CHIEFS' PRESIDENT RESIGNS SUDDENLY, REGGIE RETURNS HEISMAN & SHANNON SHARPE "STEPS ASIDE"
In what could only be described as oddly-timed, Kansas City Chiefs President, Denny Thum, resigned Tuesday evening. In a rather cryptic press release, the Chiefs praised Thum's 36-years of service but gave absolutely no reason as to why he resigned. Thum represents the last of the Carl Peterson hierarchy still with the team, until now that is. The press release eluded to the team's desire to postpone naming another president, just that owner Clark Hunt would become the CEO. Thum had been the driving force in the team's move to Missouri Western for training camp. No word regarding Thum's future plans was given. The night after the newly renovated Arrowhead Stadium debuted on Monday Night Football, Thum walks away. Or was he forced out & if so, why?
The Miami Hurricanes have joined Boise State in a ban of the social network Twitter among anyone associated with the football program. Head coach Randy Shannon instituted the ban as of Tuesday morning & the University issued a statement making the ban official. When you see the devastation a few Tweets can cause a program, see Alabama, North & South Carolina for starters, you can understand how some coaches don't want their players anywhere on the network. Multiple players have received 1-3 game suspensions for revealing transgressions on their Twitter accounts. I guess the kids will continue breaking the rules, they just won't Tweet about it anymore.
The Monday Night Football doubleheader of last night produced huge numbers for ESPN. The Ravens-Jets game drew a 10.9 share & the Chargers-Chiefs nightcap brought in a respectable 8.8. These audiences represented the 2nd & 3rd largest in cable television this year. Last Thursday's league opener in New Orleans with the Minnesota Vikings drew the highest audience since the Super Bowl.
The Cleveland Browns are the Chiefs' opponent on Sunday & as of Monday afternoon, it's unknown if their starting quarterback, Jake Delhomme, will be able to play. He walked out of the Tampa bay visitors locker room in a walking boot & was sporting another one Monday afternoon at team headquarters. The extent of his ankle injury isn't known, but coach Eric Mangini said on Monday evening veteran Seneca Wallace would take the 1st team snaps until it was known when Delhomme could return. The Chiefs have a short work week after their late night win over the San Diego Chargers.
Bears linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer, long considered the "3rd linebacker" paired with Pro Bowlers Brian Urlacher & Lance Briggs, will miss the remainder of the 2010 season with an illness. No details on what the illness is or how serious it is yet. The 8-year veteran from Vanderbilt has been a Chicago starter for 6 seasons.
The New England Patriots & Denver Broncos completed a trade on Tuesday night for running back Lawrence Maroney. The 5-year veteran was being phased out by the Pats because Maroney couldn't stay healthy & he had problems hanging onto the ball. The Broncos shipped a 2011 4th round draft pick to new England for Maroney & a 2011 6th round pick. The Broncos have had numerous running back injuries since last spring.
Just because you draft a franchise quarterback with the first overall pick, doesn't guarantee sellouts. The St. Louis Rams played in the Edward Jones Dome on Sunday in front of 15,000 fans disguised as empty seats. Since 9,500 of them are premium seats that also require a PSL, the club doesn't have to buy them back at a reduced price to avoid a blackout. But it's the other 5,500 non-premium that will continue to plague team management's efforts to keep the Rams & Sam Bradford on local TV. With a home schedule that doesn't include any of the NFL's true marquee teams, it makes it difficult to sell enough seats to avoid the blackouts.
Pitt defensive end Greg Romeus will undergo back surgery this week to relieve a disc problem. The All-Big East defender should be able to return by late November if all goes well. Romeus is considered by most to be a top-5 senior defensive end prospect in next April's NFL draft. It's a major loss for the Panthers in defense of their 2009 Big East title.
So for five long years we've listened to Reggie Bush, the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner deny any wrongdoing regarding agents & illegal gifts from said agents. He was insulted the media was so relentless in their questioning of him over the years. "I haven't done anything wrong" Bush repeated over & over. Last month new USC athletic director Pat Haden shipped Reggie's facsimile Heisman back to the Heisman Trust, purging the school of all things Reggie Bush. On Tuesday, Bush finally fessed up to the allegations that got USC such severe sanctions & he said he's send the award beck to the trust. I have my doubts about Reggie's truthfulness. He stated he wanted to come clean about his mistakes, without ever admitting to what they were. It was well known the Trusts' agenda this month was to include a possible vote to revoke the award. So I think Reggie saw the handwriting on the wall & just gave it up. Whatever the reason, Reggie Bush no longer has a Heisman Trophy & it sets a good example to today's Twitter crowd, cross the line & you'll have to pay for it, maybe 5 years down the road, but you're going to have to pay for it.
CBS Sports made a short announcement Tuesday evening that stated "Shannon Sharpe has decided to step aside from his duties on the NFL Today Sunday pregame show until possible legal actions are clarified." Sharpe has been named in a restraining order by a former girlfriend who claims to "fear for her life." This is Sharpe's 10th run-in with the law regarding former girlfriends & his assorted baby-mama's. The restraining order hearing is set for Monday 9/20, so it's possible, if this thing goes away, Sharp would rejoin the CBS show on September 26th. If it doesn't, he could miss the rest of the broadcast season.
