft in a thin QB class for 2025.  I think that would be a huge mistake for Allar; his accuracy, his arm strength and his “decision-making” last night would probably have made him a third-day pick come April.
• The Notre Dame defense has no “stars”, but it does have about 15 players who are all well above average in terms of competence – – and they play team defense very well.

Ohio St. – 6 vs Texas (50.5):  I think the oddsmakers have this game pegged wrong; I think this game will be an offensive display.  Yes, I know that both defenses are ranked in the Top 3 in Total Defense this year, but I also know that Quinn Ewers and Will Howard are two QBs who are both on a roll.  I think the difference in the game will be Ohio St. freshman WR, Jeremiah Smith who is already a certified monster on the field.  I like Ohio St. to win and cover AND I like the game to go OVER – – and – – I’ll put those two bets in on a same-game parlay; put all of that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

NFL Commentary:

 

Dan Orlovsky was one of the color analysts for the Steelers/Bengals game last week.  While I do not mind him at all in his “studio persona”, he was maximally annoying on that broadcast.  He would not/did not ever shut up and he raved about plays and happenings in the game that were pretty pedestrian.  ESPN should never have allowed that to go on for a full game; ESPN must not allow that to happen in any future games.  I am a full-fledged supporter of the First Amendment guaranteeing free speech – – but I think Orlovsky’s performance was a violation of that right.

Sam Darnold has clearly had the best year of his football life this season.  Darnold was the overall #3 draft pick (by the Jets) in 2018.  Going into this season, his record as a starter was a less-than-stellar 21-35-0; in 2024, his record as a starter is 14-3-0.  So, is that an indication of his natural talent maturing and emerging – – or is it a mirage?

In the last offseason, Darnold signed a 1-year contract for a guaranteed $8.75M with the Vikes.  He will be an unrestricted free agent on March 10 when the NFL’s open signing period begins – – unless the Vikes sign him before then or unless they put a franchise tag on him.  The fact that the Vikes’ coaches have that period of “exclusivity” to deal with Darnold may provide a good answer to the question above.  If they think this was a mirage, they will probably let him walk without a serious attempt to sign him and cast their lot with JJ McCarthy who they drafted in the first round last April.  If they think 2024 was a serious indication of Darnold becoming a certified franchise QB, that changes things a lot …

Do not be too hasty in judging Darnold based on his first several years in the NFL.  Please recall Jim Plunkett who started out on a very mediocre career trajectory but who was a “late-bloomer” and managed to get two Super Bowl rings and one Super Bowl MVP award once “the blossom” had emerged.

The Titans fired their GM, Ran Carthon this week; he had been the Titans’ GM since January 2023.  Here is part of the statement from Titans’ owner Amy Adams Strunk regarding that decision:

“I’ve loved the time I’ve spent with Ran. He’s a talented football mind, a great man, and friend to everyone along his path.

“It’s impossible to ignore that our football team hasn’t improved over the past two years. I am deeply disappointed in our poor win-loss record during this period, of course, but my decision also speaks to my concern about our long-term future should we stay the course.

“I love this team more than you can imagine. To our fans: we know this level of performance isn’t acceptable. We’re humbled by your support as we continue to work towards building the team you expect and deserve.”

She made the “firing announcement” about her.  Really?  That got me to thinking about her other actions as a team owner and then it hit me:

• Last year – – when Ran Carthon and then head coach Mike Vrabel could not play in the same playpen – – she fired Vrabel and kept Carthon.
• Now, she shifts blame to the Front Office.
• Meanwhile, she asserts her love for the team and her humility.

