CHIEFS' BALDWIN "IS AS ADVERTISED", FITZ CLOSE TO A DEAL, "DREAM TEAM" ANYTHING BUT & ARE THE HURRICANES A CANDIDATE FOR THE NCAA'S "DEATH PENALTY?"
I'm going to resist the urge to say "I told you so" about Chiefs' #1 draft pick, wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin, but just barely. I said way back in April when Kansas City chose the Pitt product who had publicly trashed his coach & his quarterback in the media, was this a Scott Pioli kind of guy? Poor work ethic & a propensity to drop passes added to questioning this pick. I can't argue his potential, it's huge, but at what price & will he ever reach the heights that were forecast for him?
Wednesday, Baldwin was absent from practice & is their norm, coach Todd Haley never mentioned Baldwin in his daily press conference. This morning, Nick Wright of 610 Sports in Kansas City, reported Baldwin suffered a wrist injury in a locker room scuffle with running back Thomas Jones. It is unknown if Baldwin traveled with the team to Baltimore yesterday. Wright reports the injury is bad enough Baldwin will miss the remainder of the preseason. Wright also quotes a team source who told him:
"He's as advertised, diva, spoiled, doesn't want to listen. Can run a go route but doesn't work hard."
That's the issue with Jones & other teammates, Baldwin's poor work ethic & absolute refusal to listen to veteran players & coaches. He has numerous drops in daily camp workouts as well as in last Friday's game with Tampa Bay. He also missed several practice sessions because of a sore hamstring. Pioli went against everything he said he believed in last season when he drafted all "high-character guys & team captains." Baldwin, DE Allen Bailey & OLB Justin Houston all carried character issue tags. I think now we're seeing why Baldwin has this reputation. Can Todd Haley, his offensive coaches & the locker room leaders break this kid's attitude? It worked with Dwayne Bowe last year, can it work with Jonathan Baldwin? Like Bowe, the Chiefs have a lot invested in Baldwin, both in terms of the 1st round pick & money. If he busts out, he sets this offense back another year plus he makes Bowe's position in upcoming contract talks much stronger.
Larry Fitzgerald said yesterday he & the Arizona Cardinals are "mot far away" on a deal that could make him a Cardinal for life. He said he would not negotiate his new deal after September 8th, when the regular season begins, so the team has real incentive to get this deal done. If new QB Kevin Kolb doesn't work out as projected, Fitzgerald might not want to stay in Arizona, but we won't know that until at least mid-season. He sounds like he wants it to happen so look for Arizona to lockup their best player for the remainder of his career. One point of interest regarding Fitzgerald's current contract. He can't be slapped with the franchise tag & can't be traded without his approval, Arizona's options are limited.
The New York Giants finally got defensive end Osi Umenyiora back into camp. He had been boycotting the team over a contract slight he blamed on GM Floyd Reese. He came back in this past Monday & late yesterday he phoned Reese & informed him he wanted to have arthroscopic knee surgery. It was completed this morning but Umenyiora will miss 3-4 weeks, meaning he won't be there on opening day. This gives 2nd year man Jason Pierre-Paul a real shot at taking Umenyiora's job at right defensive end. He had an outstanding game last week against Carolina with 4 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 sacks, & 2 additional hits on the quarterback in less than a half of play.
Remember I told you yesterday Terrelle Pryor would accept his 5-game suspension upon signing with an NFL team? I'm not a lawyer, thank God, but I didn't understand how this was legal & it's enforcement seemed difficult at best. One of those really sharp attorneys, the kind with a non-stop meter, convinced Pryor to appeal the decision of the league & approved by the player's union. My question is, does Pryor & his representatives believe he has a shot of seeing the field on the first five Sundays? He will be very fortunate to make a 53-man roster much less play the most difficult position in all of American team sports. At some point reality should surface, oh yeah, we're talking about legal fees generated by expensive lawyers aren't we? With the holes in his game, Pryor could win the appeal & still not play for 2-years. Poking the league & ownership with a stick isn't a good start for a young man toting about 10-tons of baggage.
