I don't want to be the first one to say it, and honestly, I am pretty sure I am not. But, I am very concerned about "Gary Bettman's New For You 2005 NHL". Now, granted, I have only seen about 4 games so far, and they have all been played with between 50-70% minor league hockey players, but this sport that I love appears to have undergone a substantial facelift in certain areas, and although it is met with general disdain to knee jerk this early in the proceedings, I must tell you that I am concerned.
Of course, it is quickly admitted here that anyone reading or writing on this website is not the target audience of "Gary Bettman's New NHL". We are the few and the proud (they tell us) who loved this sport for what it was. Sure, some alterations make plenty of sense in any sport, but the game itself was exciting and frankly, one of my favorite things to do. But alas, they wanted their "relaunch" in an effort to turn this sport into basketball on ice, and guys like me sit and wonder what we are looking at right now.
I have been asked to make predictions this week, and I feel more qualified to try to explain nuclear fusion than guess what might happen in the Pacific Division. This sport has been tampered with, and everything you know is wrong. Colorado, St Louis, and Dallas have been strong western forces for years, and now I read that learned publications don't think they will even make the playoffs.
New rules are everywhere. Some make sense (new icing rule, tag-up offsides, no red line) and some make no sense (goalie area) but combined they will really make the NHL season impossible to figure out for a good long while.
Now let me voice my concern. I admit that clutching and grabbing in the neutral zone has been a problem in this sport. Sure, I want to see my skaters in full flight through the zone as much as the next guy. But, if battles in the corners and in the crease are a thing of the past, and this former contact sport is now one that resembles soccer, then let's get Cammi Granato a sweater and play co-ed hockey. The announcers (who must sell this sport to continue to get paid) assure me that they love the product, but so far, so bland to me. The contact is almost nonexistent. The venom is, too. I realize it is September and previous September games had no emotion either in other years, but now I am paying a lot more attention.
I hope I am wrong. I hope next Wednesday the venom and violence of hockey returns. I want intimidation to be the same portion of the sport it has always been. I don't want to watch hockey robots play technically perfect hockey and skate back to their benches without a nasty word for anyone. Let's hope that in an effort to fix a game that might not be broken on the ice, they didn't screw it up. Stay Tuned.
Love,
Knee-Jerk Sturm
"I'm pretty certain this is my last start here," Rogers said. "Actually, I'm extremely certain. I think everybody has made their positions known.
"In a way, I'm kind of relieved. I know I won't have to bend over backwards to make it happen. I think sometimes in the past, my desire to be here has been the overriding factor for me, and at least I know where I stand."
Los Angeles Kings forward Sean Avery - never one to shy away from opinion - had plenty of strong words regarding Phoenix Coyotes defenceman Denis Gauthier and French Canadian hockey players.
When asked about the blueliner's hit on Kings teammate Jeremy Roenick in a preseason game Sunday night, Avery did not hold back digging into Gauthier and Quebec-born NHLers.
"I think it was a clean hit," he explained on Tuesday. "I think it was typical of most French guys in our league with a visor on, running around and playing tough and not back anything up."
"I'd think if a guy like Brett Hull was coming up the middle, somebody probably wouldn't have stepped up and hit him, but like I said, a typical move from a guy wearing a visor that certainly doesn't like to get scratched at all."
Tim Kurkjian reported on ESPN Radio yesterday that Rafael Palmeiro actually snuck into the Baltimore clubhouse Tuesday morning, before any of his teammates had arrived at the ballpark, to clean out his locker. So incredibly sad.
Name: John Up Yours
Email: BaD_Losers@yahoo.com
Want To Be On Maillist: N
Comments: All you guys have done is talk about what a sorry game the A$M/BU game will be this weekend with A$M having to play poor little BU. Well let me tell you this - take the points and BU you slobs. I shouldn't even help you losers that much but I feel sorry for you. A$M may win but it will be by the skin of their teeth.
Hicks confirmed Tuesday that he will meet with Hart next week to discuss "what's best for the organization." Hicks said the meeting has been a yearly event, but when asked if he anticipated Hart returning for a fifth season as general manager, Hicks could not provide an answer.
"We have a gentlemen's understanding to sit down at the end of the year and see where we are going," Hicks said. "This has been going on for a while. It's not new."
Texas A&M enters Big 12 play ranked last in the conference in total defense after allowing 493 yards to Division I-AA Texas State on Thursday.