It seems to me that with Danny Boy Snyder out of the picture, there needs to be some consensus built around who is now the worst NFL owner.  While he was among those in the inner circle of the NFL, the trophy was retired permanently in the Washington DC area.  Not so in 2025 …  So here are my four candidates for worst owner currently in the NFL in alphabetical order:

1. Mark Davis (Raiders):  If he has made a good hiring decision in the last decade, it surely does not come to mind quickly.
2. Jimmy Haslett (Browns):  The trade for Deshaun Watson and then the contract handed to Watson guarantee Haslett a spot on this list.
3. Woody Johnson (Jets):  Since 2000, he has had 7 head coaches and none of them finished with a winning record for the Jets; since 2000 he has had 6 different GMs providing rosters to those 7 head coaches who left with losing records.
4. Amy Adams Strunk:  See above …

If I were to create a “Dishonorable Mention” list to accompany the list above, I would include the McCaskeys (Bears), Jim Irsay (Colts) and David Tepper (Panthers).

Looking at the seven owners on my combined list there, notice that two of the seven are in the AFC South Division.  That division seems always to be an afterthought when it comes to fan focus outside the local areas of the individual teams.  Moreover, it has been a while since a significant playoff threat has emerged from that division; maybe you have to go all the way back to the days of Peyton Manning with the Colts to encounter such a situation.

The AFC South has always seemed to me to be the NFL’s version of the “junk drawer” that we have in our kitchen.  If something does not “fit” with anything else logically, then stick it in the “junk drawer” and we can find it there if we ever go looking for it.  [Aside:  My long-suffering wife objects to my “junk drawer” label; she prefers to call it “The Drawer of Many Things.”  Po-TAY-toe … Po-TAH-toe.]

Let me break down the AFC South here for a moment:

• Colts:  In what delusional state must one reside to consider Indianapolis as part of “The South”?
• Jags:  At least, they are geographically in “The South” but they are also irrelevant more seasons than not.
• Titans:  For a team that has made the playoffs 10 times in 25 seasons, it has an amazingly small national following.
• Texans:  An expansion team that has made the playoffs 8 times but never made it to the Conference Championship Game.  Meh!

Here are a few comments on games from last week – – many of which were meaningless:

Commanders 23  Cowboys 19:  Jayden Daniels got the second half off but backup QB, Marcus Mariota led a late fourth quarter drive to produce the winning TD putting the Commanders in the playoffs as the 6^th seed in the NFC.

Broncos 39  Chiefs Junior Varsity 0:  Ask a random sample of people on the street to name 3 players on the Chiefs’ roster this year and make a list.  Any name on that list did not appear in this game.   Some folks assert that the Chiefs “threw the game” to assure that the red-hot Bengals could not be in the playoffs.

“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?

“The Shadow knows…”

Panthers 44  Falcons 38:  The Falcons needed to win this and to have the Bucs lose.  Neither event happened.

Bucs 29  Saints 19:  The Bucs did what they needed to do to win the division and make the playoffs for the fourth year in a row.

Seahawks 30 Rams Junior Varsity 25:  The Rams had clinched a playoff spot, so they rested Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Kyren Williams.  However, no conspiracy theories have emerged here…

Bears 24  Packers 22:  The important outcome from this game is that Packers WR, Christian Watson tore his ACL and is out for the balance of the playoffs.  QB Jordan Love injured his elbow also, but he is expected to play this week.

Pats 23  Bills 16:  Two weeks ago, the Giants pulled off an upset that relinquished the overall #1 pick in the Draft to the Pats; last week, the Pats emulated that generosity with this win handing the overall #1 pick in April to the Titans.

 

Games This Week:

 

Just for the record, there are no Dog-Breath Games on the card this week.

