HOT SEAT REPORT, WADE SIDELINED, TURNER GILL EMPLOYED AGAIN & I PICKED THE BRONCOS VS THE PATS?????
Received several emails inquiring about other possible coaching dismissals & would the Chiefs be interested in any of them should they get a pink slip. First let's look at the coaches currently on the hot seat.
Raheem Morris-I can't see a way he survives. The most damning thing to a coach is when he begins to lose the locker room. There is a percentage of his team that thought talking the owner out of releasing CB Aqib Talib after the lockout was a major mistake. Players think Morris holds certain other players to less scrutiny & discipline. He might be a good coach 10-years down the road, very young head coaches seldom survive their first job.
Norv Turner-It's been said for over a decade about Turner, "Great offensive coordinator, lousy head coach." I agree, I don't him getting another chance as a head coach.
Jason Garrett-maybe not on the national hot seat, but he makes mine. Continually disappointing Jerry Jones isn't great for job security. Like Turner, he might not become a head coach again for a long time.
Jim Caldwell-Super Bowl coach two years ago to out of work? If the Colts don't win a game, they're currently 0-13, I don't think he'll be back in 2012. Yes, I know he lost Peyton Manning, but even Tyler Palko won a game. This team has too many stars at other positions to stink this badly. I think he needs to win 2 of 3 to keep his job.
Jack Del Rio & Tony Sparano-Yeah, they've already been canned, just thought I'd review their prospects. Del Rio was an excellent defensive coordinator at one time & I think that's his future. Sparano won't get any serious looks as a head coach either, for as hard as his team played for him this season, back-to-back 7-9 records coupled with his 0-7 start this year cooked him in South Florida.
Todd Haley will be a panel member tonight on "Audibles" at 6PM Central, on ESPN. The NFL themed show takes questions from fans on social networks, it's really pretty lame. Haley.......beard or no beard?
Wade Phillips underwent a "surgical procedure" yesterday that will sideline him for about two weeks. Tho his agent or the Texans will reveal the type of procedure Phillips underwent, both did say it wasn't life-threatening or cancerous which is very good news. The good news for jittery Houston fans is their #1 ranked defense will host Carolina this Sunday & then travel to Indianapolis next Saturday before finishing the season with Tennessee. The teams has had to lean heavily on the defense with two QB's out in addition to WR Andre Johnson.
John P. is a very unhappy Green Bay Packer fan. He's not unhappy with the 13-0 Packers, he's unhappy because he feels they're not getting enough credit for their perfect record. He unleashed a rant on Tim Tebow & how the media has made him the lead story in the NFL & not his Pack. John, my take is this, the Packers are having a lights-out kind of season & if they pursue it, I think they'll be undefeated. Having said that, in the past 5-years, we've had a 16-0 team(Patriots) & a team that benched their starters(Colts) thereby preventing an undefeated season. So this 13-0, 14-0, 15-0 talk isn't something new, it's very fresh on people's mind. That's why I think the Packers have been pushed to the back burner. What you need to understand is the players are perfectly happy being the second story right now instead of having to answer every stupid question about their quest for a 16-0 regular season record. They're flying under the radar somewhat & they like it.
As for Tebow, the kid has become a political football, not just a Denver Bronco. Part of that is his fault for his preaching everytime he gets a microphone shoved in his face. But the majority of it falls on the media's obsession with hoping he'll fail. As a lifelong Bronco hater, I think you know my feelings. I didn't like this team before Tebow & I don't root for them now. I do, as a football fan, enjoy their success because many so-called experts are having to swallow their pride & admit, at least for now, they were wrong. I've said many times here, this team is winning because they play "Martyball." Great defense, run the ball & don't commit turnovers, that's what Chiefs' fans have called this strategy for years. But the passion of some who want this kid to fail really saddens me. If he was a gun-toting thug, I guess they'd somehow be happier? If he had 6 or 8 kids with 5 different women that would make him a better NFL player? I don't like all the preaching either, but I prefer it to the Sam Hurds(see below) of the league. Even Denver football V.P. John Elway wants Tebow to fail, but he's coming at it from a different perspective. Like me, I don't think Tebow's game will hold up in the NFL over time. Elway just wants to get onto the next phase of rebuilding this franchise & the bump in the road Tebow has created makes it harder to get on with the task at hand.
