Duane Thomas died this Sunday at the age of 77. Thomas was a running back for the Cowboys and the Skins in the 1970s. He is the origin of one of the best rhetorical questions related to football. Prior to Super Bowl VI between the Cowboys and the Dolphins, Thomas wondered:
“If it’s the ultimate [game], how come they’re playing it again next year?”
Rest in Peace, Duane Thomas.
August 7th is a day on which some important baseball events took place:
- Aug 7 2007 Barry Bonds hit his 756th HR to break Hank Aaron’s record.
- Aug 7 2016 Ichiro got his 3000th base hit in MLB.
- Aug 7 2021 Japan won Olympic Gold Medal in baseball.
And today I have something similarly momentous to add to this list:
- Aug 7 2024 The Chicago White Sox have a 1-game winning streak going; they broke their AL record-tying 21-game losing streak last night beating the Oakland A’s 5-1.
Before anyone gets too jazzed over the White Sox accomplishment here, the team still projects to a final record of 39-123 for the 2024 season. As Derrick Coleman often said, “Whoop-di-damned-doo!”
Moving on … but sticking with baseball for a moment. It appears that the final hurdles have been crossed and that all the “eyes are dotted” and all the “tees are crossed” such that the Tampa Bay Rays are going to get a new stadium. The facility will be in St. Petersburg; it is scheduled to open in 2028 and it will be part of a massive development of a large area in the city. When completed there will be a stadium, hotels, retail outlets, housing units and an “entertainment venue”. The mayor of St. Petersburg called it a “providential day for the city and the Rays offered up a banner on the website proclaiming that they are “Here to Stay”. All is right with the world in that part of Florida these days.
For years the Rays have not been able to draw fans to the existing facility on the outskirts of St. Petersburg and that lack of support has caused the Rays to develop young players and then trade them away as they reached free agency. This new facility will take away the stadium as the “excuse” here and focus on the people who live in that area and their interest in supporting a major league franchise. The planned 30,000-seat stadium is projected to cost $1.3B and the public expenditure for the development of the entire area is set at $6.5B. This is a major undertaking; make no mistake about that.
Switching gears … The LA Chargers got themselves a large helping of bad news late last week. QB Justin Herbert was diagnosed with plantar fasciitis and was in a walking boot probably indicating that he will see exactly no action in the Exhibition Games. Remember, this is a new coaching staff and a new offense for the Chargers; so despite Herbert’s veteran status, there is benefit to him to work in the new offense on the field and not just in the “classroom”.
- [Aside: I have had plantar fasciitis twice in my life – – the last episode about 6 months ago. It is not career threatening, but it is mobility limiting and that is not a good thing for an NFL QB who must dodge hostile 320 lb. defensive linemen,]
Current thinking is that Herbert will wear the walking boot for 2 weeks and then ease back into limited practice leading to him being available for the Chargers’ opening game on September 8th at home against the Raiders. If Herbert is not available, the Chargers have 3 other QBs on the roster today:
- Casey Bauman – – Undrafted free agent rookie
- Max Duggan – – One year on the Chargers’ practice squad/active roster last year
- Easton Stick – – Started 4 games for the Chargers last year and lost them all.
Frankly, I think the best indicator of Justin Herbert’s recovery from his condition will be the Chargers’ activity in looking at veteran free agent QBs who are “out there and unsigned”. If the team goes out to sign one, that would indicate to me that Justin Herbert is not going to be available for the opening game and a couple of games beyond that. If the team just sticks with the cards dealt to them, that would mean to me that Herbert might miss the opener, but the team is confident that he will be back and ready to perform soon after that.
Finally, this observation by President John F. Kennedy:
“Washington is a city of Southern efficiency and northern charm.”
But don’t get me wrong, I love sports………
I think Duane Thomas was the first NFL running back to show me attitude for that position. After the 24 – 3 shellacking of the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl VI (95 yards rushing, 3 TDs), Mr. Thomas would hardly acknowledge press questions, let alone answer them. His demeanor rewired my understanding of NFL running backs to ask: what does it take to be an RB in the NFL?
TenaciousP:
Thomas was always “less than cooperative” with the press during his playing days.