RAMS TO LONDON 3 TIMES, MIAMI GETS A COACH & A LEGEND PASSES
The St. Louis Rams will be the home team in 3 games to be played at London's Wembley Stadium over the next three seasons. They will host the New England Patriots this season. Rams' owner Stan Kroenke also owns Arsenal, one of the top teams in the English Premiere League. He is interested in pushing the Rams' brand overseas just like Roger Goodell wants to do with the NFL. It also accomplishes something else for Kroenke, it creates leverage for either a new stadium or a refurbished Edward Jones Dome, their current home. No stadium deal could sent the Rams back to L.A.
Pittsburgh offensive coordinator, Bruce Arians, has announced his retirement from coaching. He had held his position with the Steelers the past 5-years & before that he coached the wide receivers for three. No word yet on who will replace the 59-year old Arians.
Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel said on Friday he intends to conduct interviews this upcoming week in Mobile Alabama during Senior Bowl week. Crennel said he had 3-4 candidates for the position.
The Miami Dolphins have a new head coach. They finally filled the position with Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin. Philbin recently lost his 21-year old son in a drowning & he wanted to get a fresh start elsewhere, which is completely understandable.
You know I bitch about how little preparation some writers do before they post or publish their work. I read a mock draft on The Sporting News' website, written by Russ Lande. Once again I have real questions about stuff from TSN. Their draft preview, written by the former NFL scouts in the War Room, is an embarrassing rag & Lande's piece would fit right in with everything TSN does for the draft. I won't detail all the obvious mistakes Lande makes in his piece, I'll just give you one regarding the Chiefs' first selection I know will raise an eyebrow. Lande suggested the Chiefs select North Carolina defensive end Quinton Coples. Lande said he could play DE or OLB for the pass-rush-starved Chiefs. The pass-rush-starved part is the only correct thing in his analysis. Is Justin Houston a mirage? Is he going to supplant Tamba Hali on the other side or is he going to play a 3-4 DE spot at 267-pounds? Mizzou fans saw this underachiever in the Independence Bowl. He got a sack & a tackle in Mizzou's first series & then was blanked the rest of the game, the guy simply vanished. This would be a great selection for the Chiefs? Really? I hope Scott Pioli isn't on the same wave length as Lande.
The East-West Shrine Game is tomorrow & I'll preview a few of the players I'm looking at in this college all-star game when I post my NFL picks in the morning. The best game of this type is the Senior Bowl, for which televised practices begin next week. I'll have daily updates on the practices beginning Monday.
One of my favorite performers passed away Friday morning, blues great Etta James. She died of complications from leukemia, she was 73. Etta was a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Blues Hall of Fame, Grammy Hall of Fame & she has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Rolling Stone magazine listed Etta as the 22nd greatest singer of all-time. I was fortunate enough to see her in concert twice, in 1996 with B.B. King & later in 2000 at the House of Blues in Las Vegas. For those of you who don't recognize the name Etta James, please go to Youtube & put her name in the search engine at the top of the page & click her rendition of "At Last." I just checked, there are three versions that have been played over 11 million times. Her music was featured on a number of commercials, most notably, a Jaguar spot with "At Last" that ran for most of the 2003 football season. It is truly one of the greatest songs ever recorded. Beyonce played James in the movie "Cadillac Records." Etta had a tragic upbringing & a tough life, but she always found solace singing the blues & God could the woman sing. She was also an extremely talented songwriter. When Mike Rudolph & I went to see her & B.B. King in 1996, hours later in the casino we wound up on a crap table with her two sons who played in her band. They were great kids, in their mid-20's & very proud of their mom. She was truly an American musical treasure & if you're not familiar with Etta James, do your self a favor & spend 5-minutes on Youtube, it's well worth it, she was a very special talent. Rest in peace Etta James, rest in peace.
Etta James in 2007 Beyonce' as James in "Cadillac Records"
Pittsburgh offensive coordinator, Bruce Arians, has announced his retirement from coaching. He had held his position with the Steelers the past 5-years & before that he coached the wide receivers for three. No word yet on who will replace the 59-year old Arians.
Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel said on Friday he intends to conduct interviews this upcoming week in Mobile Alabama during Senior Bowl week. Crennel said he had 3-4 candidates for the position.
The Miami Dolphins have a new head coach. They finally filled the position with Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin. Philbin recently lost his 21-year old son in a drowning & he wanted to get a fresh start elsewhere, which is completely understandable.
You know I bitch about how little preparation some writers do before they post or publish their work. I read a mock draft on The Sporting News' website, written by Russ Lande. Once again I have real questions about stuff from TSN. Their draft preview, written by the former NFL scouts in the War Room, is an embarrassing rag & Lande's piece would fit right in with everything TSN does for the draft. I won't detail all the obvious mistakes Lande makes in his piece, I'll just give you one regarding the Chiefs' first selection I know will raise an eyebrow. Lande suggested the Chiefs select North Carolina defensive end Quinton Coples. Lande said he could play DE or OLB for the pass-rush-starved Chiefs. The pass-rush-starved part is the only correct thing in his analysis. Is Justin Houston a mirage? Is he going to supplant Tamba Hali on the other side or is he going to play a 3-4 DE spot at 267-pounds? Mizzou fans saw this underachiever in the Independence Bowl. He got a sack & a tackle in Mizzou's first series & then was blanked the rest of the game, the guy simply vanished. This would be a great selection for the Chiefs? Really? I hope Scott Pioli isn't on the same wave length as Lande.
The East-West Shrine Game is tomorrow & I'll preview a few of the players I'm looking at in this college all-star game when I post my NFL picks in the morning. The best game of this type is the Senior Bowl, for which televised practices begin next week. I'll have daily updates on the practices beginning Monday.
One of my favorite performers passed away Friday morning, blues great Etta James. She died of complications from leukemia, she was 73. Etta was a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Blues Hall of Fame, Grammy Hall of Fame & she has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Rolling Stone magazine listed Etta as the 22nd greatest singer of all-time. I was fortunate enough to see her in concert twice, in 1996 with B.B. King & later in 2000 at the House of Blues in Las Vegas. For those of you who don't recognize the name Etta James, please go to Youtube & put her name in the search engine at the top of the page & click her rendition of "At Last." I just checked, there are three versions that have been played over 11 million times. Her music was featured on a number of commercials, most notably, a Jaguar spot with "At Last" that ran for most of the 2003 football season. It is truly one of the greatest songs ever recorded. Beyonce played James in the movie "Cadillac Records." Etta had a tragic upbringing & a tough life, but she always found solace singing the blues & God could the woman sing. She was also an extremely talented songwriter. When Mike Rudolph & I went to see her & B.B. King in 1996, hours later in the casino we wound up on a crap table with her two sons who played in her band. They were great kids, in their mid-20's & very proud of their mom. She was truly an American musical treasure & if you're not familiar with Etta James, do your self a favor & spend 5-minutes on Youtube, it's well worth it, she was a very special talent. Rest in peace Etta James, rest in peace.
Etta James in 2007 Beyonce' as James in "Cadillac Records"
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