Chiefs' interim head coach Romeo Crennell made it clear in his news conference Tyler Palko is out as the starting quarterback. If Kyle Orton's finger is healed enough, he'll get the start. If not, prepare for Ricky Stanzi, Crennell said the rookie is taking about 40% of the 1st team snaps. Regardless of the outcome, not being forced to watch Tyler Palko at QB is a win-win for Chiefs' fans.
I said the other day I expected Carl Peterson to become the new "Football Czar" of the Miami Dolphins, filling Bill Parcells' old position. Owner Steven Ross said in his post-Tony Sparano firing news conference that Peterson wasn't likely to be joining the Dolphins front office anytime soon. I stand by what I said on Monday, he will become the Miami president of football operations within the next month.
Bears wide receiver & special teamer, Sam Hurd, was arrested by federal authorities last night in Chicago according to the Dallas Morning News. The charges stem from an attempted major drug buy in North Texas while he was a member of the Dallas Cowboys. As a 6-year NFL veteran player, his base salary was a minimum of $615,000, allegedly Hurd was looking to diversify into other forms of revenue-producing investments.
Didn't take Turner Gill too long to find another job after being canned by the University of Kansas last month. He will become the new head coach at Liberty College. The Evangelical Christian university was founded by the late Jerry Falwell. His son Jr. made the announcement this morning stressing Gill's strong Christian faith was a major reason for his hiring at Liberty. The Lynchburg Virginia school is quite a fall for Gill, but KU still owes him millions, so he'll get by in relative obscurity. Sometimes jobs like this become a career, it's just the right fit. Good luck to a good man.
Ben Roethlisberger is still in a walking boot & missing practice. I don't expect he'll practice until Saturday & then on a limited basis. His ankle sprain could possibly keep him out against San Francisco Monday night. The Niners get after the quarterback extremely well. Ben's ankle could make him more of a stationary target for the Mizzou Smiths, Justin & Aldon. The pair have 17 combined sacks & with Pittsburgh's pass protection issues, sitting Roethlisberger is a possibility. IMO it won't happen, he'll play.
Talk about being under-appreciated. I help two readers to Office Pool Pot wins this past week & after posting my predictions for this week very early this morning, I'm already getting flak for some of you. "You picked the Broncos to beat New England? Seriously?" Another wrote, "You jumped on the Tebow bandwagon at just the wrong time." "If you think BB(Bill Belichick) is going to let a hack like Tebow to beat them, your the most clueless dude on the net" came from another. My traffic is way up, a lot of new readers, but all you have to do is look to the left & pick the posts out of the archives, I've picked the Denver in my Office Pool Picks for 4-straight weeks. I was convinced after their Thursday night win vs. the Jets. Another very important reason I picked Denver this week is that they are the only franchise in the entire league with a winning record versus Belichick/Brady. It's not a slim margin either, Denver is 5-1 against the B&B led Patriots. Since John Elway retired before Brady was even drafted, that means these wins have come with Kyle Orton, Brian Griese & Jake Plummer, hardly HOF caliber quarterbacks. One more tidbit; the Patriots have surrendered 650-yards passing the past two weeks to a pair of offensive juggernauts, Indy & Washington. That's Dan Orlovsky & Rex Grossman, both operating behind messed up offensive lines, lighting up the Patriot secondary. I never pick or bet on what I call the "Due Theory." Just because the momentum is going one way for a while does not mean it's "due" to go the other way. The Broncos have won six straight currently & 5 of six against the B&B-led Patriots, this is classic "Due Theory." If Denver loses to New England, I might get off the Broncos. I said in closing that post this was the toughest week of the season to pick 16-games & winning 10-11 of them would satisfy me.
Don't forget the NFL Network game tonight, Jacksonville at Atlanta. O.K. you can forget it, I don't see much of a matchup here but don't forget the NFL Network has another game, Saturday night, also at 7:20 Central, between the fading Dallas Cowboys & the already faded Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Okay, unless you're a dedicated fan of these teams or a degenerate gambler, maybe some pre-Christmas activities would be a better option.
