Football season comes but once a year - and in some places, it triumphs everything else on the sports map; and in Texas, the Cowboys border on religion.
And so when Terrell Owens signed with the Cowboys during the offseason, an entire collective group was happy, really happy. His behavior be damned, TO is a damn fine receiver, maybe the best in the league. And by adding him to any team, from the Dallas Cowboys to the Houston Texans, you suddenly make the leap to contender - based almost solely on his potential talent.
But he needs to play for that to work out - just ask any Eagles fan.
But it looks like TO is up to his old tricks once again in Dallas. The season hasn't even started and he's already skipping meetings and rehab assignments - and he's already being fined by his team.
Sure, TO is a great player - but he's also a walking time bomb in the dressing room. Every city he's ever played in (San Francisco, Philadelphia) is a city where he's burned every bridge, alienated every fan and split every team into rival fractions. When he left the 49ers, the team was in such bad shape that they still have yet to fully recover. When he left the Eagles, he did so under the dark clouds of the most public team breakdown in recent memory - in the eyes of almost every single Eagles fan it was TO who ruined the season, not Akers or McNabb or Reid.
But for all the troubles he causes, he sure can put up the numbers - last year he had six touchdowns in seven games and averaged over 100 yards a game. ESPN has him projected to have 12 touchdowns and over 1200 yards this season (As per the ESPN Insider Fantasy Football Preview, anyway). He's dangerous to defenses. If there's one single player out there that could turn a team into a contender... Well, he's either the one or he's really, really close.
But once again - he has to play.
Cowboys coach Bill Parcells hasn't once used TO in a preseason game this year - and TO hasn't been practicing. He's missed 20 different practices from a variety of aliments - he's hurt his hamstring and he's overslept. He's unlikely to start the season on the field - he's most likely going to be a backup for the short term.
Does he like it? No, at least as far as I know.
Does he deserve it? Yes, at least as far as I know.
He's been injured already - and you gotta protect his health. He's had attitude problems - and you gotta show him that he's not the boss. He hasn't shown himself to be a starter yet - and if you wanna contend, you need people who have proven that they can contend.
That's the big one - TO hasn't played a NFL game in close to three-quarters of a year (his last game was in Week 8 of the 2005 season, October 30th). Sure, he's been working out since he was signed - but you, me and everybody who camps out at the Cowboys practice field knows that he's going to have some rust. He has yet to prove that he deserves to be the starter this time.
So, then - will TO and Dallas mesh together? Maybe - after all, TO did dance on the star a few years back - but it's going to take some time. By week 3, maybe 4, TO should be in the starting lineups. But until then? Who knows.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
A Completely unacceptable situation
It was the same story all over again - but hopefully with a different resolution.
When Shea Hillenbrand exploded in the Jays clubhouse, it signaled the end of his tenure on the club. After all, calling the team a "sinking ship" and almost coming to blows with your manager would end your employment almost anywhere.
So when Ted Lilly got angry on the mound during the third inning of tonight's game against the A's, almost everybody had the same thought on their mind - "Not again!".
(Although, there was a loud, bald man sitting right behind me whose thoughts were elsewhere - like how he felt it was necessary to explain to his kids that the Jays don't matter because they're "Never in the race"... Or to the 20-something guy next to me, who felt the need to talk to his girlfriend about everything - his at-bat music (Golddigger by Kanye West), what the K means on the scoresheet, what's behind that wall with the 200 painted on it... )
But it didn't look too bad - while I could see that Lilly wasn't about to go down without a fight (okay, so maybe he pouted like a kid in house league - it's still a fight, by baseball standards anyway) I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined what would happen next:
John Gibbons came out of the clubhouse with (allegedly) a bloody nose.
That's right - Ted Lilly may have hit his manager - or at least that's the angle that the media's already jumped onto.
I refused to blow a fuse /
They even had it on the news /
Don't believe the hype...