Raider wide receiver Louis Murphy had surgery yesterday & could miss up to 6-weeks. He suffered a partially torn groin muscle that required an operation to correct. He joins fellow starter Jacoby Ford(broken hand) on the Oakland sideline. Murphy & Ford led all Raider wideouts in receptions last season so it will hurt early in the season. They already lost their leading receiver, tight end Zach Miller, to free agency. If you're a Raider fan, please don't take this the wrong way, I have a close friend who is a diehard Oakland follower, but most Raider fans are truly delusional. Miller gone, Ford injured, Murphy out? No problem, according to many Raider fans they weren't being counted on anyway. The Raiders are so deep at the skill positions, none of these losses will affect their ability to win the AFC West. Really? These fans are way more concerned about their Halloween-like gameday costumes, no way any personnel losses matter. So many of the Raider faithful are quite simply clueless, not you Jimmy, the other fans. They would do well working for politicians, always sticking to the talking points, ignoring the 800-pound gorilla in the room.
Former Missouri/Louisville quarterback Tyler Gabbert was said to be ready to transfer out to Wyoming last week. Former Mizzou offensive coordinator Dave Christensen is the Cowboy head coach. Now the word is Gabbert is visiting UCF. He's logging some impressive frequent flyer miles but is apparently no closer to finding a team he can live with. Saying "live with" is "Gabbert-speak" for promising to make him the #1 QB. He lost the job in spring ball at Mizzou to James Franklin, so he transferred to Louisville. He didn't like the way the competition was shaping up there either so he went out to Wyoming. Now he's looking at Central Florida? What's up with this kid? His brother Blaine has a real shot at unseating veteran quarterback David Garrard in Jacksonville, but Tyler can't stand a little competition?
More notes from last night's NFL preseason games:
The "ass-whippin'" the Tampa Bay Buccaneers received at home last night by the Patriots was a "great wake-up call" according to Buc defensive tackle Gerald McCoy. "They ran a hurry-up our rookies weren't used to seeing & it showed, we were late all night. Mason Foster(rookie middle linebacker) even yelled at Tom Brady "hey can you wait till we lineup?" This is the big leagues guy, get used to it. McCoy said "we got a false sense of security last week, especially playing against Calabro, or whatever his name is. I apologize, I don't remember his name." When told it was Palko, McCoy responded "yeah, Palkro, that's it." Anywaaay, the Bucs got run off the field last night in front of a half-full Raymond James Stadium. New England's top three running backs, Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis, Danny Woodhead & rookie Stevan Ridley combined on 30 carries for 198-yards, pretty scary. Tom Brady completed 11 of 19 for 2 touchdowns, the 31-14 score wasn't indicative of what really transpired on the field.
Pittsburgh crushed the "Dream Team" Philadelphia Eagles 24-14 in another game that wasn't nearly as close as it seemed. I watched both of these games, start to finish, & both were truly lopsided. Steeler quarterback Ben Rothlesberger picked the vaunted Eagle secondary to pieces in one half of work, throwing 2 touchdowns. It continued after intermission with Byron Leftwich & Dennis Dixon combining for 12 of 18 good for 157 yards & a touchdown. Pittsburgh ran the ball too, their time of possession was nearly 18-minutes better than Philly. Michael Vick had a horrendous evening, completing just 5 of 12 for 47-yards & three big interceptions. The last was on a tipped ball, but the first two were simply bad decisions by Vick, trying to squeeze them in when there was no room. Vince Young threw a 2nd half pick as well, in fact the Eagles didn't get on the scoreboard until 3:57 left in the 4th quarter. Another thing I saw last night, rookie MLB Casey Mathews, Clay's little bro, was overwhelmed by the speed of the game. He was fooled into vacating his assigned gap repeatedly & he looked lost in pass drops. He's very smallish for a middle linebacker at barely 6-foot & 228, so everything else, assignments, reads, reactions have to be about perfect on every snap. Trust me, they weren't. The only downside for Pittsburgh & it was a big one, was losing two left tackles. How bad & for how long hasn't been answered yet today. Jonathan Scott & rookie Marcus Gilbert left the field in the 1st half. Maybe they have Flozell Adams on speed dial. The 36-year old veteran played well for the Steelers last season.
