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I know there is much wrong with the Cowboys besides the coaching, but owner Jerry Jones better make sure he takes a hard look at the entire staff. The Cowboys’ offense is bad now, and it’s not all Tony Romo’s fault. Michael Lombardi

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29 Dec 2008

QUOTE:  "Every organization must be prepared to abandon everything it does to survive in the future." ~ Peter Drucker           

RANDOM GAME THOUGHTS AND QUESTIONS...

1.     I know there is much wrong with the Cowboys besides the coaching, but owner Jerry Jones better make sure he takes a hard look at the entire staff.  The Cowboys’ offense is bad now, and it’s not all Tony Romo’s fault. 

                                     

2.     That effort by the Cowboys was appalling, and Warren Sapp was right when he said on “Inside the NFL” that the Cowboys have no toughness. 

3.     Roy Williams did not work hard at Texas and did not work hard at Detroit, and he seems to fit in perfectly with the Cowboys.  The farther away they get from the Bill Parcells regime, the worse they become.  They have not hit rock bottom yet ...

4.     The Eagles had everything go well for them and now face a very beatable Minnesota team in round one.  They went from being out to being dangerous based on whom they have to face in the first round. 

5.     Not only did the Eagles get in the playoffs, they were able to rest their players the second half of the game because of their blowout of Dallas. 

6.     The Raiders saved their best for last. They not only beat the Bucs, they manhandled them.  Coming back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter was very impressive. 

7.     I would be shocked if the Raiders don’t put interim Coach Tom Cable in charge of the Hotel.  They hate change, and the last thing they want is to be turned down for the job.  Cable will work with the owner, which is critical. 

8.     At what point does the quarterback guru, Jon “Love you Bro” Gruden, get a legitimate quarterback on his team who is under 30 and whom he can develop?  He has been in Tampa seven years and has made no progress securing that position. 

9.     Jeff Garcia was tough to watch yesterday; he played as he did in Cleveland and Detroit.

10.  I feel bad for Cadillac Williams.  He was showing the burst and the talent he had before the injury to his right knee in September 2007.  This latest injury might be difficult to overcome. 

11.  They might blame Monte Kiffin for their failures in Tampa, but they also might want to look closer at their talent base -- especially their defensive line.  When the Bucs cannot win on defense, they cannot win, period.  Their offense needs a ton of work this off-season. 

12.  Regarding Detroit: 0-16 is something I thought could never happen.  In addition, I hear people say they can turn it around soon.  That’s a mess in Detroit, and it’s going to take some time to repair. 

13.  Rod Marinelli, the head coach of the Lions, will be fired today, but he has handled himself with class and dignity in a very tough situation.  The Lions need a program and they need a plan.  BADLY. 

14.  I hear changes are coming in Green Bay and they will start on the defensive side of the ball. 

15.  Houston will remold its defensive staff this off-season.  The Texans have to find a way to get more physical on defense. 

16.  What will the Saints do in the off-season?  They can move the ball on anyone and are never out of a game, but they need to fix their defense.  There will be tough decisions for Coach Sean Payton in the next few weeks. 

17.  Phil Savage did more to lose his job the last three weeks talking and not showing the leadership the Browns needed.  They really had no choice but to fire him.  The NFL is about the head coach and the quarterback, not the GM. 

18.  Do you think Tyler Thigpen is the answer for the Chiefs at QB?  He could not lead his team to victory against the Bengals.  The Chiefs might want to reconsider this before placing all their hopes in the Thigpen basket. 

19.  I have been writing about how bad Denver is on defense, and yesterday the Broncos proved me correct with their poor play.  They have players on defense who could not start for Alabama or USC. 

20.  The Broncos use former San Diego State coach Al Luginbill and his band of coaches as outside consultants for their pro personnel department.  They might want to reconsider the advice and counsel of this service.  That’s a very bad team, and their replacements are even worse. 

21.  San Diego seems to be playing its best right now in the offensive line.  The Chargers pushed Denver around very easily.  The Eagles scored 44 and the Chargers scored 52 in games in which the winner would be going to the playoffs.  Amazing, huh? 

22.  Has anyone seen Vernon Gholston of the Jets or Jarvis Moss of the Broncos?  Both are big-time busts.  Don’t you think the Jets, ranked 29th in pass defense, could have used a little pass rush from the sixth overall pick in the draft?  How about the Broncos, who ranked 25th in sacks? 

23.  That was the last time we’ll see Brett Favre play football.  Jeff Garcia, at 38, and Brett Favre, at 39, won one game down the stretch.  Old players fade in December. 

24.  It looks like the Jets are going to part ways with Coach Eric Mangini.  He has never been well-liked in the building by either players or fellow coaches, but without the support of the GM, he cannot survive. 