Public Enemy - Don't believe the hype
For both his and John Gibbons part, Lilly has said that his behavior was completely unacceptable - and Gibbons has said that the fight never took place... But if indeed John had a bloody nose (from my spot on the foul line, on the A's side of the field, I never saw anything that made me think Lilly was going to hit Gibbons, or even do anything more then sass him) then this is indeed a completely unacceptable situation.
For a team that went into this season with such high hopes - the Jays signed new pitchers, got some big bats and were finally looking like they could contend with the big boys of the AL East - this season has been less then spectacular. We've seen big names go away (Hillenbrand, Hinske). Major players have been gone with injuries (Chacin, Burnett). And some people have just been busts (Towers) or, at best, just hot-and-cold (Janssen). With all the fighting that's been going on, it's no wonder that Vernon Wells wants to leave - if it's this bad in public, imagine how chaotic the clubhouse must get.
So yes, it's not too soon to say the this season is pretty much wrapped up - the Jays are 10 games back of the Yankees as I write this for the AL East lead and are 7.5 (and behind LA, Minnesota and the Red Sox) games back of the Wild Card White Sox. And while it's entirely possible that the Red Sox could go on a 14 game losing streak, the Twins could get stranded on a mountain and the Angels could vanish in Area 51 - the Jays still wouldn't win the Wild Card - and the AL East... Well, let's just say that it's way beyond reach and leave it there since I can't say positive things about the Yankees unless I've had a few drinks first.
It's not as if the season has been a waste though - the Yankees and the Red Sox have had to whip out really good seasons just to be in the top two spots. Hell, with a little luck the Jays could very well go above the Red Sox in the standings (they're only back by something like 3.5 games). Toronto has finally proven that they can compete with the big boys - and if they can get the clubhouse settled down, Toronto would seem to be a good place for a free agent to land: it's not a media-centre like Boston, where even the smallest details get discussed to death by obsessive fans in the media... And it's not New York, where you're always in the spotlight (for better or worse).
And if Wells wants out - then maybe the Jays should make a move for a pitcher (I've said it before and I'm going to say it again: get Javier Vasquez. Sure, it's not as if the White Sox want (or need) Vernon Wells, but at least put it out there. Try and get Wily Mo Pena as the "Player to be named later" in the Hinske trade. Bring back the Boomer - David Wells. He doesn't have to pitch... But bring him back anyway. He can toss BP, drive the bullpen car or just be a spokesman - just bring him back, please.
When Shea Hillenbrand exploded in the Jays clubhouse, it signaled the end of his tenure on the club. After all, calling the team a "sinking ship" and almost coming to blows with your manager would end your employment almost anywhere.
So when Ted Lilly got angry on the mound during the third inning of tonight's game against the A's, almost everybody had the same thought on their mind - "Not again!".
(Although, there was a loud, bald man sitting right behind me whose thoughts were elsewhere - like how he felt it was necessary to explain to his kids that the Jays don't matter because they're "Never in the race"... Or to the 20-something guy next to me, who felt the need to talk to his girlfriend about everything - his at-bat music (Golddigger by Kanye West), what the K means on the scoresheet, what's behind that wall with the 200 painted on it... )
But it didn't look too bad - while I could see that Lilly wasn't about to go down without a fight (okay, so maybe he pouted like a kid in house league - it's still a fight, by baseball standards anyway) I never in my wildest dreams could have imagined what would happen next:
John Gibbons came out of the clubhouse with (allegedly) a bloody nose.
That's right - Ted Lilly may have hit his manager - or at least that's the angle that the media's already jumped onto.
I refused to blow a fuse /
They even had it on the news /
Don't believe the hype...
Public Enemy - Don't believe the hype
For both his and John Gibbons part, Lilly has said that his behavior was completely unacceptable - and Gibbons has said that the fight never took place... But if indeed John had a bloody nose (from my spot on the foul line, on the A's side of the field, I never saw anything that made me think Lilly was going to hit Gibbons, or even do anything more then sass him) then this is indeed a completely unacceptable situation.