Raheem Morris-I can't see a way he survives. The most damning thing to a coach is when he begins to lose the locker room. There is a percentage of his team that thought talking the owner out of releasing CB Aqib Talib after the lockout was a major mistake. Players think Morris holds certain other players to less scrutiny & discipline. He might be a good coach 10-years down the road, very young head coaches seldom survive their first job.
Norv Turner-It's been said for over a decade about Turner, "Great offensive coordinator, lousy head coach." I agree, I don't him getting another chance as a head coach.
Jason Garrett-maybe not on the national hot seat, but he makes mine. Continually disappointing Jerry Jones isn't great for job security. Like Turner, he might not become a head coach again for a long time.
Jim Caldwell-Super Bowl coach two years ago to out of work? If the Colts don't win a game, they're currently 0-13, I don't think he'll be back in 2012. Yes, I know he lost Peyton Manning, but even Tyler Palko won a game. This team has too many stars at other positions to stink this badly. I think he needs to win 2 of 3 to keep his job.
Jack Del Rio & Tony Sparano-Yeah, they've already been canned, just thought I'd review their prospects. Del Rio was an excellent defensive coordinator at one time & I think that's his future. Sparano won't get any serious looks as a head coach either, for as hard as his team played for him this season, back-to-back 7-9 records coupled with his 0-7 start this year cooked him in South Florida.
Todd Haley will be a panel member tonight on "Audibles" at 6PM Central, on ESPN. The NFL themed show takes questions from fans on social networks, it's really pretty lame. Haley.......beard or no beard?
Wade Phillips underwent a "surgical procedure" yesterday that will sideline him for about two weeks. Tho his agent or the Texans will reveal the type of procedure Phillips underwent, both did say it wasn't life-threatening or cancerous which is very good news. The good news for jittery Houston fans is their #1 ranked defense will host Carolina this Sunday & then travel to Indianapolis next Saturday before finishing the season with Tennessee. The teams has had to lean heavily on the defense with two QB's out in addition to WR Andre Johnson.
John P. is a very unhappy Green Bay Packer fan. He's not unhappy with the 13-0 Packers, he's unhappy because he feels they're not getting enough credit for their perfect record. He unleashed a rant on Tim Tebow & how the media has made him the lead story in the NFL & not his Pack. John, my take is this, the Packers are having a lights-out kind of season & if they pursue it, I think they'll be undefeated. Having said that, in the past 5-years, we've had a 16-0 team(Patriots) & a team that benched their starters(Colts) thereby preventing an undefeated season. So this 13-0, 14-0, 15-0 talk isn't something new, it's very fresh on people's mind. That's why I think the Packers have been pushed to the back burner. What you need to understand is the players are perfectly happy being the second story right now instead of having to answer every stupid question about their quest for a 16-0 regular season record. They're flying under the radar somewhat & they like it.
As for Tebow, the kid has become a political football, not just a Denver Bronco. Part of that is his fault for his preaching everytime he gets a microphone shoved in his face. But the majority of it falls on the media's obsession with hoping he'll fail. As a lifelong Bronco hater, I think you know my feelings. I didn't like this team before Tebow & I don't root for them now. I do, as a football fan, enjoy their success because many so-called experts are having to swallow their pride & admit, at least for now, they were wrong. I've said many times here, this team is winning because they play "Martyball." Great defense, run the ball & don't commit turnovers, that's what Chiefs' fans have called this strategy for years. But the passion of some who want this kid to fail really saddens me. If he was a gun-toting thug, I guess they'd somehow be happier? If he had 6 or 8 kids with 5 different women that would make him a better NFL player? I don't like all the preaching either, but I prefer it to the Sam Hurds(see below) of the league. Even Denver football V.P. John Elway wants Tebow to fail, but he's coming at it from a different perspective. Like me, I don't think Tebow's game will hold up in the NFL over time. Elway just wants to get onto the next phase of rebuilding this franchise & the bump in the road Tebow has created makes it harder to get on with the task at hand.