25.  Winning 11 games without Tom Brady and still falling short of the playoffs is hard to believe.  But this was Pats Coach Bill Belichick’s finest hour. 

Comments

Add a Comment
Baron
Dec 29, 2008
12:15 PM

I have to say that watching OAK take down "Love you Bro" and the rest of his henchmen was a lot of fun yesterday. That must have really stung Gruden and Allen! It is clear that TBY has a lot of problems evaluating talent and that will only get worse when they lose Monte Kiffin. They should put up a bronze statue of Kiffin in front of the building and it should be bigger than the one of Gruden.

mdstoner
Dec 29, 2008
12:49 PM

What did you think of the Vikings clock management at the end of the game? They made a first down at the 30-yard line with about one minute left and started celebrating like the FG from the distance was a certainty. Then they ran the ball and lost a couple yards, burning it down to :09 seconds and showing very little interest in moving in for a shorter kick.

It seemed like they had no confidence in letting T-Jack put the ball in the air in that situation. The fade pattern he threw had a better chance of being caught by one of the equipment managers or someone manning the Gatorade buckets in the back of the bench area.

Longwell really bailed them out by making that FG. It just makes me think if they won't let the QB go no-huddle and keep passing in that situation, what kind of chance do they really have in the playoffs?

mturner
Dec 29, 2008
12:55 PM

SJGMoney - why don't you go away. It's pathetic to see your posts. Maybe you need to get a life.

Brad James
Dec 29, 2008
01:21 PM

Lombardi,

I owe you an apology. I let my love for the Broncos blind me from their numerous shortcomings. Obviously, the defense must be revamped. It's a shame that Cutler's stats and all of our offensive firepower is going to waste. It's not in my best interests to question you anymore. You seem to have all the answers. With that said, I'm looking forward to a nice postseason. All of the games should be really good although you're not high on the Vikings. I'll give you some predictions forthcoming. With that said, I hope the Chargers are destroyed by the Colts.

Chip
Dec 29, 2008
02:19 PM

Sparano deserves Coach of the Year. From 1-15 to division champion is amazing.

Michael C.
Dec 29, 2008
03:11 PM

Ryan,

I think playing on the road was a major factor in the Eagles choosing to hold off on pressuring Romo back in week 2.

I also think the absence of Marion Barber encouraged teams to bring it against the Cowboys as he is vital to their pass protection and the Dallas running game also suffered in his absence making the Boys almost one dimensional.

I have to disagree with you that division rivals hold back on one another the first go round. Divisional games are just too important

Michael C.
Dec 29, 2008
03:19 PM

I think Jeff Fisher is coach of the year.

Getting a team to the playoffs in consecutive seasons in the NFL without a franchise QB, while also managing to win the AFC South and homefield throughout the playoffs is considerably more impressive than sneaking into the playoff while playing one of lightest schedules in recent memory.

Michael C.
Dec 29, 2008
03:31 PM

Does Dallas Clark deserve to pass John Mackey?

I am guessing Mackey gets to stay in the team record book because he played in less games.

Still Clark seems to line up in the slot as much as in tight. He is an awful blocker I don't see how he deserves to be called a tight end or credited for that matter with any records held by tight ends.

If Miami had run the wildcat even more would Ronnie Brown have been credited with the most rushing yards by a QB in a season?

Clark certainly is not alone as their are a lot of players called tight ends who were terrible blockers and even more who are lining up as WRs almost as often as in tight. Clark is a class act and a tough player but I just am uncomfortable with him being credited with the record for most yards receiving in a single season by a Colt TE.

Bobby
Dec 29, 2008
06:25 PM

I think we all need to sit back and just marvel at the fact that Atlanta, Miami and Baltimore, three of the worst teams last season, all with rookie head coaches, are in the playoffs. Is this not one of the more remarkable feats in the history of the NFL? You could have written your own odds before the start of the season that even two of these teams would be there, but all of them? And two of these teams with rookie QBS...history pointed to the Ravens and the Falcons being disasters this season...it just blows the mind hole.

Mr.Murder
Dec 29, 2008
07:55 PM

No doubt about it John Mackey was the protoype of the position, well ahead of his time for the combination of physical gifts at his command. Still he is one of the tough tried and true old school players that helped bring the sport forward, into the era of forward passing and memorable prime times games including perhaps the greatest ever televised game.

Chip
Dec 30, 2008
08:30 AM

Michael C, I considered Fischer for Coach of the Year. If he would have finished at least 15-1, then yes, I would give it to him. Fischer has two fanchise QBs with Collins and Vince Young on the roster. Both were hyped more than Chad Pennington ever was.

SJGMoney
Dec 30, 2008
11:26 AM

@MTurner, I take it you disagree with my assessment of the Diva Favre? State your case, or don't you have one?

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