Sunday, February 8, 2009
USA Swimming Spineless
Whatever report you'll read about Michael Phelps' 3 month suspension wont mention any similar type of punishment he received four years ago for his DUI. There was no such punishment. When Phelps not only broke the law but was arrested and even convicted (he got probation), USA Swimming judged it unworthy of intervention. Not only is this suspension transparent - Phelps wont miss any significant races - but so are their motives; it's a knee-jerk reaction and only for show. It's unjust that their decisions lack integrity and are made only with public image in mind. It would have been perfectly reasonable for USAS to announce "We don't meddle in our athletes private affairs."
NFL Coaching Carousel Round-up Part 1
Now that Todd Haley has been hired to coach the Chiefs all NFL head coaching vacancies have been filled. In total ten new coaches were hired, eleven if you count Tom Cable and Mike Singletary who had their interim titles removed. That’s the most coaching changes in one season since at least 1996. There were also notable OC and DC hires as well as front office shifts.
Along with Singletary and Cable, Jim Haslett was the other interim coach this season. After Haslett won his first two games he Rams offered him an automatic extension pending another four victories. The league negated the contract, citing the Rooney rule. It became a moot point as the Rams lost their next ten games, coming within a touchdown only twice. The Rams’ new GM Bil Devaney hired his close friend Steve Spagnuolo on Januray 17 at four years/ $12 million. Spags was set for a HC job after last year’s Super Bowl showcase, but outdid himself guiding this year’s defense from 7th overall to 5th after losing arguably its two best players in Strahan and Osi.
Haslett interviewed for the Green Bay DC job that eventually went to Dom Capers and is now being floated as the Panthers’ DC. Scott Linehan, the Rams’ midseason fire, spurned the 49ers and instead took the Lions’ OC job. Whomever San Fran does hire (Dan Reeves!?) will be their 7th OC in 7 seasons.
The Giants quickly replaced Spags with their Linebackers coach Bill Sheridan. He shares Spagnuolo’s philosophy and Coughlin valued his commitment to an attacking style.
Spagnuolo beat out, among others, Jason Garret for the job. Garret, who last year was such a hot commodity that Jerry Jones had to give him the richest coordinator contract in history, whiffed on all three of his HC interviews this year (Denver, Detroit).
The postseason news that came out of Dallas likely didn’t help:
Those Denver and Detroit jobs that Garrett missed out on eventually went to Pats OC Josh McDaniels and Titans DC Jim Schwartz respectively. It’s notable that Martin Mayhew, the man now making the management decisions in Detroit, the man who hired Schwartz, was Matt Millen’s second in command. Steve Mariucci defended the connection, saying “Martin is his own man,” but the endless string of coaching failures during the Fords' ownership is remarkable – it is stunning how often the phrase “never coached again at any level” comes up in that list.
The Shanahan firing was surprising though not unreasonable. No matter the case for or against it, it’s agreed that Shanahan was a bad GM. To wit: hiring three DCs in the past three years, his inability to adequately evaluate defensive talent, and bad contracts (e.g. Daniel Graham for $30 million). On the one hand Shanahan had winning records with three different quarterbacks (he was just under .500 with Cutler) and his system could make a 1,000 yard rusher out of anyone. On the other hand he’d won one playoff game without Elway and closed this season with three straight losses, handing the division to the Chargers. The defense gave up 30, 30, and 52, in those games; it was in the bottom five in points allowed each of the past two years. McDaniels hired the Niner’s mid-season fire Mike Nolan as the Bronco’s fourth DC in four years.
