Sports Curmudgeon

After all that has been written and said about Kenny Rogers and the mysterious brown stain on his hand that seems to have been there in more than one game, I'm a bit surprised that no one has taken this matter in a different direction. Kenny Rogers is 41 years old and is pitching better now than he ever has in his career. We also saw him in the famous "cameraman assault video" just a short while back. So we have a violent temper that rages out of control and a miraculous improvement in performance at an advanced age - - but no one has mentioned steroids. Interesting…

Speaking of steroids, the Shawne Merriman situation in the NFL has an interesting wrinkle to it. Merriman hired David Cornwall to represent him in the appeal process provided by the NFL CBA. Cornwall's last two "clients with issues" were Ricky Williams and Koren Robinson. Now I'm not saying that Williams and Robinson didn't deserve the one year suspension that each of them got, but if I were hiring someone to represent me, I think I'd find someone who had actually won one of those appeal procedures in the sense that he got the "sentence" commuted [I think that's the right legal term for "reduced"]. The good news for Cornwall is that the worst sentence Merriman can get is a four game suspension so Cornwall's résumé will not have yet another yearlong suspension for his client on it. The other good news for Cornwall is that his previous clients had issues with marijuana and alcohol, so Cornwall can now add "appeal steroids suspension" to the list of things he has done for clients.

Last week, a reader suggested a change in my "five worst teams in the NFL" format. He is the published author of a book on the Oakland Raiders so you might think he took offense at my comments on the Raiders every week. That's not the case; he's been less than laudatory in his commentary too. Rather, he pointed out that the same teams show up too often from week to week because they're clearly bad. Instead, he suggested that I list the five worst teams from the previous weekend; that might provide some variety in the teams "at the bottom" - particularly when the atrocious teams have their bye week. So, in the spirit of recognizing a good idea when it is presented and particularly one that allows me to poke a stick at the worst performances of a given week, here are the five worst teams from last weekend in the NFL:

4. Buffalo: Granted they lost to a very good team, but they weren't a threat to win the game after about the first 8 minutes.

3. Miami: They lost by 10 at home and gave up 34 points to the Green Bay Packers. That says it all.

2. Dallas: Their offensive line is awful. Their veteran QB is immobile so he is a sitting duck. Their young QB can move around but isn't yet able to recognize when defenders have a better shot at the ball than his receivers.

1. Jax: They got smashed by the Houston Texans; they lost by 18 points.

Please note that I do not have the Arizona Cardinals on that list even though they lost to the previously winless Raiders last weekend. The reason is that I will give them a one-week pass because they had to feel an after-effect of their epic gagging on the previous Monday night against the Bears. But I suspect that the Cardinals will make more than a couple of appearances on this list as the year progresses.

In yesterday's LA Times, they quote Dennis Green saying, "I was raised in a humbling experience. My background says that I never rode the easy horse. I always rode the bucking horse."

Memo to Dennis Green:

The Raiders win last weekend got them off the donut in the win column. The Raiders have referred to themselves in marketing stuff as The Team of the Decades. Someone on the local talk radio station pointed out that the Raiders indeed have a sense of history that spans decades; the last time a Raiders' team started out a season 0-5, Al Davis was the coach and the year was 1964. I don't think that's what the marketing trolls had in mind when they made that Team of the Decades reference…

A couple of days ago, I mentioned that the 1934 Detroit Lions had not given up a TD in their first six games. In fact, that team only gave up 59 points in their 13 games that year - - and they did not win their division. They finished at 10-3 losing twice to the Chicago Bears who were undefeated that year. It does not say much of anything good about your offense when your defense gives up only 4.5 points a game and you lose three times in the season. But remember, it's the Detroit Lions we're talking about here. This is the "Team of the Decades" if you are talking about ineptitude over a long period of time.

I do want to expand my comments a bit on the Washington Redskins' appearance on my list of worst teams last weekend. Remember a couple of weeks ago when Skins' linebackers' coach, Dale Lindsey, took a swipe at LaVar Arrington for not knowing the Redskins' defensive playbook? Well, I wonder if the problem now is that the current players don't know the playbook or if the current linebackers are inept or if he can't teach them how to get the job done. Since he ran his mouth, the Skins' defense has allowed the Giants to run for 155 yards and the Titans to run for 194 yards. Then last weekend, the Colts ran for over 100 yards and posted a total of 425 yards. Just a guess, but we won't be hearing much from Dale Lindsey for the rest of this year…

Here's an interesting stat I ran across regarding the Pittsburgh/Atlanta game. In that game, Michael Vick completed more passes to his wide receivers than he had running attempts. If that doesn't shock you, it should; that's the first time this year that has happened. To give you an idea of the situation there, Vick has run the ball 51 times this year and has completed 37 passes to Falcons' wide receivers. I said in my pre-season piece on the NFL that Vick would have been a great tailback in the old single-wing days; and indeed, single wing tailbacks always ran the ball more than they threw it to wide receivers.

Finally, some perspective provided by Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle regarding Pacers' Stephen Jackson and his "gun incident":

"Stephen Jackson of the Pacers says, 'I'm in a situation where people thought I acted recklessly, when I know I didn't.' Heck no! All Jackson did was go to a strip club with two teammates, all three of whom had guns in their cars, and, after a fist fight, return to his car, get his piece and fire it in the air several times…while on probation."

But don't get me wrong, I love sports...