"It starts with me," said defensive coordinator Carl Torbush, who added that the Aggies "have not gotten better-than-average play from any position. That's disappointing for me because I felt like we would be better at this point than we have been."
Coach Dennis Franchione backed his staff, noting that its 2002 Alabama team ranked third in the nation in total defense.
"I know what this group can do," he said, "and I'm not shaken at all."
A&M is young defensively, with five sophomores starting vs. Texas State. But the Aggies are experienced, returning nine players who started at least four games last season. Torbush said talent, leadership and effort are not the problem.
Don't look now, but the Brewers are one game above .500 with five games to go, seemingly poised to end their string of 12 consecutive losing seasons.
Marlins general manager Larry Beinfest said Burnett has been asked to leave the team and will not be offered a multiyear contract during the offseason. The decision came a day after the pitcher said the team plays scared because manager Jack McKeon and the coaching staff are too negative. Burnett popped off after losing his sixth decision in a row at Atlanta.
Superfan Larry Primeau, a k a the Packalope, has been forced to shed his trademark Pack helmet with its deer antlers because new stadium protocols specifically mention "antlers" as potential weapons.
In preparing a spoof on the antlers ban, show producers contacted Olsen, the midday DJ on KXXR Radio (93.7 FM) when he's out of costume. "They wanted me to play on the fact that Vikings and Packers fans aren't very fond of each other," Olsen said.
He happily obliged. "I told some Packer jokes, I said the town of Green Bay smelled bad and just ripped on Green Bay fans."
I've noticed Fraley has had a new article posted on the DMN web site since 8/14, and he is not listed in the Sports Day Columnists link I used to use. To me, he is as good a writer as we have in town. Given your show's association with him, I figured you might know if he has left town or something. Just curious. Thanks.
Instead of those stupid little trinkets they give out to fans at certain home games, the Cowboys should have BARF BAG DAY. During the 4th quarter of the next home game, vendors walk to each section passing out BARF BAGS to those who may feel queasy watching the Cowboys try to hold a lead. They can even have special souvenir Roy Williams Barf Bags where the bottom of the bag falls out preventing it from catching anything. Proceeds can go to the "Get a Strong Safety Signing Bonus" fund.
Jeff Axelrod
Let me tell you one thing that burns me up about drafting a Sunbelt player over the best defensive player in the entire country last year and that’s watching Derrick Johnson run wild, picking up right where he left off at UT for the Chiefs. If Ware isn’t as good as DJ, then failed draft pick. Maybe Ware can play, maybe not, regardless, I will continue to compare him to DJ and that will be the barometer on if that was a good pick.
Brent
Irving, TX
Looking at the Jets quarterback situation- does it not speak volumes about the character of Carter. All kinds of replacements being called in- all holding a big bag of nothing. Yet here is Quincy, who just last year played for this team, and not one news story has reported any interest by the Jets in a reunion.
Thanks for listening,
Bryan
They just aren’t good enough. They had the 25th best defense last year, and they spent $50,000 in signing bonuses in the off-season. They had 3 Top-100 picks, and only spent 1 on their defense, and that was on a small-college safety.
Week #3
Florida DeShawn Wynn, Jr. RB, #21 vs. Tennessee. What a stutter-step for a 230 pound back!
UCLA Justin London, Sr. LB, #9, vs. OU. Appears to be quite the speed LB, who hits and covers ground.
Virginia Marques Hagans, SR. QB , #18, vs. Syracuse – (I realize he doesn’t project well to the NFL, but he is still very good).
Wisconsin Brian Calhoun, Jr. RB , #2, vs. North Carolina – (What do you know, Wisconsin has a RB).
Week #2
Texas Jamaal Charles, FR. RB , #25, vs, Ohio State – (I knew he was good, but wow).
Ohio State Anthony Schlegel, SR, LB , #51, vs, Texas – (OSU LB’s Hawk and Carpenter are great, too; Schlegel is a Dallas guy).
Week #1
Bowling Green Omar Jacobs, Jr. QB , #4, vs. Wisconsin
Miami Ben Olsen, SO, TE , #82, vs. Florida State
Clemson James Davis, RB, Fr , #1, vs. Texas A&M
VT Darryl Tapp, DE, SR , #55, vs. NC State
Terry Glenn and Keyshawn Johnson demonstrated how important and crucial they really are. Glenn is a legit deep threat (as long as he stays healthy) and I swear Keyshawn catches anything thrown in his area. He is really, really money. I think the league’s hypesters are ignoring Keyshawn since his falling out with Gruden, but he is as close to Michael Irvin as you can get when it comes to fighting for a ball and demonstrating great hands.