For a team that went into this season with such high hopes - the Jays signed new pitchers, got some big bats and were finally looking like they could contend with the big boys of the AL East - this season has been less then spectacular. We've seen big names go away (Hillenbrand, Hinske). Major players have been gone with injuries (Chacin, Burnett). And some people have just been busts (Towers) or, at best, just hot-and-cold (Janssen). With all the fighting that's been going on, it's no wonder that Vernon Wells wants to leave - if it's this bad in public, imagine how chaotic the clubhouse must get.
So yes, it's not too soon to say the this season is pretty much wrapped up - the Jays are 10 games back of the Yankees as I write this for the AL East lead and are 7.5 (and behind LA, Minnesota and the Red Sox) games back of the Wild Card White Sox. And while it's entirely possible that the Red Sox could go on a 14 game losing streak, the Twins could get stranded on a mountain and the Angels could vanish in Area 51 - the Jays still wouldn't win the Wild Card - and the AL East... Well, let's just say that it's way beyond reach and leave it there since I can't say positive things about the Yankees unless I've had a few drinks first.
It's not as if the season has been a waste though - the Yankees and the Red Sox have had to whip out really good seasons just to be in the top two spots. Hell, with a little luck the Jays could very well go above the Red Sox in the standings (they're only back by something like 3.5 games). Toronto has finally proven that they can compete with the big boys - and if they can get the clubhouse settled down, Toronto would seem to be a good place for a free agent to land: it's not a media-centre like Boston, where even the smallest details get discussed to death by obsessive fans in the media... And it's not New York, where you're always in the spotlight (for better or worse).
And if Wells wants out - then maybe the Jays should make a move for a pitcher (I've said it before and I'm going to say it again: get Javier Vasquez. Sure, it's not as if the White Sox want (or need) Vernon Wells, but at least put it out there. Try and get Wily Mo Pena as the "Player to be named later" in the Hinske trade. Bring back the Boomer - David Wells. He doesn't have to pitch... But bring him back anyway. He can toss BP, drive the bullpen car or just be a spokesman - just bring him back, please.
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Goodbye Sindin - it's been a "fun" ride
When Harry Sindin stepped down as the President of the Boston Bruins last week, it signaled the end of an era in Boston - granted, it was a dark era, full of the Bruins never having just enough... But it was an era nonetheless.
If nothing else, Sindin will be remembered as the GM who never got the Bruins quite what they needed - and not as the man who coached them to their last Stanley Cup victory. It was during his tenure as GM that the Bruins, who were one of the best teams in hockey in the early 1970s, slowly began to decay: they had some good teams, yes - but the teams were never good enough and the Bruins slowly got further and further away from winning the Cup.
He was the guy who hired Don Cherry - and then fired him when he couldn't get along with him, even though Cherry coached the team to two Cup Finals (and was a bench penalty away from a third in 1979) and three division titles. He was there for the mid 1980s, when he had a budding superstar in Ray Bourque and traded for Cam Neely - but also traded off Bill Ranford, the goalie who would be there to beat them in 1988 and 1990. He hired stop-gap coaches that never worked out - despite great finishes in the regular season, the Bruins were always creamed in the playoffs, either to Edmonton, to Montreal or to the Islanders.
When the Bruins traded Joe Thornton - who then rattled off a MVP season for the Sharks - it was the final straw for the Bruins. Since then, almost everybody involved - the coach, the GM and now Sindin - have either retired or been fired. To put it simply - the Bruins aren't just a sinking ship, they're one that is resting comfortably on the bottom.
The Northeastern division is one of the most competitive in the NHL right now: three teams from it (Buffalo, Montreal and Ottawa) made the playoffs in 2006 and one more (Toronto) was two points back of the #8 seed - but Boston was well down at the bottom at 26th overall in the league. Simply put, it's a long road back to respectability - but with them both opening the vault and getting rid of Sindin, it may not take as long as it could have...
If nothing else, Sindin will be remembered as the GM who never got the Bruins quite what they needed - and not as the man who coached them to their last Stanley Cup victory. It was during his tenure as GM that the Bruins, who were one of the best teams in hockey in the early 1970s, slowly began to decay: they had some good teams, yes - but the teams were never good enough and the Bruins slowly got further and further away from winning the Cup.
