ROAF WAS EASIEST HOF PICK, HALEY & MCDANIELS GET HIRED & SUPER BOWL TV RATINGS BREAK THE RECORD
Peter King of SI.com, a longtime voter for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, said in his recent column Willie Roaf was the quickest approval in Saturday's selection meeting. It took 57-minutes for the 44-man committee to say no to Bill Parcells but it took just 8-minutes to approve the former Saints & Chiefs offensive tackle. IMO, Roaf should have gotten in last year, his first year of eligibility. Roaf belongs in the same group with Anthony Munoz & Art Shell as the best-ever to play left tackle.
Giants rookie linebacker Greg Jones made his Super Bowl Sunday even more memorable. As the confetti cannons showered the field, Jones dropped to one knee & proposed to his long time girlfriend Mandy Piechowski. She attended Michigan State with Jones where she was a starting guard on the basketball team & is now a model.
Denver running back Knowshon Moreno was arrested Sunday night on charges of DUI after he was stopped for traveling 77 MPH in a 45 MPH work zone. He failed a field sobriety test but refused a breathalizer. Moreno has been a major disappointment to the Broncos since they drafted him in the first round in 2010. He hasn't been able to stay healthy, only playing in 7 games this past season before tearing his ACL. He was driving a Bentley with personalized plates that read "SAUCED." Alrighty.
When I'm wrong, I'll admit it & like many others, I was dead wrong on Todd Haley's chances of landing the vacant offensive coordinator's position with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Many thought his interview was more of a courtesy thing, in respect for his father Dick Haley, a former Steelers player & director of player personnel. As Bob Gretz reports, Haley's hiring could be a reflection on what other NFL franchises perceive as the internal dysfunction within the Chiefs organization. Bob could be onto something.
Josh McDaniels was officially named offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots as Bill O'Brien departed to become the new head coach for Penn State. Tho I'm skeptical of Chiefs new hire Brian Daboll, Josh McDaniels working for Kansas City could have been a disaster. No word from the Chiefs as to Jim Zorn's desire to stay in his current position as the team's quarterback coach. BTW, Daboll makes the fifth O.C. QB Matt Cassel has had in the four seasons he's been in Kansas City.
The Oakland Raiders announced their choice for defensive coordinator, former D.C. at Stanford, Jason Tarver. Like I said on my radio show last night, I think the Raiders, with their out of the box hires, could be the team to beat in the shaky AFC West. I like every move they've made.
Alabama cornerback & certain #1 draft pick this April, Dre Kirkpatrick, was cleared of drug possession charges after former teammate Chris Rogers told Tuscaloosa Police the pot found in Kirkpatrick's car was his, not Kirkpatrick's. Not sure if kirkpatrick is completely innocent, but he better be able to pass a drug test on the 23rd for the scouting combine.
Andrew Luck continues to train in Los Angeles for the upcoming scouting combine. He's working with former Chiefs receiver Samie Parker & a few other former NFL players to make his transition to the NFL easier. Think this guy isn't a solid replacement for Peyton Manning for Indianapolis? He spends hours looking at coverages on video & said "I pretty much have an unquenchable thirst for football knowledge." I love this kid, he's has everything it takes to be great.
The contract negotiations between the New Orleans Saints & their star quarterback Drew Brees are going nowhere according to his agent Tom Condon. The Saints just aren't talking right now & it is a little perplexing considering their situation with two other offensive stars. Wide receiver Marques Colston & guard Carl Nicks are also unrestricted free agents. The theory is sign Brees to a new long term deal, then you know what you have left to sign the other two. Most likely Nicks would be franchised because the cap hit would be much less on a guard than a wide receiver. Colston might be cast adrift, he will certainly be gone if Brees has to be franchised & will generate huge interest on the free agent market.
Another wide receiver with some great buzz right now, Giants' Mario Manningham, could be an unrestricted free agent. He wants to stay with the Giants & has hinted he would be willing to give them the "hometown discount." But as a 3rd receiver in this lineup, I think the Giants are somewhat limited in what they can offer Mario. The guy who made the catch of the day Sunday might have made his last catch for the Giants.
Speaking of Sunday, the Super Bowl telecast ratings are in & it's a record breaker. Super Bowl 46 became the most watched television program in history with 111.3 million viewers watching most or all of the game. Part time viewers were ranked at 166.8 million domestically. That's why 30-second commercials cost $3.5 million. It's also why the networks pay the NFL billions per season to televise their games, they are consistently the highest rated viewing blocks on TV.