"I've never seen us do so many things you'd like to take back and win in spite of ourselves," Jones said. "If you can manage to win a game like we did today, then you have to look at the positives. One of the big positives was No. 11 – I'll draw a big circle around him – because we don't win without him."
The Cowboys needed Bledsoe's 363 passing yards and three touchdowns because the game started poorly for Dallas, which didn't lead until Johnson's touchdown catch. For the second time this season, an opponent scored a touchdown on its first possession.
Dallas pulled within a point on Jason Witten's 6-yard touchdown catch, but Cortez missed the extra point attempt – the first miss of his career – after a low snap.
Allen yelled at him as he stalked back to the sideline, then shoved the kicker in the face after he responded to the criticism. Witten separated the players.
"I didn't have a problem with it. If the ball is placed on someone's helmet, you're supposed to make an extra point," Jones said. "I understand Larry's frustration. That just showed how much he cares. I wish everyone cared that much."
For much of the last week, the Cowboys have been mad at themselves about losing a game they thought they should have won.
Well, consider the Cowboys "even" after Sunday's 34-31 comeback win against San Francisco at Monster Park.
For roughly three quarters Sunday, the Cowboys, seemingly on continual meltdown mode from last Monday's 14-13 loss to Washington, did everything they could to lose.
At the end of the game there was another debacle, though not of Rattay's making. In his own stadium, operating out of the shotgun, Rattay could not hear. His team was called for a false start. The huge number of Cowboys fans in attendance were making a deafening roar to help the defense.
``I'd like the 49er fans to keep their tickets,'' Nolan said. ``That would be nice.''
In the 1990s, the Dallas Cowboys and 49ers met regularly as playoff heavyweights. Sunday, they will come together seeking to re-establish themselves as teams to be reckoned with.
Although the stakes are different in the renewal of the rivalry, it still has a certain appeal and serves as a reminder of the high-stakes meetings of the past.
``I've had so many ticket requests this week, it's been ridiculous,'' 49ers center Jeremy Newberry said. ``I bought over 50 for this game and I probably could have used 50 more if I could have bought them.''
The game at Monster Park, which is sold out, marks Dallas' first San Francisco visit since 1997.
The 49ers have won two of the three meetings since and lead the series 16-13-1. However, the Cowboys have won five of the seven postseason encounters. Those victories included all three playoff meetings in 1970-72, when the 49ers were coached by Dick Nolan, father of current 49ers coach Mike Nolan. The elder Nolan had served as Dallas Coach Tom Landry's defensive coordinator before coming to the 49ers in 1968.
``It was kind of the student, in my father, vs. his mentor, in Tom Landry,'' Mike Nolan said. ``But it didn't really become a rivalry until about '70 when they played in the championship game.''
The 49ers finally got past the Cowboys en route to the first of their five Super Bowl titles, in 1982. The teams met in the NFC Championship game in 1992-94, a run that ended with the 49ers denying Dallas' bid to win a third consecutive Super Bowl title.
``They were exciting to watch,'' said Newberry, who was raised in Antioch. ``That was the real Super Bowl.''
the 49ers, who rank 31st in total offense. They also have generated the fewest first downs in the league (20), and their 4-for-19 third-down conversion rate is the second-worst in the NFL, behind only the Houston Texans.
The 49ers' past four first-round picks are Alex Smith (a backup), receiver Rashaun Woods (inactive for the first two games), Kwame Harris (moved from left tackle to right) and Mike Rumph (moved from cornerback to safety).
This is not to say that the 49ers are wrong for easing Smith into action. Two of the other Week 2 quarterback standouts -- the Cincinnati Bengals' Carson Palmer and the New York Giants' Eli Manning -- spent most or all of their rookie seasons watching and learning from the sideline.
From: Sturm1310@aol.com
To: cunninghamjudy
Sent: Thu, 22 Sep 2005 15:05:51 -0500
Subject:
Best wife in the whole world........................???? You are a PUSS Bob. Hi to the Messcan.
I really do hate you.