Chiefs' interim head coach Romeo Crennell made it clear in his news conference Tyler Palko is out as the starting quarterback. If Kyle Orton's finger is healed enough, he'll get the start. If not, prepare for Ricky Stanzi, Crennell said the rookie is taking about 40% of the 1st team snaps. Regardless of the outcome, not being forced to watch Tyler Palko at QB is a win-win for Chiefs' fans.
I said the other day I expected Carl Peterson to become the new "Football Czar" of the Miami Dolphins, filling Bill Parcells' old position. Owner Steven Ross said in his post-Tony Sparano firing news conference that Peterson wasn't likely to be joining the Dolphins front office anytime soon. I stand by what I said on Monday, he will become the Miami president of football operations within the next month.
Bears wide receiver & special teamer, Sam Hurd, was arrested by federal authorities last night in Chicago according to the Dallas Morning News. The charges stem from an attempted major drug buy in North Texas while he was a member of the Dallas Cowboys. As a 6-year NFL veteran player, his base salary was a minimum of $615,000, allegedly Hurd was looking to diversify into other forms of revenue-producing investments.
Didn't take Turner Gill too long to find another job after being canned by the University of Kansas last month. He will become the new head coach at Liberty College. The Evangelical Christian university was founded by the late Jerry Falwell. His son Jr. made the announcement this morning stressing Gill's strong Christian faith was a major reason for his hiring at Liberty. The Lynchburg Virginia school is quite a fall for Gill, but KU still owes him millions, so he'll get by in relative obscurity. Sometimes jobs like this become a career, it's just the right fit. Good luck to a good man.
Ben Roethlisberger is still in a walking boot & missing practice. I don't expect he'll practice until Saturday & then on a limited basis. His ankle sprain could possibly keep him out against San Francisco Monday night. The Niners get after the quarterback extremely well. Ben's ankle could make him more of a stationary target for the Mizzou Smiths, Justin & Aldon. The pair have 17 combined sacks & with Pittsburgh's pass protection issues, sitting Roethlisberger is a possibility. IMO it won't happen, he'll play.
Talk about being under-appreciated. I help two readers to Office Pool Pot wins this past week & after posting my predictions for this week very early this morning, I'm already getting flak for some of you. "You picked the Broncos to beat New England? Seriously?" Another wrote, "You jumped on the Tebow bandwagon at just the wrong time." "If you think BB(Bill Belichick) is going to let a hack like Tebow to beat them, your the most clueless dude on the net" came from another. My traffic is way up, a lot of new readers, but all you have to do is look to the left & pick the posts out of the archives, I've picked the Denver in my Office Pool Picks for 4-straight weeks. I was convinced after their Thursday night win vs. the Jets. Another very important reason I picked Denver this week is that they are the only franchise in the entire league with a winning record versus Belichick/Brady. It's not a slim margin either, Denver is 5-1 against the B&B led Patriots. Since John Elway retired before Brady was even drafted, that means these wins have come with Kyle Orton, Brian Griese & Jake Plummer, hardly HOF caliber quarterbacks. One more tidbit; the Patriots have surrendered 650-yards passing the past two weeks to a pair of offensive juggernauts, Indy & Washington. That's Dan Orlovsky & Rex Grossman, both operating behind messed up offensive lines, lighting up the Patriot secondary. I never pick or bet on what I call the "Due Theory." Just because the momentum is going one way for a while does not mean it's "due" to go the other way. The Broncos have won six straight currently & 5 of six against the B&B-led Patriots, this is classic "Due Theory." If Denver loses to New England, I might get off the Broncos. I said in closing that post this was the toughest week of the season to pick 16-games & winning 10-11 of them would satisfy me.
Don't forget the NFL Network game tonight, Jacksonville at Atlanta. O.K. you can forget it, I don't see much of a matchup here but don't forget the NFL Network has another game, Saturday night, also at 7:20 Central, between the fading Dallas Cowboys & the already faded Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Okay, unless you're a dedicated fan of these teams or a degenerate gambler, maybe some pre-Christmas activities would be a better option.
Comments