Jon Gruden’s firing was similarly unexpected. Gruden himself was said to be "blindsided." The Glazers explained Gruden’s relatively late removal by emphasizing the prudence of deliberateness. Much like the Broncos the Bucs had a late season collapse that knocked them out of the playoffs, and much like Shanahan Gruden’s post-Super Bowl resume is unimpressive. Unlike Shanahan Gruden has had a consistently good defense and has had even less offensive success. Beyond the numbers, Gruden also was unpopular with his players – Michael Clayton said players felt like they were playing for themselves. Mike Lombardi, his former Raiders GM put it like this:
-Agent Easy
Along with Singletary and Cable, Jim Haslett was the other interim coach this season. After Haslett won his first two games he Rams offered him an automatic extension pending another four victories. The league negated the contract, citing the Rooney rule. It became a moot point as the Rams lost their next ten games, coming within a touchdown only twice. The Rams’ new GM Bil Devaney hired his close friend Steve Spagnuolo on Januray 17 at four years/ $12 million. Spags was set for a HC job after last year’s Super Bowl showcase, but outdid himself guiding this year’s defense from 7th overall to 5th after losing arguably its two best players in Strahan and Osi.
Haslett interviewed for the Green Bay DC job that eventually went to Dom Capers and is now being floated as the Panthers’ DC. Scott Linehan, the Rams’ midseason fire, spurned the 49ers and instead took the Lions’ OC job. Whomever San Fran does hire (Dan Reeves!?) will be their 7th OC in 7 seasons.
The Giants quickly replaced Spags with their Linebackers coach Bill Sheridan. He shares Spagnuolo’s philosophy and Coughlin valued his commitment to an attacking style.
Spagnuolo beat out, among others, Jason Garret for the job. Garret, who last year was such a hot commodity that Jerry Jones had to give him the richest coordinator contract in history, whiffed on all three of his HC interviews this year (Denver, Detroit).
The postseason news that came out of Dallas likely didn’t help:
According to five sources, several offensive players lost respect for Garrett for his failure to corral quarterback Tony Romo in practice. Romo, sources said, often forced throws in practice and often did not treat practice work consistently.The Cowboys are still trying to hire a DC, after Jerry Jones fired Brian Stewart.
It's further proof that head coach Wade Phillips has very little say at Valley Ranch. Stewart was Phillips' hand-picked defensive coordinator and the two have been close friends since working together in San Diego.They too brought in Dan Reeves - to inertview for an advising job - but the deal fell apart.
Phillips was ordered by Jones to take over defensive play-calling duties before the Tampa Bay game midway through the 2008 season. Phillips didn't acknowledge that the change had been made until the defense was playing well later in the season.
In his end-of-the-season news conference, Phillips said that Stewart would be back as defensive coordinator. Of course, that's not what happened. Phillips once lost a job in Buffalo because he refused to fire one of his assistants. He wasn't going to let that happen again.
Those Denver and Detroit jobs that Garrett missed out on eventually went to Pats OC Josh McDaniels and Titans DC Jim Schwartz respectively. It’s notable that Martin Mayhew, the man now making the management decisions in Detroit, the man who hired Schwartz, was Matt Millen’s second in command. Steve Mariucci defended the connection, saying “Martin is his own man,” but the endless string of coaching failures during the Fords' ownership is remarkable – it is stunning how often the phrase “never coached again at any level” comes up in that list.
The Shanahan firing was surprising though not unreasonable. No matter the case for or against it, it’s agreed that Shanahan was a bad GM. To wit: hiring three DCs in the past three years, his inability to adequately evaluate defensive talent, and bad contracts (e.g. Daniel Graham for $30 million). On the one hand Shanahan had winning records with three different quarterbacks (he was just under .500 with Cutler) and his system could make a 1,000 yard rusher out of anyone. On the other hand he’d won one playoff game without Elway and closed this season with three straight losses, handing the division to the Chargers. The defense gave up 30, 30, and 52, in those games; it was in the bottom five in points allowed each of the past two years. McDaniels hired the Niner’s mid-season fire Mike Nolan as the Bronco’s fourth DC in four years.