Sent: Thursday, September 22, 2005 3:08 PM
Subject: Re:
ok-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
Ya right.....listening??? I was listening only to cross talk, not you two jerk off Yankee bastards.
whatever- nice job in the civil war-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
Put on your sombrero and eat a tamale. Better yet, go to Taco Bell since she can't cook.
Civil War ??? That must be on the X-Box...otherwise you wouldn't even be able to spell it. Dork...............
JC
your racism is most impressive-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
I am not a racist............I just hate Yankees, and that is my right as a native Texan. I could throw a few more in there too but I won't. Texans really do hate the Yankee and you need to always.......... until the day you die... remember that. I saw a half breed the other day and that was a lovely thing to see, very interesting. However, not many of those where I live...thank goodness. Keep a plugging....
you are not a racist and yet you continually (for more than a year) take shots at my Mexican wife and children- whatever you say, Judy- You should be proud-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
I am. Thank you. Don't think I'm alone either.
I'm out
of course not- there are plenty of racists out there- Congrats-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
Do you want mild sauce with that ???
you can't be this absurd- But at least you are white, Judy- Way to go-
Thanks for listening to BaD Radio!
Bob
You got it...... WHITE & WRIGHT and despise the Yankee! ! ! Anything wrong with that? NO there isn't.
The only thing I would like to have from you is.........for bad radio to be off the air at three pm sharp. I start at three and fight through 14 minutes of the irritating Yankee voices just to hear the "real professionals." Why is your voice so squirrelly? Nasal.
Can you fix that.
How about some guacamole with that sir ???
A&M president Robert Gates, who made the final call on whether to cancel or reschedule the football game, called it an "exceptionally difficult decision." He said he was swayed by the desire of both teams to play and of students to attend, and the fact that the contest's timing allowed Texas State to return home safely and A&M students to leave campus if they so choose.
Yet A&M hopes that relatively few fans show up. Gates urged fans who live outside the Bryan-College Station area to stay off the roads, which will probably be packed with evacuees leaving coastal areas. Gates added that hotels are not available in Bryan-College Station tonight.
"Let me be clear: We are holding this game primarily for the students," he said in a statement.
Ovechkin, the first player taken in the 2004 draft, made his debut for the Capitals last night against the Sabres. The club had purposely -- and wisely -- held him out of the first two preseason games so he could be unveiled in front of the home folks. Alas, there weren't many home folks to unveil him in front of, 4,500 by one estimate. Such is the challenge facing the Caps as they try to re-establish a place for themselves in the Washington market.
Despite a year off in which billionaires fought millionaires over how to split up the fans' money, there seemed little dissent among the announced crowd of 15,264. The return of the NHL from a full-season lockout was more relief than rejection, more anticipation than apathy.
---
There still is work to be done, of course. The Stars in 2003-04 never had a preseason crowd below 17,900. And whereas Stars president Jim Lites said he was ecstatic his sales numbers are more than 80 percent of what they were in 2003-04, that also leaves room for improvement.
"You can say I guaranteed it, yes,'' Peterson said Monday, hardly traumatized by San Francisco's 42-3 loss in Philadelphia. "I think we're going to play well. I'm positive we're going to win, to be honest. ... We're going to go out there to win, or they're coming out here to lose.''
Seeing as folks in Texas take their football seriously, Peterson's comments doubtless will find their way to the Cowboys' Valley Ranch headquarters.
And then Brunell dropped back. And Santana Moss went long. And Parcells, the gruff, platinum-haired Cowboys coach, began employing some of the most questionable strategy imaginable in the final minutes. He did not nurse a 13-0 lead in the final four minutes; he neglected it until it frittered away to a sea of boos.
After Brunell converted a fourth-and-15, 39-yard touchdown strike to Moss -- a game-over down if Brunell had not completed that pass -- Parcells suddenly was not interested in killing the clock and going home.
Four of the next six Dallas plays were stop-the-clock passes, including an errant first-down throw by Drew Bledsoe immediately after Brunell made it a game, with the Redskins trailing, 13-7.
But Gibbs's faith in Brunell seemed justified Monday night. After quite a few bad throws and five-yard flips that count for completions but nothing more, Brunell started to catch fire late -- very late. He had that great running-right, throwing-right pass that resulted in a 41-yard gain to Moss that served as a flashback to his glory days in Jacksonville, when he led the Jaguars to two AFC championship games. And on third and 27, after being thrown to the ground like a rag doll by the Cowboys' Roy Williams, Brunell dashed 25 yards and gave up his body to try and make a first down with his team down two scores late. Nobody ever said Brunell's spirit isn't willing; it just wasn't very wise after what we saw from him last season to presume he could find his old form.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, despite himself, is 11-1 in games against the league's resident Yard Gnome. Jones owns the little guy.
