MONDAY’S TAVERN TALK….

*Be sure to check out the NFL Network tonight between 6:00 and 8:00pm eastern.  I will be on to discuss all of the Week 17 action.

FIVE THINGS I LEARNED TODAY.....

1.   When Eric Mangini lost the support of his friend and general manager, Mike Tannenbaum, he lost his job.  In addition, it did not help that most of the people in the building were seen marching into Tannenbaum's office to complain about Mangini and his management style.  Tannenbaum is now on the hot seat. As time passes, owner Woody Johnson and the coaching candidates will learn how badly the Jets’ cap has been managed and how badly their talent base is right now.  Tannenbaum skirted the firing today, but the bull’s eye is clearly on his chest.  He has become the Isaiah Thomas of the NFL; bad cap, but he saved his own job.

2.   Detroit is going to give extensions to its management team already in place -- Tom Lewand as president and Martin Meyhew as general manager, who will both select a new head coach.  I expect them to talk to Tom Heckert of the Eagles and Jimmy Raye Jr. of the Chargers as a potential vice president of personnel.  I hope this front office has a great Power Point presentation to convince the next coach they can find talented players.  I’ve always felt that past performance predicts future achievement, and part of hiring a head coach is convincing him that you can find talent to help him win. 

3.   Cleveland owner Randy Lerner wants to hire a big name and wants to please the Browns’ fan base.  I believe that Scott Pioli of the Patriots would be a perfect choice.  The prospect of Pioli and Josh McDaniel as head coach might be a great ticket.  The Browns made their run at Bill Cowher, but he turned them down.  Pioli and McDaniel might give them everything they need to fix their problems.  

4.   Kansas City will wait until it decides on a new GM before determining the future of Coach Herm “Let’s Build Something Together” Edwards and his staff.  Herm is not excited about coming back, but owner Clark Hunt is inclined to bring him back. 

5.   The Bucs were preparing to throw a big party with pizza and beer over at Ronde Barber’s house to watch the Cowboys-Eagles after they beat the Raiders.  I guess that was a bad idea.  Love you, Bro.....

FIVE THINGS I HEARD TODAY.....

1.   The Patriots will in fact have to franchise Matt Cassel, as I’ve been saying all season.  He is too much of an asset for the Pats to let him go in return for a compensatory third-round pick. 

2.   None of the Jets assistant coaches was fired along with Eric Mangini.  As of now, they are not free to look for other jobs.  I have a very strong hunch that current offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer might have a great chance to be the next head coach.

3.   The Broncos, the Packers, the Jags and the Texans might not be firing their head coaches, but they will have plenty of openings on their staffs -- especially on the defensive side of the ball. 

4.   People in the NFL told Jerry Jones two years ago that Jason Garrett would need some help coordinating the offense.  Losing Tony Sparano was a huge blow to the Cowboys’ offensive staff.  I suspect the ‘Boys will find some help for Garrett this off-season. 

5.   In their first round of interviews, the Rams will not talk with any of the coaches that new General Manager Billy Devaney interviewed in Atlanta last year.  I suspect that Rex Ryan will have a good shot to be the next coach of the Rams.