Jon Gruden’s firing was similarly unexpected. Gruden himself was said to be "blindsided." The Glazers explained Gruden’s relatively late removal by emphasizing the prudence of deliberateness. Much like the Broncos the Bucs had a late season collapse that knocked them out of the playoffs, and much like Shanahan Gruden’s post-Super Bowl resume is unimpressive. Unlike Shanahan Gruden has had a consistently good defense and has had even less offensive success. Beyond the numbers, Gruden also was unpopular with his players – Michael Clayton said players felt like they were playing for themselves. Mike Lombardi, his former Raiders GM put it like this:
I once referred to Gruden as the Larry Brown of the NFL. I meant that as a compliment because I love Brown, but when Brown, the well-traveled NBA coach, has control of the personnel on a team, he makes horrible decisions and hates the players he coaches. He wants new, but after new is over, he wants more new. Does that sound familiar?At 32 Raheem Morris becomes the youngest active NFL head coach and the second youngest all time (Lane Kiffin). He was promoted from DB coach. He hired Jeff Jagodzinski as his OC. Jagodzinski should be revlieved after himself being unexpectedly fired as a penalty for interviewing for the Jets job. The Bucs also promoted the similarly young Mark Dominik to GM, replacing Bruce Allen who had been fired in tandem with Gruden.
From Brad Johnson to Chris Simms to Brian Griese to Luke McCown to Jeff Garcia, there was never stability at quarterback, the one position that is vital to a franchise. In addition, this is the one position that Gruden can coach as well as anyone in the league. Yet his refusal to fall in love (I called him the Warren Beatty of quarterbacks coaches a while back in a column) with a quarterback was his downfall in Tampa Bay.
We have all read the reaction of the players on the record — some positive, some negative — but the one consistent theme when you’re talking about Gruden is that he loves football, but loves NO players. The negativity and the inconsistent message to the players never seemed to go over well. Gruden is the type of coach that needs to have consistent turnover in his roster. He needs new players every year and might be best suited for college football since graduation and the NFL draft promote the change he craves.
-Agent Easy
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Steeler sacks
The Steelers allowed 49 sacks this year, good for 4th worst in the league.
The '08 Steelers have given up more sacks than any other Super Bowl team in the past 10 years. They've given up the second most in the past 20 years, with only the '98 Falcons surpassing them. That Falcons squad ranked 6th worst in their year, thus leaving the Steelers the worst ranked sacks-allowed team in a Super Bowl.
Twenty years is a good cutoff. It's a round number, and closely approximates the league-wide shift to shorter drop-backs and timing routes (informally, the West Coast Offense).
Much has been made of the Steelers' O-line problems. (Their 3.7 ypc is also 4th worst in the league). We don't seek to assign blame. A sack isn't a definitive indictment of the line; in this case everyone knows Roethlisberger has a penchant for holding on to the ball. We simply mean to provide a historical context to show how unusual it is for a team that gives up so many sacks to make the Super Bowl.
-Agent Easy
The '08 Steelers have given up more sacks than any other Super Bowl team in the past 10 years. They've given up the second most in the past 20 years, with only the '98 Falcons surpassing them. That Falcons squad ranked 6th worst in their year, thus leaving the Steelers the worst ranked sacks-allowed team in a Super Bowl.
Twenty years is a good cutoff. It's a round number, and closely approximates the league-wide shift to shorter drop-backs and timing routes (informally, the West Coast Offense).
Much has been made of the Steelers' O-line problems. (Their 3.7 ypc is also 4th worst in the league). We don't seek to assign blame. A sack isn't a definitive indictment of the line; in this case everyone knows Roethlisberger has a penchant for holding on to the ball. We simply mean to provide a historical context to show how unusual it is for a team that gives up so many sacks to make the Super Bowl.
-Agent Easy
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Have some laughs with your sports!
- The Onion on Barkley
- PFT reports: "The move will reunite coach Eric Mangini with Kokinis, in a pairing that some league insiders are calling “Mankok.”
[PFT via MLJ]
-Agent Easy
- PFT reports: "The move will reunite coach Eric Mangini with Kokinis, in a pairing that some league insiders are calling “Mankok.”