Once upon a time, lest Texans forget, it really was a rivalry. There are former Cowboys who insist that they could see the motel room curtains moving, where the devious Allen had planted a practice field spy.
By 1989, alas, Allen was gone, Roger Staubach had long retired, Tom Landry had been ousted, and Jimmy Johnson was bringing a winless Cowboys team into RFK Stadium to face the Redskins.
If Snyder was a more competent NFL owner, he could change that. When he hired Steve Spurrier away from the University of Florida in 2002, Snyder said, "The Redskins deserve to be back at the Super Bowl, and I am immensely confident that Steve is the coach to get us there."
I think this is the best way to describe what has happened in the NFL the first two weeks: Had I been in a knockout pool, I'd have taken Minnesota over Tampa Bay for Week 1 and Green Bay over Cleveland for Week 2. And I'd have been knocked out twice. That says three things. One: I have no idea what I'm talking about. Two: There's a good chance the Packers and Vikings are a lot worse than we thought. Three: This is really going to be a fun year.
Nguyen has come a long way since being recruited by Slocum on a tip that this Vietnamese-American could dunk a basketball from a flat-footed start. But when Nguyen was redshirted as a freshman in 1994, he weighed a fat 240 pounds and was extremely lonely away from home.
I haven't heard this talked about lately, but please put someone’s head on a platter for the Doug Davis move. Unbelievable how dumb this looks now.
Doug Davis
Ranks 10th in NL in IP (202.2) * Ranks 6th in NL in SO (183)
* Ranks 1st in NL in BB (88) * Ranks 9th in NL in BAA (.235)
John Hart is incredible.
Brandon Horton
Bob,
In your ongoing quest to prove that Tom Hicks is one of the worst owners in Major League Baseball, some more evidence has just been announced.
ESPN has announced a new eight year, $2.368 Billion television contract for Baseball. The contract will average $296 Million per year, over $100 Million more than they averaged in previous years. So, lets take a look at the national media contracts MLB has and how they benefit the Texas Rangers.
We are talking national media contracts, not talking anything locally....
Annually
ESPN TV deal - $296 Million
FOX TV deal - $410 Million (due to renew in 2006, and will take a huge bump in pay to renew)
ESPN Radio deal - $11 Million
ESPN Internet Deal - $30 Million
XM Satellite Deal - $60 Million
TOTAL - $807 Million annually for NATIONAL media contracts. Divided by the 30 teams and each team gets roughly $27 Million per year. When the Fox contract is renewed, that number could easily jump to $30-$35 Million per year.
So, as Tom Hicks continues his quest for the $50 Million payroll, it is entirely conceivable that 70% of the players costs could be taken care of before one fan buys a ticket, one beer is sold, one local television is turned on, one car stereo is tuned to KRLD, one fan purchases a jersey, one advertisement deal is done, before anything.
Tom Hicks could very well become the best at what he is doing. He could very well put more money in his pocket than any other owner in baseball.
Chris Braaten
Boys:
Was amazed once again with Hicks comments. I get the feeling the more he repeats the lies he puts out, the easier it will be for him to believe he is telling the truth.
Two points:
1) When Hicks says the team doesn't have the attendance level to make for higher payroll, tell him the Rangers are sixth in the AL with nearly 32,000 per game. They also have 120 luxury suites. And this is for a sub . 500 third place team. Seems to me they have plenty of attendance.
2) When he brings up not being able to afford free agent pitching, bring up the deal the Indians gave to Kevin Millwood. Has the best ERA in the AL, and the Tribe got him for peanuts. The Rangers showed no interest, even though they had far worse ptiching coming into the season than the Indians. Millwood had had a few injuries, but he had a good history as a starter, and was worth the risk. But not for a team that puts profits first.
Tribe beat the A's again tonight. Have the headress on.
Dan McGraw
This is utter hypocracy. If Texas lost to TCU (at home) and barely beat a Tulsa team (at home), that Minnesota dealt with efficiently, after 4 consecutive top 3 recruiting classes then Mack wouldn't hear the end of it. Yet the Dallas Morning
News says:
"There is no question that OU's talent level is down this season. The Sooners lost 10 players in the NFL draft. Nine of those 10 were on NFL opening-day rosters.