In last night's games, when the ones played against the ones, the AFC dominated their NFC counterparts. All four teams figure to be playoff contenders, so the relative ease with which the NFC teams were dispatched should be very disconcerting.
"We will enforce the rules & if that includes the death penalty, I'm fine with that"
NCAA President Mark Emmert
Sounds rather ominous doesn't it? It could actually happen, for the 1st time in nearly 25-years. A blast from the not-too-distant past is coming back to haunt the Hurricanes today. Former athletic director Paul Dee, the former chairman of the NCAA's Committee on Infractions, after handing down severe sanctions against USC, said this:
"You have to put in place the kind of institutional control we have at Miami"
And exactly what type of control is that Mr. Dee? I've detailed the litany of bad behavior, dishonesty & debauchery committed by Hurricane players, coaches & one reprehensible weasly booster, Nevin Shapiro. The sanctimonious rhetoric that was spouted by Dee & University President Donna Shalala will haunt this program. It might even prove to be the ultimate straw that breaks the camel's back.
President Emmert mentioned the "Willful Violators" clause in the NCAA rule book. Under normal circumstances, the NCAA can only go back 4-years from the dates of the first "letter of inquiry" issued to schools under investigation. But if the alleged violations are a long-running issue, like the Miami debacle, the sanctioning body can go back in time as long as it takes to find a starting point. That point would be 2002 until late in 2008. That's a lot of ugliness to cover.
Two things regarding Miami coaches. Randy Shannon, who was fired after last season by Shalala, came away totally clean in this investigation. It was reported he warned anyone who would listen to "stay away from Shapiro, the guy's no good." Shannon couldn't turn the Hurricane football program around,, but it appears he was an excellent judge of character. Secondly, Mizzou must dump basketball coach Frank Haith despite his claims of innocence. He lied to Mizzou AD Mike Alden when he said Shapiro was "a football guy" & "I've never had any dealings with him,." The Charles Robinson report published by Yahoo!Sports features a picture of Haith, Dee, Shalala & Nevin Shapiro in a Miami restaurant holding a check for $50,000 Shapiro gave to the basketball program. Game, set, match Coach Haith, you're outta here!
Wednesday, Baldwin was absent from practice & is their norm, coach Todd Haley never mentioned Baldwin in his daily press conference. This morning, Nick Wright of 610 Sports in Kansas City, reported Baldwin suffered a wrist injury in a locker room scuffle with running back Thomas Jones. It is unknown if Baldwin traveled with the team to Baltimore yesterday. Wright reports the injury is bad enough Baldwin will miss the remainder of the preseason. Wright also quotes a team source who told him:
"He's as advertised, diva, spoiled, doesn't want to listen. Can run a go route but doesn't work hard."
That's the issue with Jones & other teammates, Baldwin's poor work ethic & absolute refusal to listen to veteran players & coaches. He has numerous drops in daily camp workouts as well as in last Friday's game with Tampa Bay. He also missed several practice sessions because of a sore hamstring. Pioli went against everything he said he believed in last season when he drafted all "high-character guys & team captains." Baldwin, DE Allen Bailey & OLB Justin Houston all carried character issue tags. I think now we're seeing why Baldwin has this reputation. Can Todd Haley, his offensive coaches & the locker room leaders break this kid's attitude? It worked with Dwayne Bowe last year, can it work with Jonathan Baldwin? Like Bowe, the Chiefs have a lot invested in Baldwin, both in terms of the 1st round pick & money. If he busts out, he sets this offense back another year plus he makes Bowe's position in upcoming contract talks much stronger.
Larry Fitzgerald said yesterday he & the Arizona Cardinals are "mot far away" on a deal that could make him a Cardinal for life. He said he would not negotiate his new deal after September 8th, when the regular season begins, so the team has real incentive to get this deal done. If new QB Kevin Kolb doesn't work out as projected, Fitzgerald might not want to stay in Arizona, but we won't know that until at least mid-season. He sounds like he wants it to happen so look for Arizona to lockup their best player for the remainder of his career. One point of interest regarding Fitzgerald's current contract. He can't be slapped with the franchise tag & can't be traded without his approval, Arizona's options are limited.