[PFT via MLJ]
-Agent Easy
Monday, January 19, 2009
Just a coincidence?
Rex Ryan is the new Jets coach. Monte Kiffin is the new University of Tennessee DC. The two have more than an address change in common.
After the first talk of a head coaching interview for Ryan, his defense surrendered a season high 391 yards to the Titans. The next week, after Ryan's interview, they did much better against the Steelers, but still gave up more yards and forced les turnovers than their season's average.
When it came out, 12 games into the season, that Kiffin was going to UT, the Bucs defense was giving up 279.5 yards per game, 95 of them on the ground. In their last four games the Bucs D gave up 386 ypg, including 189 rushing ypg. They went 0-4.
There are other explanations. In Ryan's case the Steelers and Titans were two of the best teams in the league, and naturally, with each successive playoff round, the competition is intensified. The Bucs' the losses can be pinned on Jeff Garcia's injury: Griese started the Atlanta game and Garcia struggled when he came back, throwing half of his season's interceptions in the final two losses.
The relationships here certainly aren't causal, but two very good defenses didn't play their best immediately after their respective coordinators were distracted by job offers. The correlation is worth noting.
-Agent Easy
After the first talk of a head coaching interview for Ryan, his defense surrendered a season high 391 yards to the Titans. The next week, after Ryan's interview, they did much better against the Steelers, but still gave up more yards and forced les turnovers than their season's average.
When it came out, 12 games into the season, that Kiffin was going to UT, the Bucs defense was giving up 279.5 yards per game, 95 of them on the ground. In their last four games the Bucs D gave up 386 ypg, including 189 rushing ypg. They went 0-4.
There are other explanations. In Ryan's case the Steelers and Titans were two of the best teams in the league, and naturally, with each successive playoff round, the competition is intensified. The Bucs' the losses can be pinned on Jeff Garcia's injury: Griese started the Atlanta game and Garcia struggled when he came back, throwing half of his season's interceptions in the final two losses.
The relationships here certainly aren't causal, but two very good defenses didn't play their best immediately after their respective coordinators were distracted by job offers. The correlation is worth noting.
-Agent Easy
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
A Word on the JC Romero Debacle
The question most are debating is whether or not Romero is guilty.
That question is, however, secondary (obviously not to Romero, who, for what it's worth, seemed earnest in trying to play by the rules). In the big picture the main point is that a player on the championship team tested positive for a banned substance, regardless of the circumstances or explanations. The point is that yet again MLB has screwed up. The point is that this is just another example that MLB, despite popular and even legal pressure to execute a legitimate anti-drug program, is still incapable of doing so. That they bungled this (read bungled one of two ways 1. inadvertently misled/misinformed players* or 2. let a “cheater” participate and subsequently contribute to championship)** is just another indictment, the latest in a long line, that their leadership is either incompetent, negligent, or both.
*Gammons: "Somehow, after MLB was warned in early July, those concerns about three supplements available at every GNC store did not reach the players' association."
** He actually tested clean before the post-season, but if you're calling him a cheater, why is he playing in the postseason in the first place?
-Agent Easy
That question is, however, secondary (obviously not to Romero, who, for what it's worth, seemed earnest in trying to play by the rules). In the big picture the main point is that a player on the championship team tested positive for a banned substance, regardless of the circumstances or explanations. The point is that yet again MLB has screwed up. The point is that this is just another example that MLB, despite popular and even legal pressure to execute a legitimate anti-drug program, is still incapable of doing so. That they bungled this (read bungled one of two ways 1. inadvertently misled/misinformed players* or 2. let a “cheater” participate and subsequently contribute to championship)** is just another indictment, the latest in a long line, that their leadership is either incompetent, negligent, or both.
*Gammons: "Somehow, after MLB was warned in early July, those concerns about three supplements available at every GNC store did not reach the players' association."
** He actually tested clean before the post-season, but if you're calling him a cheater, why is he playing in the postseason in the first place?
-Agent Easy
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