Abandon All Hope

  By Sprained Pancreas | January 5, 2012 - 4:42 am | Dallas Cowboys, NFL Leave a comment

In one brief statement after last Sunday’s season finale in the Meadowlands, Jerry Jones summed up the direction and organizational philosophy of the Dallas Cowboys in the way that only he can:

“The facts are that I’ve spent 22 years doing this exactly the same way,” Jones said Tuesday on KRLD-FM. “I’ve made a lot of changes from year to year as time goes along, but frankly, I know that when we do not have the kind of success, when we don’t have expectations lived up to, the one that should get the most heat is the one that ultimately makes the decisions, period, with the Dallas Cowboys. And that’s me.”

The contradictions in those remarks are obvious, yet the logic contained within is so full of twists and turns that it defies analysis. Find a new team to root for, people.

Thank You Mike Sherman

  By mike | December 2, 2011 - 4:15 pm | Texas A&M 1 Comment

Image Courtesy TheBattOnline

I want to thank Mike Sherman for his service to Texas A&M University over the past 4 years.  He recruited and developed players with character and did things the right way.  Unfortunately he wasn’t able to produce the necessary results on the field, especially given the talent on the team this year.

Coach Sherman took over a team in disarray.  This was evidenced last year, when only 4 starters on offense and defense combined were seniors.  He showed improvement in his 2nd and 3rd seasons, and with a pre-season top 10 ranking  2011 was poised to be the best Texas A&M Football season since 1998.

Then the season started, and the team blew 17 and 18 point halftime leads against Oklahoma State and Arkansas.  This trend would continue throughout the season, 5 times blowing double digit leads.  The only game the team really deserved to lose was at Oklahoma.  Coach Sherman seemed to always coach with an NFL mindset, tightening up with a lead, and that doesn’t really translate to the college game.

I don’t disagree with the decision to fire Coach Sherman.  I was actually still on the Sherman bandwagon until the Missouri loss.  After the home loss to Texas, I had decided not to renew my season tickets unless a change was made.  I’m glad the administration was able to make such a difficult decision, especially with all of the change going on with the move to the SEC.

Coach Sherman has certainly left the program in a much better place than when he arrived.  I will not be surprised to see him on the sidelines of an NFL team next year.

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2011 NFL Week 12 Rankings

  By mike | November 29, 2011 - 5:16 pm | NFL Leave a comment

Here are the latest ratings for the NFL season.  The Cowboys are in the top 10!

2011 FLD NFL Power Rankings through Week 12

Team Rating
1. Green Bay Packers (11-0) 0.764
2. Baltimore Ravens (8-3) 0.673
3. San Francisco 49ers (9-2) 0.662
4. Houston Texans (8-3) 0.661
5. New England Patriots (8-3) 0.658
6. Pittsburgh Steelers (8-3) 0.648
7. New Orleans Saints (8-3) 0.631
8. Chicago Bears (7-4) 0.606
9. Atlanta Falcons (7-4) 0.588
10. Dallas Cowboys (7-4) 0.585
11. Cincinnati Bengals (7-4) 0.572
12. Detroit Lions (7-4) 0.571
13. Denver Broncos (6-5) 0.564
14. Oakland Raiders (7-4) 0.561
15. New York Jets (6-5) 0.528
16. Tennessee Titans (6-5) 0.519
17. New York Giants (6-5) 0.473
18. Miami Dolphins (3-8) 0.449
19. Philadelphia Eagles (4-7) 0.447
20. Arizona Cardinals (4-7) 0.434
21. Seattle Seahawks (4-7) 0.431
22. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-7) 0.408
23. San Diego Chargers (4-7) 0.401
24. Buffalo Bills (5-6) 0.400
25. Jacksonville Jaguars (3-8) 0.392
26. Cleveland Browns (4-7) 0.385
27. Washington Redskins (4-7) 0.382
28. Kansas City Chiefs (4-7) 0.380
29. Minnesota Vikings (2-9) 0.360
30. Carolina Panthers (3-8) 0.358
31. St Louis Rams (2-9) 0.313
32. Indianapolis Colts (0-11) 0.193

 


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Cowboys Quick Hits – 2011 Week 11 @ Washington

  By mike | November 20, 2011 - 9:40 pm | Dallas Cowboys Leave a comment

Dez Bryant Scores a Touchdown in the First Quarter

Here are my quick hits from the game:

  • Cowboys definitely tried to establish the run early.  6 of the 9 plays on the Cowboys first drive were running plays.  Even so, they were never able to establish a solid running game.
  • Where is Dez Bryant?  Again, he has no impact after the first quarter.  I think he is the most talented player on the Cowboys roster, but he just disappears.  (OK, I typed this before his big overtime catch to convert on 3rd down and get the Cowboys into field goal range)
  • It never felt like the Cowboys were winning.  Even when they were up by 10 in the first half, it always felt like they were behind.  They just never seemed to be playing very well.
  • Sean Lee continues to be a stud.  He may not have had any game changing plays, but he led the team in tackles with 10.
  • Sensabaugh also has a great game.  Second on the team in tackles with 9, and had the big fumble recovery.  He’s been better this year than I expected.
  • Martellus Bennet had his best game of the season.  3 catches for 31 yards, the most receptions and yards he’s had in a game this season.  At least the ball never went off of his facemask into a defender’s arms.  What a disappointment.
  • Have the Cowboys finally found themselves a kicker?  Or is this another Nick Folk?  Dan Bailey is now 25/26 for the season on field goals including a game winning 39 yarder in overtime today.
It wasn’t the best game the Cowboys have played, but right now I’ll take a W any way I can get it.  I guess I have to pull for the Vince Young led Eagles tonight.  Yay.

 

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2011 NFL Week 10 Rankings

  By mike | November 19, 2011 - 11:47 pm | NFL Leave a comment

I’d like to share something I’ve been working on over the last few weeks, and I was finally able to put it all together this weekend.  The first edition of the freelance dogs NFL team ratings.  I’ll try to go into more detail in a future post, but for now know that the ratings take the following into account:

  1. The week games were played (A week 1 game counts less than a week 10 game)
  2. The location of games (Home wins count less than away wins)
  3. Margin of Victory (capped at 28 points)

According to our ratings, the NFL consists of the Packers, the 49ers, and everyone else. Oh and the Colts REALLY suck.

Check out the ratings after the jump.

Continue reading →

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Tomorrow. Game 6.

  By mike | October 27, 2011 - 4:10 am | Texas Rangers Leave a comment

The Rangers are on the brink of doing something I don’t think I ever imagined they would do:

Win a World Series.

These Rangers are special. They had to win 10 of their last 11 games to clinch the #2 seed in the AL.

They were the first team to qualify for the CS by beating Tampa Bay in 4.

They followed that up by beating Detroit in 6 when Nelson Cruz had possibly the greatest ALCS in the history of the game.

In Game 1 of the World Series they battled, but lost.

In game 2 they were down to their final 3 outs to get 1 run, and they got both the game tying and game winning runs on back to back sac flies. That hadn’t been done in a WS since 1930.

Game 3 unraveled after a blown call, then Pujols went off.

Then came game 4: When their backs were against the wall, the team needed a win, and the bullpen needed relief, the Dutch oven delivered with an 8 1/3 inning shutout gem. Possibly the biggest pitching performance in Texas Rangers history.

In game 5 they needed Mike Napoli and he delivered with a 2 RBI double to the gap in right center. He now has 4 WS games with 2+ RBI, tying Mickey Mantle for first place. if the Rangers win, he has surely positioned himself to be the World Series MVP.

None of this even takes into account the grabs by Beltre, the spectacular double plays turned by Andrus and Kinsler, or Napoli gunning down Gentry at second base. Twice.

Colby Lewis has a 2.22 ERA through 7 Career postseason starts. If I had to ask just about any Rangers fan who they would want to start tomorrow, they would surely say the Colbra. I like our chances.

These Rangers haven’t lost back to back games in 60 days. If they can keep that up they will be Champions by the end of the week.

I don’t know what to think of all this. I don’t even know how I’ll digest it, win or lose. I just want to enjoy the ride.

Tomorrow night I believe the Rangers will win the final game of the 2011 season.

Win or lose, savor it. Enjoy it.

It will have ups. It will have downs. It will likely be the most tense baseball game you’ve ever watched, and you can’t ask for more than that.

Let’s go Rangers!

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In Defense of Ron Washington

  By mike | October 25, 2011 - 4:53 pm | Texas Rangers Leave a comment

Grant Brisbee wrote the following yesterday in his post, 2011 World Series: Why Ron Washington Drives Me Nuts:

I want to hold him up as an example of what a good manager is, what downtrodden teams should seek out when looking for a new manager. But all I can do is guess. All anyone can do is guess, really. There’s no way to take the anecdotes and good feelings and quantify what Ron Washington does for a team. Is he the reason they’re in the World Series for the second year in a row? Is he the reason they lost the World Series last year? Is he effective in any capacity?

How can anyone argue that he is not a good manager?  How many managers have gotten their teams to the World Series 2 years in a row?  How many managers have outmanaged Tony La Russa through 5 games of a 7 game series?  People say La Russa plays chess while Wash plays checkers.  Last night La Russa couldn’t even play telephone.  He let his star player put on the most asinine hit and run I’ve ever seen.

Washington has continually made the right moves throughout this series while La Russa has been out-thinking himself left and right.  Baseball is a simple game that requires a simple approach with simple solutions.  Just because a solution is simple doesn’t mean it is wrong.  In fact, in my line of business the simple solution is referred to as “elegant”.