 

(Sat. 4:30PM ET) Chargers – 2 at Texans (42.5) :  The Chargers lead the NFL in scoring defense; if “defense wins championships”, the results of these playoffs would seem to be a foregone conclusion.  The Texans won their division, but they have not looked nearly as good this year as they did last year.  Injuries to Tank Dell and Stefon Diggs tanked the offense; the Texans played teams with winning records six times this year and won only one of those encounters.  The Chargers have a history of coughing up a hairball at a critical time in do-or-die games; Jim Harbaugh is there to change that history – – if the football gods will permit.  Justin Herbert has never won a playoff game; that is another historical element that could be changed here – – if the football gods will permit.  I like the Chargers to win and cover here; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Sat. 8:00PM ET) Steelers at Ravens – 10.5 (43.5):  When you go looking for this game on TV, it will be streaming on Amazon Prime Video even though it is not a Thursday Night game.  The Steelers are in a tailspin; they have not looked good for the last month; in their last 4 games (all losses), the Steelers have averaged just a smidgen over 14 points per game.  Meanwhile, the Ravens have been on a tear late in the season.  However, it must be noted that Lamar Jackson has been in 6 playoff game situations and has only won twice.  Basically, this is a third meeting between these AFC North teams, and they have split the first two.  I have a personal policy which requires that I refrain from selections in NFL games with double-digit spreads.  I will just sit back and watch these two teams slug it out on each other.

 

(Sun. 1:00PM ET) Broncos at Bills – 8.5 (47):  The weather forecast for Sunday in Buffalo is for “snow showers” (whatever that means in Buffalo NY) and temps around freezing.  Often teams traveling to Buffalo in December/January need to play in conditions that are unfamiliar; in this case, the Broncos have an idea what snow and cold weather are all about.  The Bills were 8-0 at home this year; the Broncos were 4-5 on the road.  This is the first NFL playoff game for Bo Nix, but it is hardly a novelty for Josh Allen.  I think the fundamental challenge in this game is for the Broncos’ defense; can they keep the game from turning into a track meet?  The oddsmakers think it can according to that Total Line.  I think the Bills are going to win the game, but I like the Broncos’ defense to keep it close and keep it near that modest Total Line; so, give me the Broncos plus the points; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Sun. 4:30PM ET) Packers at Eagles – 4.5 (45):  This is a rematch from the first game of this year’s NFL season when these two teams met in Sao Paulo, Brazil; the Eagles won that game 34-29.  The Packers got to the playoffs this year despite losing 5 of their 6 division games.  The absence of Christian Watson will affect the Packers’ aerial game, and I assume that Jordan Love sat out the second half of last week’s game simply as a precaution and not due to a serious elbow injury.  The Eagles will have Jalen Hurts back at QB after he spent two weeks in the concussion protocol; has any “rust” accumulated during that absence?  I think this will be a close game; I do not think there will be anywhere near the 63 points scored by these two teams against each other as back in September; I’ll take the Packers plus the points; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Sun. 8:00PM ET) Commanders at Bucs – 3 (50):  This is the Game of the Week.  The Commanders averaged 27 points per game this year; the Bucs averaged 28 points per game this year.  The Commanders will score points; the question mark for them is the defense.  The Bucs beat the Lions and the Eagles this year; the Bucs also lost to the Cowboys and the Falcons (twice) this year.  Assuming the “good Bucs” show up here, I think this game will challenge the scoreboard operator to keep up; so, I’ll take the game to go OVER, and I’ll take the Commanders plus the points; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

 

(Mon. 8 :00PM ET) Vikes – 1 at Rams (48):  Sam Darnold had a bad outing last week against the Lions; there is no way to sugarcoat that fact.  The question here is:

• Was that a one-off or was that too big a moment for him?

We know what to expect from the Rams and we pretty much know what to expect from the Vikes’ pressure defense.  What is up in the air here is the Vikes’ offense and how well Sam Darnold can make it operate.  I like this game to go OVER; put that in the “Betting Bundle”.

Let me review this week’s “Betting Bundle”:

1. Ohio St. – 6 over Texas
2. Ohio St./Texas OVER 50.5
3. Same Game Parlay of those two bets above to win $264.
4. Chargers – 2 over Texans
5. Broncos + 8.5 against Bills
6. Packers + 4.5 against Eagles
7. Commanders +3 against Bucs
8. Commanders/Bucs OVER 50
9. Vikes/Rams OVER 48

With a nine-element “Betting Bundle”, I don’t think I need any Money Line Parlays this week…

Finally, words of wisdom from Vince Lombardi:

“If you can accept losing, you can’t win.