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		Sports Curmudgeon: 10/25/06

		After all that has been written and said about Kenny Rogers and the mysterious brown stain on his hand that seems to have been there in more than one game, I'm a bit surprised that no one has taken this matter in a different direction. Kenny Rogers is 41 years old and is pitching better now than he ever has in his career. We also saw him in the famous "cameraman assault video" just a short while back. So we have a violent temper that rages out of control and a miraculous improvement in performance at an advanced age - - but no one has mentioned steroids. Interesting… Speaking of steroids, the Shawne Merriman situation in the NFL has an interesting wrinkle to it. Merriman hired David Cornwall to represent him in the appeal process provided by the NFL CBA. Cornwall's last two "clients with issues" were Ricky Williams and Koren Robinson. Now I'm not saying that Williams and Robinson didn't deserve the one year suspension that each of them got, but if I were hiring someone to represent me, I think I'd find someone who had actually won one of those appeal procedures in the sense that he got the "sentence" commuted [I think that's the right legal term for "reduced"]. The good news for Cornwall is that the worst sentence Merriman can get is a four game suspension so Cornwall's résumé will not have yet another yearlong suspension for his client on it. The other good news for Cornwall is that his previous clients had issues with marijuana and alcohol, so Cornwall can now add "appeal steroids suspension" to the list of things he has done for clients. Last week, a reader suggested a change in my "five worst teams in the NFL" format. He is the published author of a book on the Oakland Raiders so you might think he took offense at my comments on the Raiders every week. That's not the case; he's been less than laudatory in his commentary too. Rather, he pointed out that the same teams show up too often from week to week because they're clearly bad. Instead, he suggested that I list the five worst teams from the previous weekend; that might provide some variety in the teams "at the bottom" - particularly when the atrocious teams have their bye week. So, in the spirit of recognizing a good idea when it is presented and particularly one that allows me to poke a stick at the worst performances of a given week, here are the five worst teams from last weekend in the NFL: 5. Washington: Against the worst run defense in the NFL and that defense with a starting DT out of the game, they could not run the ball. And the Skins' pass defense was awful; Peyton Manning was hitting wide-open receivers. 4. Buffalo: Granted they lost to a very good team, but they weren't a threat to win the game after about the first 8 minutes. 3. Miami: They lost by 10 at home and gave up 34 points to the Green Bay Packers. That says it all. 2. Dallas: Their offensive line is awful. Their veteran QB is immobile so he is a sitting duck. Their young QB can move around but isn't yet able to recognize when defenders have a better shot at the ball than his receivers. 1. Jax: They got smashed by the Houston Texans; they lost by 18 points. Please note that I do not have the Arizona Cardinals on that list even though they lost to the previously winless Raiders last weekend. The reason is that I will give them a one-week pass because they had to feel an after-effect of their epic gagging on the previous Monday night against the Bears. But I suspect that the Cardinals will make more than a couple of appearances on this list as the year progresses. In yesterday's LA Times, they quote Dennis Green saying, "I was raised in a humbling experience. My background says that I never rode the easy horse. I always rode the bucking horse." Memo to Dennis Green: Watch out riding that bucking horse when you are "on the high road"; you might fall over the edge… The Raiders win last weekend got them off the donut in the win column. The Raiders have referred to themselves in marketing stuff as The Team of the Decades. Someone on the local talk radio station pointed out that the Raiders indeed have a sense of history that spans decades; the last time a Raiders' team started out a season 0-5, Al Davis was the coach and the year was 1964. I don't think that's what the marketing trolls had in mind when they made that Team of the Decades reference… A couple of days ago, I mentioned that the 1934 Detroit Lions had not given up a TD in their first six games. In fact, that team only gave up 59 points in their 13 games that year - - and they did not win their division. They finished at 10-3 losing twice to the Chicago Bears who were undefeated that year. It does not say much of anything good about your offense when your defense gives up only 4.5 points a game and you lose three times in the season. But remember, it's the Detroit Lions we're talking about here. This is the "Team of the Decades" if you are talking about ineptitude over a long period of time. I do want to expand my comments a bit on the Washington Redskins' appearance on my list of worst teams last weekend. Remember a couple of weeks ago when Skins' linebackers' coach, Dale Lindsey, took a swipe at LaVar Arrington for not knowing the Redskins' defensive playbook? Well, I wonder if the problem now is that the current players don't know the playbook or if the current linebackers are inept or if he can't teach them how to get the job done. Since he ran his mouth, the Skins' defense has allowed the Giants to run for 155 yards and the Titans to run for 194 yards. Then last weekend, the Colts ran for over 100 yards and posted a total of 425 yards. Just a guess, but we won't be hearing much from Dale Lindsey for the rest of this year… Here's an interesting stat I ran across regarding the Pittsburgh/Atlanta game. In that game, Michael Vick completed more passes to his wide receivers than he had running attempts. If that doesn't shock you, it should; that's the first time this year that has happened. To give you an idea of the situation there, Vick has run the ball 51 times this year and has completed 37 passes to Falcons' wide receivers. I said in my pre-season piece on the NFL that Vick would have been a great tailback in the old single-wing days; and indeed, single wing tailbacks always ran the ball more than they threw it to wide receivers. Finally, some perspective provided by Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle regarding Pacers' Stephen Jackson and his "gun incident": "Stephen Jackson of the Pacers says, 'I'm in a situation where people thought I acted recklessly, when I know I didn't.' Heck no! All Jackson did was go to a strip club with two teammates, all three of whom had guns in their cars, and, after a fist fight, return to his car, get his piece and fire it in the air several times…while on probation." But don't get me wrong, I love sports... << Back to the Recent Rants Index = Home = Recent = Topical = Wagers = = Archives = Pros = Scores = Contact =