The New York Giants finally got defensive end Osi Umenyiora back into camp. He had been boycotting the team over a contract slight he blamed on GM Floyd Reese. He came back in this past Monday & late yesterday he phoned Reese & informed him he wanted to have arthroscopic knee surgery. It was completed this morning but Umenyiora will miss 3-4 weeks, meaning he won't be there on opening day. This gives 2nd year man Jason Pierre-Paul a real shot at taking Umenyiora's job at right defensive end. He had an outstanding game last week against Carolina with 4 tackles, 2 for loss, 2 sacks, & 2 additional hits on the quarterback in less than a half of play.
Remember I told you yesterday Terrelle Pryor would accept his 5-game suspension upon signing with an NFL team? I'm not a lawyer, thank God, but I didn't understand how this was legal & it's enforcement seemed difficult at best. One of those really sharp attorneys, the kind with a non-stop meter, convinced Pryor to appeal the decision of the league & approved by the player's union. My question is, does Pryor & his representatives believe he has a shot of seeing the field on the first five Sundays? He will be very fortunate to make a 53-man roster much less play the most difficult position in all of American team sports. At some point reality should surface, oh yeah, we're talking about legal fees generated by expensive lawyers aren't we? With the holes in his game, Pryor could win the appeal & still not play for 2-years. Poking the league & ownership with a stick isn't a good start for a young man toting about 10-tons of baggage.
Raider wide receiver Louis Murphy had surgery yesterday & could miss up to 6-weeks. He suffered a partially torn groin muscle that required an operation to correct. He joins fellow starter Jacoby Ford(broken hand) on the Oakland sideline. Murphy & Ford led all Raider wideouts in receptions last season so it will hurt early in the season. They already lost their leading receiver, tight end Zach Miller, to free agency. If you're a Raider fan, please don't take this the wrong way, I have a close friend who is a diehard Oakland follower, but most Raider fans are truly delusional. Miller gone, Ford injured, Murphy out? No problem, according to many Raider fans they weren't being counted on anyway. The Raiders are so deep at the skill positions, none of these losses will affect their ability to win the AFC West. Really? These fans are way more concerned about their Halloween-like gameday costumes, no way any personnel losses matter. So many of the Raider faithful are quite simply clueless, not you Jimmy, the other fans. They would do well working for politicians, always sticking to the talking points, ignoring the 800-pound gorilla in the room.
Former Missouri/Louisville quarterback Tyler Gabbert was said to be ready to transfer out to Wyoming last week. Former Mizzou offensive coordinator Dave Christensen is the Cowboy head coach. Now the word is Gabbert is visiting UCF. He's logging some impressive frequent flyer miles but is apparently no closer to finding a team he can live with. Saying "live with" is "Gabbert-speak" for promising to make him the #1 QB. He lost the job in spring ball at Mizzou to James Franklin, so he transferred to Louisville. He didn't like the way the competition was shaping up there either so he went out to Wyoming. Now he's looking at Central Florida? What's up with this kid? His brother Blaine has a real shot at unseating veteran quarterback David Garrard in Jacksonville, but Tyler can't stand a little competition?
More notes from last night's NFL preseason games:
The "ass-whippin'" the Tampa Bay Buccaneers received at home last night by the Patriots was a "great wake-up call" according to Buc defensive tackle Gerald McCoy. "They ran a hurry-up our rookies weren't used to seeing & it showed, we were late all night. Mason Foster(rookie middle linebacker) even yelled at Tom Brady "hey can you wait till we lineup?" This is the big leagues guy, get used to it. McCoy said "we got a false sense of security last week, especially playing against Calabro, or whatever his name is. I apologize, I don't remember his name." When told it was Palko, McCoy responded "yeah, Palkro, that's it." Anywaaay, the Bucs got run off the field last night in front of a half-full Raymond James Stadium. New England's top three running backs, Ben Jarvis Green-Ellis, Danny Woodhead & rookie Stevan Ridley combined on 30 carries for 198-yards, pretty scary. Tom Brady completed 11 of 19 for 2 touchdowns, the 31-14 score wasn't indicative of what really transpired on the field.