OU is left with a bevy of young, inexperienced players who make mistakes. Or even worse, they just may not be as good as the players on the other side of the line of scrimmage."
EXCUSE ME!!!! Just not as good as the players that line up on the other side of the line of scrimmage. So they are gonna try to play the not enough talent card. Not enough talent to battle perennial juggernauts like TCU and Tulsa. Give me a break!!!!!
How is the DMN gonna play the not enough talent card with OU? These guys recruited the #1 QB (Bomar) and the #1 Runningback (Petersen) in the same year, yet they dont have the talent. If this was Mack Brown we'd constantly hear about how Mack doesn't develop talent or isn't a gameday coach (points that are still consistently made despite Mack's streak of 9 win seasons).
Mack has lost plenty of talent year after year, but hasn't sucked against a team (Tulsa) that North Texas will destroy.
They need to call a spade a spade. During the first two weeks of the 2005 season Bob Stoops has done a very poor coaching job, Period. I don't want hear any crap about being out talented.
Bob,
CIS Group is sponsoring a charity golf tournament on Thursday October 6th at Doral Tesoro in Fort Worth. All proceeds are going to the National Military Family Association (www.nmfa.org). We would love to get some P1’s to participate, sponsor or donate rounds of golf to local military personnel. Would it be possible to have you announce this? My contact info is below if you have any questions…Thanks so much!
A loyal P1 myself…
Andrea Harness
aharness@cisgroup.net
Just got back from the area last week. Im a local officer and P1. A group of us went on our own time, took vacation, to assist the local law enforcement in the area. It was definitely eye opening. Channel 4,11, and 5 did a spot on it. 4 and 11 before we left, then 5 did a sit down interview with us when we returned.
i heard the hardline talking about celebrities hamming it up down there for some face time, and unfortunately some of this was true. Id have to say that several of them didnt do much to help, but rather detracted manpower away for their personal protection details.
However, we were working in the southern portions when John Travolta and his wife (certainly a nice piece) landed in a helicopter and delivered a huge amount of food and water, along with new uniforms for the officers that had been affected.
The local officers had great stories about the experience, and were quite resilient all things considered.
As a side note for Dan, when posing for a photo with Travolta, I smiled for the camera and stated 'royale with cheese', which he repeated. quite cool.
Shaun
610 Sports Rap
Sunday: 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
To put an punctuation mark on the week and to help get the next one started 610 Sports has put together a Sunday morning show to give you an off-beat, informed, and maybe even a little contentious show: 610 Sports Rap. Every Sunday morning you can check out MetroSports reporter Chris Gough and former Miss Kansas Danni Boatwright. Chris is an MU alum while Danni went to college at KU, so you'll get the male-female disagreements and the Jayhawk-Tiger differences. With that kind of conflict, you know you'll get a unique view on everything happening in the world of sports.
Pierre Turgeon wants to make one thing clear.
"I'm not Peter Forsberg, that we know," Turgeon said ahead of Colorado's pre-season game Saturday against Dallas at the Pepsi Center.
The grass surface at Dolphins Stadium is in such a depleted state that center fielder Juan Pierre said for the first time in his pro career he was thinking of wearing a protective cup to prevent a bad-hop injury.
''You'll definitely see me going down to one knee to field base hits,'' Pierre said.
``It's [the playing surface] probably the worst I've seen it since I've been here.''
Irvin contends, Favre stuck his nose where it didn't belong — and Packers receiver Javon Walker will pay a hefty price for it.
"Now, this is a story here," said Irvin, the former star receiver for the University of Miami and Dallas Cowboys. "This boy (Walker) came back into camp because of Brett Favre. The great Brett Favre. This is not some rookie quarterback calling him out when he was asking for his money. This is the great Brett Favre."
"I love Brett, I appreciate Brett. But Brett should know business is business," said Irvin, who was at Dolphins camp on Thursday for a ESPN feature. "You don't mess with another man's business.
"Now, what do you do, Brett? If I'm Brett, how you can walk in the room when you just did surgery to say, 'Hey, man, I'm sorry this has happened?' How could you do it? How could you look that man in his eyes?"
When asked Wednesday if he regretted his previous comments, Favre said no.