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………
 

 

Yesterday, I commented on two “one and done” NFL coaches.  After I posted that rant, I got to thinking about how lots of coaches are less than outstanding in their first year on the job and I wondered how some coaches who turned out to be top-shelf NFL coaches after a while would have fared in today’s environment of “instant success” or “see ya later”.  The results are not pretty:

• Bill Belichick:  First year in Cleveland he was 6-10.  First year in New England he was 5-11.  However, his overall record turned out to be 302-165 with 7 Super Bowl appearances and 5 Super Bowl victories.
• Pete Carroll:  First year in Seattle he was 7-9 which was one game worse than the Seahawks had been the year before.  However, he “hung on” in Seattle for 14 seasons posting a 137-89-1 record there with 2 Super Bowl appearances and 1 Super Bowl victory.
• Tom Landry:  His Cowboys were an expansion team, so his record for the first four years in Dallas was a meager 13-38-3.  He was the head coach for the Cowboys for 29 seasons with an overall record of 250-162-6.  His teams went to the Super Bowl or the NFL Championship Game 7 times and won the Super Bowl twice.
• Chuck Noll:  His Steelers went 1-13 in his first year in Pittsburgh; they posted losing records in Noll’s first three seasons there.  He proceeded to stay with the Steelers for 23 seasons winning 4 Super Bowl Games along the way and posting a career record of 193-148-1.
• Bill Parcels:  The Giants were 3-12-1 in his first year at the helm.  Nevertheless, he had the chance to hang onto the job and lasted 8 years with the Giants and then 11 more seasons with other teams.  His overall record was 172-130-1 and he won 1 Super Bowl Game.
• Andy Reid:  The Eagles were 5-11 in his first year in Philly; that was 1999 and Reid has been coaching in the NFL continuously since then.  His career record is 273-147-1 and his teams have been to the Super Bowl 5 times and won the Super Bowl 3 times.
• Bill Walsh:  His first year with the Niners produced a record of 2-14, but he survived to stay with the team for 10 years earning a career record of 92-59-1.  His teams also won 3 Super Bowl Games along the way.

I think you get the idea here.  Even men who proved to be outstanding head coaches in the NFL stumbled in their first year or so on the job.  In the seven cases listed here, team owners were rewarded for patience in staying with these coaches for more than a single season of disappointment.  Four of the coaches above are in the Hall of Fame now; the other three are still “active” in the coaching profession; Carroll is seeking a new job in this hiring cycle; Belichick is at UNC and Reid is still wearing that humongous red coat on the Chiefs’ sideline this year.  It would not surprise me in the least to see those three “still active” head coaches join the other four in the Hall of Fame one of these days.

Moving on …  I want to say something about football coaches at a lower level of the game here.  A few years ago, Deion Sanders came out of nowhere to take the head coaching job as Jackson St.  He just happened to bring his two sons and Travis Hunter along with him to Jackson St. and they quickly dominated the SWAC.  Sanders moved on to Colorado and has done quite well there to the point that he is now rumored to be a potential NFL head coach sometime soon.

That success seems to have opened a door for other NFL alumni to take jobs at small HBCUs as the head football coach.  Eddie George was the first person to follow the “Deion Sanders Route” to the head coaching ranks when he took over the Tennessee St. program and led the team to the Division 1-AA championship tournament this season.

Now, former NFL WR, DeSean Jackson has been hired to run the football program as Delaware St.  The Hornets are members of the MEAC; it is an HBCU institution.  Football has not been overly successful for Delaware St. over the years, the school’s cumulative record is 370-458-11.  Jackson is not walking into a long tradition of winning football at Delaware St.; the last winning record for a season I can find is back in 2007.  I hope he gets at least a few years to try to turn things around.