He was the guy who hired Don Cherry - and then fired him when he couldn't get along with him, even though Cherry coached the team to two Cup Finals (and was a bench penalty away from a third in 1979) and three division titles. He was there for the mid 1980s, when he had a budding superstar in Ray Bourque and traded for Cam Neely - but also traded off Bill Ranford, the goalie who would be there to beat them in 1988 and 1990. He hired stop-gap coaches that never worked out - despite great finishes in the regular season, the Bruins were always creamed in the playoffs, either to Edmonton, to Montreal or to the Islanders.
When the Bruins traded Joe Thornton - who then rattled off a MVP season for the Sharks - it was the final straw for the Bruins. Since then, almost everybody involved - the coach, the GM and now Sindin - have either retired or been fired. To put it simply - the Bruins aren't just a sinking ship, they're one that is resting comfortably on the bottom.
The Northeastern division is one of the most competitive in the NHL right now: three teams from it (Buffalo, Montreal and Ottawa) made the playoffs in 2006 and one more (Toronto) was two points back of the #8 seed - but Boston was well down at the bottom at 26th overall in the league. Simply put, it's a long road back to respectability - but with them both opening the vault and getting rid of Sindin, it may not take as long as it could have...
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Ship is sinking, the redux
Last July, when TO Junior (I have decided never to refer to him as anything else) flipped out in the clubhouse and called the Jays a sinking ship... Well, it was irritating, but seemed to come out of nowhere - it was just one of the many insults that he was throwing at the Jays in his temper tantrum.
But since then the Jays dropped seven games in a row, won a couple and are generally out of the playoff picture (short of a huge run, where they rip off something like 20 wins in a row, anyway). The rotation has changed; Jassen, Towers and Chacin are not waiting to get their turn to pitch. The bats, strong all season, are suddenly seeming to be as quiet as ever.
And now I'm wondering if he has his own 1-900 number.
Granted, it's going to be a tough haul for the Jays if they want to make it all the way to the postseason. And as much as I'd love to see it happen... Well, I'm not too sure that it will. If I had to pick my odds, I'd say something like 45-1. Sure, it's possible - but it's not as likely as it is for the Twins (25-1), the White Sox (15-1), Yankees (7-2), Red Sox (5-1) or Tigers (3-2).
(The A's? They're at the same level as the Jays - 45 - 1. Genius or not, Billy Beane doesn't win in the postseason.)
So - what to say about the Jays? Is it any one persons fault? I doubt it - a slump (which is what the Jays are trying to get past) is all in your head: your failures suddenly become huge and unforgivable and you can't understand why you struck out against Vazquez, ripped a shot right at Jeter or threw Ortiz a changeup on a 3-2 count.
You just need to get your head back in the game - which, thanks to a 2 out of 3 series against the O's, the Jays just might have done.
But since then the Jays dropped seven games in a row, won a couple and are generally out of the playoff picture (short of a huge run, where they rip off something like 20 wins in a row, anyway). The rotation has changed; Jassen, Towers and Chacin are not waiting to get their turn to pitch. The bats, strong all season, are suddenly seeming to be as quiet as ever.
And now I'm wondering if he has his own 1-900 number.
Granted, it's going to be a tough haul for the Jays if they want to make it all the way to the postseason. And as much as I'd love to see it happen... Well, I'm not too sure that it will. If I had to pick my odds, I'd say something like 45-1. Sure, it's possible - but it's not as likely as it is for the Twins (25-1), the White Sox (15-1), Yankees (7-2), Red Sox (5-1) or Tigers (3-2).
(The A's? They're at the same level as the Jays - 45 - 1. Genius or not, Billy Beane doesn't win in the postseason.)
So - what to say about the Jays? Is it any one persons fault? I doubt it - a slump (which is what the Jays are trying to get past) is all in your head: your failures suddenly become huge and unforgivable and you can't understand why you struck out against Vazquez, ripped a shot right at Jeter or threw Ortiz a changeup on a 3-2 count.
You just need to get your head back in the game - which, thanks to a 2 out of 3 series against the O's, the Jays just might have done.
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