"I feel terrible about what happened because it doesn't help our team any," said Favre, who makes upward of $10 million a year. "But he's young. It's hard for him to believe it right now, but I promise you, he'll come back better. His contract situation will take care of itself. I still think he'll make a lot of money."
If you were hoping to catch Monday night's Ring of Honor ceremony at halftime of ABC's nationally broadcast Cowboys-Redskins game, you're out of luck.
The induction of Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith will be pre-empted by a NFL telethon to benefit victims of Hurricane Katrina. The entire 12-minute halftime will be devoted to the fundraising effort, Monday Night Football producer Fred Gaudelli confirmed on Thursday.
Not that Monday Night Football, whose audience extends far beyond Cowboys fans, would have shown the entire ceremony anyway. Rather ABC most likely would have offered an edited version before the start of the second half, Gaudelli said.
Those were the days, on and off the field.
"We were so lucky to see this town become nonpartisan," Walker said. "No political differences, no racial differences. Everybody, 1,000 percent, hated Dallas. It was an overwhelming aura."
Last season, Gibbs and the Redskins suffered a pair of agonizing losses, 21-18 and 13-10.
But it goes beyond the Cowboys always winning. Once, when both teams were special, every game was big.
"There was a time when the team that won the game would usually win the division," Madden said. That time seems long ago and far away.
How come when Mark Cuban is on your show and says he has realized he needs to spend more wisely and cut payroll you didn't say those comments you make about Hicks to him?
Regards,
jeff
Are you asking why we don't ask Cuban about Hicks or why we don't badger Cuban about spending? I think the answer to both is obvious - Hicks has nothing to do with Cuban and Cuban has spent more than anyone this side of Steinbrenner, but I was curious what you meant-
Thanks for you answer. That is where I was going. Cuban has spent and for what result? No championship. Then said he realized it wasn't the way to go. Yet, you and your partner yuck it up with him and jump on Hicks for the exact same thing. You are being a total hypocrite. Go listen to the tapes. BTW when did it start being wrong for a business owner to not worry about the bottom line.
Jeff
Then, in the fifth, Kapler reached on an error. Would everything have been different if he hadn't reached base? Or was the injury something that was building inside his leg, the tendon weakening, ready to explode, perhaps later in the game? He'll likely never know, but he won't forget how the injury occurred.
The next batter, Graffanino, launched a ball to left that was anything but a no-doubter. Kapler reached second gaining steam as the ball cleared the fence, then crumpled.
''I've never in my 18 years seen a home run and seen a guy blow out at second base," Wells remarked.
Suddenly, I find myself fretting that the Rangers' crop of young pitchers is having too much success in September.
How's that for a flip-flop?
Seriously, we really do have to worry. It's entirely conceivable that Tom Hicks, who just this week admitted publicly that the Rangers have become "a very profitable team" again, will use the surprising September performances of Kameron Loe, Juan Dominguez and even R.A. Dickey to rationalize not signing free-agent pitching this off-season.
"I don't think that will happen," general manager John Hart said Wednesday while he watched the Rangers and Orioles wrapping up their series on another scorching late-summer afternoon in front of a handful of sun worshipers at The Ballpark in Arlington. "Had a money-pitcher been there at the [trade] deadline, Tom wasn't blinking at that."
Subject: Which one of these is a sign of the Apocolypse or are both?
Breaking News: A federal judge in San Francisco has declared it
unconstitutional to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools.
ALERT SPORTS: Cowboys QB Drew Bledsoe named NFC Offensive Player of the
Week. Click here for details.
Gibbs delayed his news conference by a half hour yesterday to inform Ramsey when the quarterback returned to the Redskins Park after leaving in the morning.
ESPN reported in a telecast last night that Ramsey requested a trade at the meeting. But neither Gibbs nor Ramsey -- whose contract expires after the 2006 season -- could be reached for comment last night. And Ramsey's agent, Jimmy Sexton, didn't return a call. Gibbs said at his news conference that he expects Ramsey, 26, to be the backup quarterback.
Joe Gibbs never bought into Ramsey. That was abundantly clear with the acquisition of Mark Brunell last year. Even as Gibbs was proclaiming Ramsey to be his guy after last season, Gibbs used a first-round pick to secure Jason Campbell in the draft.
That had to be reassuring to Ramsey. He was the starting quarterback through the gnashed teeth of Gibbs.
And so after all the offseason proclamations and 26 snaps, we are going back to Brunell and an offense that dulls the senses.