Recently, Michael Vick was hired to take over the football program at Norfolk St.  The Spartans also play in the MEAC and Norfolk St. is also an HBCU.  The similarities extend to the fact that Norfolk St. is also not a perennial powerhouse in that league and there is no real “winning tradition” there.

Vick and Jackson were teammates with the Eagles; now they will be rivals trying to put unsuccessful football programs on a positive vector heading.  Vick would seem to have one advantage over Jackson simply based on geography.  Michael Vick is from Newport News, VA which is right next door to Norfolk VA in the Tidewater region of the state.  Vick went to high school there and is well known in local sports circles having gone to Va Tech about 25 years ago.  Jackson, on the other hand, is from Los Angeles and went to school at Long Beach St in California.  In terms of recruiting “locally” it would appear that Vick has an edge – – but they play the games on the field and not on paper.

Finally, with regard to the rewards for patience in new coaching hires, let me close with this from Julius Caesar”

“It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

The phrase “one and done” probably originated in the world of college basketball referring to a player who would go to college knowing that he would only be there for one year.  His intent was to play in the NBA, but he had to wait for one year to be eligible for the NBA Draft because of a provision of the CBA that governs how the league operates.  This year, it seems that “one and done” might have a more sinister meaning when it comes to the NFL.  In this week where NFL coaches and coaching staffs are in medias res, we have a few “one and done” situations:

• Jerod Mayo is “one and done” as the head coach of the Pats.  The team finished the year with a 4-13-0 record and by winning the last game of the season handed the overall #1 pick in the Draft to the Titans.  Mayo did not take over a team full of latent talent; the Pats were also 4-13-0 in the 2023 season.  I cannot help thinking that Mayo was destined to fail in this job – – maybe not in one year but in the end – – because the fans and the Pats’ brass are probably spoiled by the fading memories of the Pats’ dynasty in the Brady/Belichick regime.  Jerod Mayo was identified with those joyous days but the reality is that no one was going to bring them back to Foxboro in short order because the roster is flawed.
• Antonio Pierce is “one and done” as the head coach of the Raiders.  I know; technically he is “one-and-a-half and done” in that job because he was the team’s interim head coach for 9 games in 2023.  Nevertheless, the Raiders also clocked in with a record of 4-13-0 this year and that led to Pierce’s dismissal.  Another similarity between Pierce’s situation and Mayo’s plight in New England is that the Raiders’ roster was not primed for success in 2024.  I think there is a more fundamental “issue” at work with the Raiders.  Like the Pats, there are memories of a glorious past, but those euphoric days predated the current team leadership.  Al Davis was a “scratchy” curmudgeon – – but Al Davis knew football.  Mark Davis seems like a much more affable and cooperative person – – but I don’t think he knows half of what his father knew about football.
• If Antonio Pierce “deserved” to be let go, then the Raiders’ GM, Tom Telesco, should have been hand-in-hand with Pierce on the way out the door.  He came into the Raiders organization last January and in his year at the helm, the team “regressed” from 8-9-0 in 2023 to 4-13-0 in 2024.  If Telesco is entitled to a longer leash than one season, why is the standard different for Pierce?
• Nick Sorenson is “one and done” as the Defensive Coordinator for the Niners.  The expectations for 2024 were lofty in the Bay Area and the team finished 6-11-0.  Kyle Shanahan has a “genius label” attached to him – – deservedly or undeservedly – – so he is not vulnerable to separation for one bad year.  But it was Shanahan who fired Steve Wilks as Defensive Coordinator last January presenting Shanahan with the opportunity to fill that vacancy with Sorenson.  Actually, I think there might be a more positive motive behind this firing decision.  Perhaps the Niners see an opportunity to “upgrade” at the Defensive Coordinator position by keeping Sorenson on the staff and hiring Robert Saleh for a second stint as the Niners’ Defensive coordinator.  Remember, Saleh was sufficiently successful in that role about 5 years ago that he was a hot head coaching prospect in an offseason leading to his getting the top job with the Jets.  Just a thought…