Giants rookie linebacker Greg Jones made his Super Bowl Sunday even more memorable. As the confetti cannons showered the field, Jones dropped to one knee & proposed to his long time girlfriend Mandy Piechowski. She attended Michigan State with Jones where she was a starting guard on the basketball team & is now a model.
Denver running back Knowshon Moreno was arrested Sunday night on charges of DUI after he was stopped for traveling 77 MPH in a 45 MPH work zone. He failed a field sobriety test but refused a breathalizer. Moreno has been a major disappointment to the Broncos since they drafted him in the first round in 2010. He hasn't been able to stay healthy, only playing in 7 games this past season before tearing his ACL. He was driving a Bentley with personalized plates that read "SAUCED." Alrighty.
When I'm wrong, I'll admit it & like many others, I was dead wrong on Todd Haley's chances of landing the vacant offensive coordinator's position with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Many thought his interview was more of a courtesy thing, in respect for his father Dick Haley, a former Steelers player & director of player personnel. As Bob Gretz reports, Haley's hiring could be a reflection on what other NFL franchises perceive as the internal dysfunction within the Chiefs organization. Bob could be onto something.
Josh McDaniels was officially named offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots as Bill O'Brien departed to become the new head coach for Penn State. Tho I'm skeptical of Chiefs new hire Brian Daboll, Josh McDaniels working for Kansas City could have been a disaster. No word from the Chiefs as to Jim Zorn's desire to stay in his current position as the team's quarterback coach. BTW, Daboll makes the fifth O.C. QB Matt Cassel has had in the four seasons he's been in Kansas City.
The Oakland Raiders announced their choice for defensive coordinator, former D.C. at Stanford, Jason Tarver. Like I said on my radio show last night, I think the Raiders, with their out of the box hires, could be the team to beat in the shaky AFC West. I like every move they've made.
Alabama cornerback & certain #1 draft pick this April, Dre Kirkpatrick, was cleared of drug possession charges after former teammate Chris Rogers told Tuscaloosa Police the pot found in Kirkpatrick's car was his, not Kirkpatrick's. Not sure if kirkpatrick is completely innocent, but he better be able to pass a drug test on the 23rd for the scouting combine.
Andrew Luck continues to train in Los Angeles for the upcoming scouting combine. He's working with former Chiefs receiver Samie Parker & a few other former NFL players to make his transition to the NFL easier. Think this guy isn't a solid replacement for Peyton Manning for Indianapolis? He spends hours looking at coverages on video & said "I pretty much have an unquenchable thirst for football knowledge." I love this kid, he's has everything it takes to be great.
The contract negotiations between the New Orleans Saints & their star quarterback Drew Brees are going nowhere according to his agent Tom Condon. The Saints just aren't talking right now & it is a little perplexing considering their situation with two other offensive stars. Wide receiver Marques Colston & guard Carl Nicks are also unrestricted free agents. The theory is sign Brees to a new long term deal, then you know what you have left to sign the other two. Most likely Nicks would be franchised because the cap hit would be much less on a guard than a wide receiver. Colston might be cast adrift, he will certainly be gone if Brees has to be franchised & will generate huge interest on the free agent market.
Another wide receiver with some great buzz right now, Giants' Mario Manningham, could be an unrestricted free agent. He wants to stay with the Giants & has hinted he would be willing to give them the "hometown discount." But as a 3rd receiver in this lineup, I think the Giants are somewhat limited in what they can offer Mario. The guy who made the catch of the day Sunday might have made his last catch for the Giants.
Speaking of Sunday, the Super Bowl telecast ratings are in & it's a record breaker. Super Bowl 46 became the most watched television program in history with 111.3 million viewers watching most or all of the game. Part time viewers were ranked at 166.8 million domestically. That's why 30-second commercials cost $3.5 million. It's also why the networks pay the NFL billions per season to televise their games, they are consistently the highest rated viewing blocks on TV.
Hi Rich,
When the Steelers "forced" Bruce Arians out as OC, I just had the feeling Todd Haley was already the #1 choice in Pitt. Pitt ownership is notoriously loyal and I had to think that the Rooneys would look to Haley. We can say what we want about Haley as head coach, but his offenses fit the direction Pitt wants to go; Haley's KC offenses ran the ball well. And he'll get the most out of the young stud WRs on the Steelers (Wallace, Brown, Sanders).
As for Brian Daboll, what a disappointing hire. His offenses are bland and predictable. When he took over the Browns OC job, QB Derek Anderson and WR Braylon Edwards were coming off a career years. Enter Daboll and both tank, along with the offenses Daboll ran in the seasons after.
This is going to be another interesting off-season for KC.
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