Pittsburgh crushed the "Dream Team" Philadelphia Eagles 24-14 in another game that wasn't nearly as close as it seemed. I watched both of these games, start to finish, & both were truly lopsided. Steeler quarterback Ben Rothlesberger picked the vaunted Eagle secondary to pieces in one half of work, throwing 2 touchdowns. It continued after intermission with Byron Leftwich & Dennis Dixon combining for 12 of 18 good for 157 yards & a touchdown. Pittsburgh ran the ball too, their time of possession was nearly 18-minutes better than Philly. Michael Vick had a horrendous evening, completing just 5 of 12 for 47-yards & three big interceptions. The last was on a tipped ball, but the first two were simply bad decisions by Vick, trying to squeeze them in when there was no room. Vince Young threw a 2nd half pick as well, in fact the Eagles didn't get on the scoreboard until 3:57 left in the 4th quarter. Another thing I saw last night, rookie MLB Casey Mathews, Clay's little bro, was overwhelmed by the speed of the game. He was fooled into vacating his assigned gap repeatedly & he looked lost in pass drops. He's very smallish for a middle linebacker at barely 6-foot & 228, so everything else, assignments, reads, reactions have to be about perfect on every snap. Trust me, they weren't. The only downside for Pittsburgh & it was a big one, was losing two left tackles. How bad & for how long hasn't been answered yet today. Jonathan Scott & rookie Marcus Gilbert left the field in the 1st half. Maybe they have Flozell Adams on speed dial. The 36-year old veteran played well for the Steelers last season.
In last night's games, when the ones played against the ones, the AFC dominated their NFC counterparts. All four teams figure to be playoff contenders, so the relative ease with which the NFC teams were dispatched should be very disconcerting.
"We will enforce the rules & if that includes the death penalty, I'm fine with that"
NCAA President Mark Emmert
Sounds rather ominous doesn't it? It could actually happen, for the 1st time in nearly 25-years. A blast from the not-too-distant past is coming back to haunt the Hurricanes today. Former athletic director Paul Dee, the former chairman of the NCAA's Committee on Infractions, after handing down severe sanctions against USC, said this:
"You have to put in place the kind of institutional control we have at Miami"
And exactly what type of control is that Mr. Dee? I've detailed the litany of bad behavior, dishonesty & debauchery committed by Hurricane players, coaches & one reprehensible weasly booster, Nevin Shapiro. The sanctimonious rhetoric that was spouted by Dee & University President Donna Shalala will haunt this program. It might even prove to be the ultimate straw that breaks the camel's back.
President Emmert mentioned the "Willful Violators" clause in the NCAA rule book. Under normal circumstances, the NCAA can only go back 4-years from the dates of the first "letter of inquiry" issued to schools under investigation. But if the alleged violations are a long-running issue, like the Miami debacle, the sanctioning body can go back in time as long as it takes to find a starting point. That point would be 2002 until late in 2008. That's a lot of ugliness to cover.
Two things regarding Miami coaches. Randy Shannon, who was fired after last season by Shalala, came away totally clean in this investigation. It was reported he warned anyone who would listen to "stay away from Shapiro, the guy's no good." Shannon couldn't turn the Hurricane football program around,, but it appears he was an excellent judge of character. Secondly, Mizzou must dump basketball coach Frank Haith despite his claims of innocence. He lied to Mizzou AD Mike Alden when he said Shapiro was "a football guy" & "I've never had any dealings with him,." The Charles Robinson report published by Yahoo!Sports features a picture of Haith, Dee, Shalala & Nevin Shapiro in a Miami restaurant holding a check for $50,000 Shapiro gave to the basketball program. Game, set, match Coach Haith, you're outta here!
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