Brunell is the master of the 2-yard dink pass, contrary to the recent assertions of Gibbs that Brunell somehow has morphed into Bob Feller at this advanced point in his career.
You saw Brunell's downfield pop-up against the Bears. It was intercepted and returned for big yardage, only to be nullified by a pass-interference penalty. Brunell no doubt makes far fewer mistakes than Ramsey. But he lacks the capacity to make big plays, too.
In nearly three quarters, Brunell threw for a whopping 70 yards, 35 fewer than Ramsey in his one-plus quarter of action.
In a season filled with clubhouse turmoil, the newly acquired, and very unproductive, Phil Nevin is apparently fitting right in...
The DMN's Rangers notes for Monday morning has this to say:
Phil Nevin had a frustrating day at the park on Sunday.
It started with a lineup change that dropped the Rangers designated hitter from cleanup to seventh. It ended when he was ejected after arguing a called strike three in the second inning.
When Nevin saw the lineup card that was posted before 11 a.m. in the clubhouse, he was listed as the cleanup hitter. The card showed Marshall McDougall starting at third base and Hank Blalock getting the day off.
But Blalock told manager Buck Showalter he felt good and wanted to play, so around 11:30 a.m. a new lineup card was posted with Blalock batting cleanup and Nevin hitting seventh.
Nevin said to someone walking in the clubhouse [and loud enough for everyone to hear]: "You should have been here, I was hitting fourth. It was a big day for a minute. It was going to be like old times, back when I was good."
Nevin then walked by Blalock's locker and said, "Way to go, Hank."
Wow.
And again, this is a guy that the team is talking up as being at least a semi-regular on their 2006 team.
It will be interesting to see how Buck reacts to this. Personally, I'd rather see Jason Botts get Nevin's ABs the rest of the way, anyway...
But it makes no sense, to me, that a guy who has the reputation Buck does, of being a control freak, someone who keeps a tight lid on things, is having these sorts of things erupt on the team. We had the Barajas/Drese fight, the Soriano tantrum over being benched, the Rogers/camerman incident, the ongoing public complaining by Teixeira and Young over the front office's inactivity, Soriano's ongoing refusal to hustle or run anything out...
And now, we've got Nevin throwing a tantrum over being dropped to the #7 slot, when, in light of his awful production of late, he should just be happy he's in the lineup.
"How good is he? He's a good talker," Johnson said. "He's a real good talker. He's a solid corner. As a matter of fact, can we send Fred a message?"
Johnson leaned forward and said: "Smoot, let's go. That's it. That's the message for this week."
Who's the better trash talker, Chad or Fred?
"That's a good question," Johnson said. "I don't know. We have to ask him. Smoot, who talks better trash? Make sure he gets that."
Johnson has a laminated sheet in his locker listing the cornerbacks he'll face this season. The names are under the headline: "Who covered 85 in 2005." Smoot's name is next.
Speaking of names, Johnson's idol — TV celebrity Oprah Winfrey — joined world-famous poet Maya Angelou in Dayton on Monday night. Johnson wished he could've been there to meet Winfrey. "Marvin said I can't go," Johnson said. "Blame everything on Marvin."
Rice gave it one last chance in Denver, but when he found out that he could not even be the team's third receiver, Jerry had to walk away. There was no way his competitive nature would allow him to sit and watch a game while he stood on the sideline.
Don't overlook that The Eagles have won more Grammies than Super Bowls.
Richardson Ron. Enjoy.
Bob,
The 28 points scored by the Cowboys offense at San Diego on 9/11/05 is
the fifth most points scored in a game during Bill Parcells tenure as
Head Coach of the 'Boys.....
1. 43 Points @ Seattle- Cowboys win 43-39 on 12/6/04
2. 38 Points @ Detroit- Cowboys win 38-7 on 10/19/03
3. 35 Points @ NY Giants- Cowboys win 35-32 in OT on 9/15/03
4. 31 Points vs. Detroit- Cowboys win 31-21 on 10/31/04
5. 28 Points @ San Diego- Cowboys win 28-24 on 9/11/05
- This tells me that a the offense has not carried this team in the 2
plus years that Parcells has lead them.
During his tenure, the defense will be the barometer of what this team
will do throughout the year.....
This also tells me that if you want an offense shootout, watch this
team on the road......
Either that, or I have too much time on my hands looking up stats....
Jim Greene