This is the time of the year when fans begin to imagine positive changes for their favorite NFL franchises.  Often, there is far too much “imagination” in their thinking and not enough “reality” but hope springs eternal.  One source of fans’ “irrational exuberance” [Hat tip to Alan Greenspan] is the annual positioning by players who let it be known that they would like a new NFL employer.  If/when that player is Joe Flabeetz, no one particularly cares; when that player is one with Pro Bowl achievements on the résumé, fans get energized.  So, who might be available for moving from one place to another this year – – ignoring for a moment the likely impending drama involving Aaron Rodgers:

• Maxx Crosby has indicated that he is not particularly interested in hanging around while the Raiders go through a rebuilding process.  Reports of his willingness to play elsewhere were still echoing around the football world when fans in Cincy had him signed, sealed and delivered to the Bengals.  And the Bengals’ defense was the unit that needed upgrading as of this season, so the move makes sense – – in a simple and transactional world.  Looking at his situation, there is no team in the NFL that has two defensive ends better than Maxx Crosby; he would be an upgrade for 31 other franchises; if he is really going to be sent elsewhere, there are plenty of teams other than the Bengals who might “buy a lottery ticket” so to speak.
• Tyreek Hill has made it known that he would like to be traded from the Dolphins and also posted a photoshopped picture of his face on Antonio Brown’s body on a social media site.  There is no doubt that Hill – – like Crosby – – can upgrade the WR position for most every NFL team; but unlike Crosby, Hill brings enough baggage with him that his nickname ought to be Samsonite.  [Aside:  Posting a picture of himself “aligned with” Antonio Brown is not a good way to push said baggage into the background.]  Hill left the Chiefs amidst drama there; the Dolphins gave him a contract worth $120M and stood by him during a period of “involvement with law enforcement”; what would lead any other team to think he would not produce the same sort of “drama” in their locker room?  But in the NFL, talent trumps bad behavior, and Tyreek Hill does have talent …

Finally, some of today’s commentary deals with errors that need to be corrected; so, let me close with these words from Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC):

“It’s one thing to shoot yourself in the foot.  Just don’t reload the gun.”

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………

 

 

With the sporadic writing here in Curmudgeon Central over the Holidays, I did not have the opportunity to comment on a small matter that produced a headline for a day or so and then slipped quietly into the night.

• Jim Laranaga stepped down as the head basketball coach at the University of Miami.

Laranaga is a basketball lifer; he played for Providence in the late 60s and took a job as a graduate assistant coach at Providence in 1971 right after he graduated.  He has been an assistant coach or a head coach at the collegiate level ever since then.  Laranaga is 75 years old and has clearly earned his retirement days; twice he took teams to the Final Four (Geroge Mason and Miami) and even when his teams lacked the talent level to be a top-shelf contender, those teams always played hard and made opponents earn any victories.

As he announced his resignation, Laranaga cited his desire to spend more time with his family meaning someone else needed to spend extra time with the team since he no longer would be able to do that.  Frankly, that is an obligatory aside in any resignation/retirement statement; here is part of his statement that caught my attention:

“The University needs a new leader of the program, one who is both adept at and embracing of the new world of intercollegiate athletics.”

Jim Laranaga is another victim of the unintended consequences of “paying college players” and “NIL cooperatives”.  He joins a growing list of college coaches – – in basketball and in football – – who simply do not want to be a part of what college sports have become.  If you want, you can say something akin to “Good riddance” to those folks who refuse to embrace “change”.  Or, you can say that the jury is still out as to whether the new incarnation of collegiate athletics is in fact better overall than it used to be.