Remember, you can access any of the 625 posts I've written for this site by using the archives to the left. If you have questions or comments, please email me at rich@richsfootballreport.com or by leaving a comment at the end of any post.
The Miami Hurricanes have joined Boise State in a ban of the social network Twitter among anyone associated with the football program. Head coach Randy Shannon instituted the ban as of Tuesday morning & the University issued a statement making the ban official. When you see the devastation a few Tweets can cause a program, see Alabama, North & South Carolina for starters, you can understand how some coaches don't want their players anywhere on the network. Multiple players have received 1-3 game suspensions for revealing transgressions on their Twitter accounts. I guess the kids will continue breaking the rules, they just won't Tweet about it anymore.
The Monday Night Football doubleheader of last night produced huge numbers for ESPN. The Ravens-Jets game drew a 10.9 share & the Chargers-Chiefs nightcap brought in a respectable 8.8. These audiences represented the 2nd & 3rd largest in cable television this year. Last Thursday's league opener in New Orleans with the Minnesota Vikings drew the highest audience since the Super Bowl.
The Cleveland Browns are the Chiefs' opponent on Sunday & as of Monday afternoon, it's unknown if their starting quarterback, Jake Delhomme, will be able to play. He walked out of the Tampa bay visitors locker room in a walking boot & was sporting another one Monday afternoon at team headquarters. The extent of his ankle injury isn't known, but coach Eric Mangini said on Monday evening veteran Seneca Wallace would take the 1st team snaps until it was known when Delhomme could return. The Chiefs have a short work week after their late night win over the San Diego Chargers.
Bears linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer, long considered the "3rd linebacker" paired with Pro Bowlers Brian Urlacher & Lance Briggs, will miss the remainder of the 2010 season with an illness. No details on what the illness is or how serious it is yet. The 8-year veteran from Vanderbilt has been a Chicago starter for 6 seasons.
The New England Patriots & Denver Broncos completed a trade on Tuesday night for running back Lawrence Maroney. The 5-year veteran was being phased out by the Pats because Maroney couldn't stay healthy & he had problems hanging onto the ball. The Broncos shipped a 2011 4th round draft pick to new England for Maroney & a 2011 6th round pick. The Broncos have had numerous running back injuries since last spring.
Just because you draft a franchise quarterback with the first overall pick, doesn't guarantee sellouts. The St. Louis Rams played in the Edward Jones Dome on Sunday in front of 15,000 fans disguised as empty seats. Since 9,500 of them are premium seats that also require a PSL, the club doesn't have to buy them back at a reduced price to avoid a blackout. But it's the other 5,500 non-premium that will continue to plague team management's efforts to keep the Rams & Sam Bradford on local TV. With a home schedule that doesn't include any of the NFL's true marquee teams, it makes it difficult to sell enough seats to avoid the blackouts.
Pitt defensive end Greg Romeus will undergo back surgery this week to relieve a disc problem. The All-Big East defender should be able to return by late November if all goes well. Romeus is considered by most to be a top-5 senior defensive end prospect in next April's NFL draft. It's a major loss for the Panthers in defense of their 2009 Big East title.
So for five long years we've listened to Reggie Bush, the 2005 Heisman Trophy winner deny any wrongdoing regarding agents & illegal gifts from said agents. He was insulted the media was so relentless in their questioning of him over the years. "I haven't done anything wrong" Bush repeated over & over. Last month new USC athletic director Pat Haden shipped Reggie's facsimile Heisman back to the Heisman Trust, purging the school of all things Reggie Bush. On Tuesday, Bush finally fessed up to the allegations that got USC such severe sanctions & he said he's send the award beck to the trust. I have my doubts about Reggie's truthfulness. He stated he wanted to come clean about his mistakes, without ever admitting to what they were. It was well known the Trusts' agenda this month was to include a possible vote to revoke the award. So I think Reggie saw the handwriting on the wall & just gave it up. Whatever the reason, Reggie Bush no longer has a Heisman Trophy & it sets a good example to today's Twitter crowd, cross the line & you'll have to pay for it, maybe 5 years down the road, but you're going to have to pay for it.
CBS Sports made a short announcement Tuesday evening that stated "Shannon Sharpe has decided to step aside from his duties on the NFL Today Sunday pregame show until possible legal actions are clarified." Sharpe has been named in a restraining order by a former girlfriend who claims to "fear for her life." This is Sharpe's 10th run-in with the law regarding former girlfriends & his assorted baby-mama's. The restraining order hearing is set for Monday 9/20, so it's possible, if this thing goes away, Sharp would rejoin the CBS show on September 26th. If it doesn't, he could miss the rest of the broadcast season.
Remember, you can access any of the 625 posts I've written for this site by using the archives to the left. If you have questions or comments, please email me at rich@richsfootballreport.com or by leaving a comment at the end of any post.
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