Specifically, I hope Jim Laranaga has a long and satisfying retirement.  Bonne chance, good sir.

Moving on …  With the NFL regular season over as of last night, I was thinking back on events in the last offseason that were considered to be impactful at the time but just did not work out.  The one that spurred my thinking was the Falcons’ signing of Kirk Cousins to be their franchise QB – – only to have the team also take Michael Penix, Jr. with a Top-10 Draft pick.  The Cousins deal was for 4 years and had about $100M guaranteed and I remember thinking that the Falcons were going to try and emulate what the Packers did with Aaron Rodgers who sat for 4 years while Brett Favre finished his career in Green Bay before turning the keys to the car over to Rodgers.  I thought that made sense.

There is a thing known as “Buyer’s Remorse”.  Basically, it is a feeling of regret experienced by some folks soon after they have made an extravagant/expensive acquisition.   I was thinking this morning that the Falcons may be feeling Buyer’s Remorse about now with that large guaranteed payment hanging over the team’s salary cap status.  And then I realized that there were a couple other “trumpeted moves” from last offseason that just did not work out the way they were envisioned.

The Jets traded for Hassan Reddick giving up a third-round pick to acquire him.  Reddick wanted a new deal, and the Eagles were not inclined to give it to him; hence, the trade.  In 2023 with the Eagles, Reddick recorded 11 sacks and 13 tackles for a loss; getting him for a third-round pick seemed like a good idea.  The problem was that Reddick was very serious about wanting a new contract and he held out from the Jets’ Training Camp plus for several weeks of the regular season. In 2024, Reddick only appeared in 10 games, and he produced 1 sack and 2 tackles for a loss.  That is a significant reduction in performance and clearly could not have been part of the Jets’ thinking last year.

Lest anyone think I am picking on the Jets here, the Eagles had a need to replace Reddick on their roster; remember he gave them 11 sacks in 2023.  So, the Eagles chose to sign Bryce Huff as a free agent which had an ironic note to it:

• Huff had been an edge rusher/DE for the Jets in 2023 and had recorded 10 sacks and 10 tackles for loss.

On the surface, it looked as if the Eagles had replaced Reddick’s onfield production at a contractual level they were happy with AND they had pocketed a third-round draft pick for their troubles.  Let me channel Lee Corso here:

“Not so fast, my friend…”

Huff appeared in 12 games for the Eagles in 2024 and needed surgery for a wrist injury in mid-season.  In those 12 games, Huff produced 2.5 sacks, 3 tackles for loss and 1 forced fumble.  Neither player turned out to be nearly as productive as envisioned at signing time.

One other move that turned out to be a bad one involved Diontae Johnson.  Back before the Draft last year, the Steelers traded Johnson to the Panthers for CB. Donte Jackson and a low-round draft pick.  The Panthers’ offense was anemic in 2023; Johnson was supposed to give them a credible deep threat at WR.  Diontae Johnson’s season in 2024 was basically a disappointing downward spiral:

• He played 7 games for the Panthers catching 30 passes for 3 TDs.
• In mid-season the Panthers sent him to the Ravens for a late-round pick swap.  That had to be disappointing to the Panthers’ braintrust, but the team did not fall apart after sending him off.
• For the Ravens he played in 4 games and caught 1 pass for 6 yards.  He also refused to enter a game for the Ravens when another WR was injured.  Naturally, the Ravens just waived him.
• The Texans took Johnson off waivers; he played 1 game in Houston and caught 2 passes for 12 yards.

I guess the Texans might be happy with their move to acquire Johnson since it cost them only a waiver claim; the Panthers and Ravens are probably not happy with their acquisition decisions.

Finally, having focused today on the concept of “Buyer’s Remorse” let me suggest that the part of our society over the last several decades where this concept should be easily recognized is the political realm.  How many politicians have we the people elected to a wide range of offices who subsequently did not perform or produce as promised?  Sadly …

But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………