Wash is loyal to his players.  Some would argue to a fault, but look at what it does:  Players don’t worry about making mistakes.  They just go out and execute.  Does that mean they don’t make mistakes?  Of course not.  All players make mistakes.  All managers make mistakes.  I don’t always agree with what Wash does, but he seems to be right a lot more often than I am.

Wash teaches his players to play the game as it presents itself on any given day.  He focuses on one game at a time, and leaving past games in the past.  Because of this the Rangers were able to rebound from a 16-7 loss with a 4-0 shutout and haven’t lost back to back games in over two months.  As long as they can keep that up they will win their first World Series this week.  He has won as many playoff games this year as the team had won in it’s entire history, including last year’s World Series run.

Does anyone else find it ridiculous that the manager of the 2 time defending AL champs feels like he has to say ”I’m not as dumb, either, as people think I am”?

Wash may not be as polished as other managers out there.  He may not talk the way you do.  The fact is he is a great manager who knows how to push the right buttons with his player.

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Dallas Cowboys Quick Hits – Game 3 (2011)

  By mike | September 27, 2011 - 8:44 am | Dallas Cowboys Leave a comment

Here are my initial reactions to the game last night.  I would have posted them last night, but I got a concussion when I was hit in the head by an errant snap from Phil Costa.

  1. Tony Romo has turned a corner.  He may not have had the best line last night, but the adjustments he made and his ability to be a coach on the field were tremendous.  I don’t think anyone can argue now that he isn’t a leader.
  2. Martellus Bennett has had enough chances.  He can’t catch a ball over an undersized defender, and he continuously is called for untimely penalties.  While it pains me as an Aggie to say this, it is time to replace him with John Phillips.
  3. Sean Lee is a player man.  A nice interception, the game clinching fumble recovery, 8 tackles and 2 passes defended.  31 tackles on the season.  Why didn’t he play more last year?
  4. The Cowboys have themselves a kicker.  6 made field goals for Bailey, and all of them were solid.  Do they really need to continue carrying 2 kickers on the roster?
  5. The lack of depth is still a major concern on this team.  I didn’t even know who half of the WRs were out there.  And they didn’t know where to line up or where to go.  I’ve never seen an NFL team look so lost just because their #1 WR was out.
  6. Jason Garrett.  I really don’t have a comment for Garrett other than to say it is difficult to judge him on this one.  I suppose the biggest criticism would be that he didn’t have the backups prepared, so it looked like an episode of Green Acres on offense.
  7. What the hell, Phil Costa?  4 premature snaps?  I know he said the defense was barking out the calls, but doesn’t that always happen?  He could have cost them the game if Romo wasn’t able to save his ass several times.
  8. Felix Jones looked like he might have found something after halftime.  He made a few good cuts that I think he missed making in the 1st half and found some burst.  I know the holes haven’t been there, but he has had some opportunities to make something out of nothing, and hasn’t been taking advantage of them.
While I’m happy my Dallas Cowboys got their victory, that was one of the ugliest games I’ve watched in a long time.  Between the injuries on the Cowboys offense, the total discombobulation of the Cowboys wide receivers, and the 4 premature snaps by Costa, that was hard to watch.
I’ll leave you with this parting thought.  What do you think a conversation between Jason Garrett and Rob Ryan sounds like?

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College Football 2011 – Week 1

  By Sprained Pancreas | September 5, 2011 - 12:26 am | College Football, Notre Dame, Sports, Texas A&M 3 Comments

ikoniDisclaimer: This post is not intended to be comprehensive. It is not exhaustively researched. It will cover topics of interest to me, and its content may change from week to week. Any clarifications or corrections are welcomed. This is my space to dump whatever thoughts I might be thinking to the one or two people who will actually read this. Carry on.

1. A head coach prepares players to play, but ultimately, players play the game. As the very Fake Dave Campo would say: football is a game that’s played on the football field (hereafter known as Touchstone #1). Coaches cannot be held accountable for a player’s failure to execute routine skills in a game situation that have undoubtedly been drilled since Pop Warner. However, coaches can be held accountable for failing to put the right players on the field. If you watched Notre Dame play South Florida on Saturday, you may have said to yourself, “Brian Kelly picked THIS guy to start at _____________?” The blank line could be filled in with, off the top of my head, quarterback, punt returner, punter, slot receiver or wide receiver. Coach Kelly was shocked by the gap in performance between practice and the actual game. Now that he’s got data from one performance on the big stage to add to his evaluation, I expect that you’ll see changes that will hopefully save the 2011 season from total derailment.

Prediction: Dayne Crist has played his last snap at Notre Dame. Tommy Rees will start; Everett Golson will play in special packages and/or relief. Crist will graduate from ND in May and move on to another school, where he will be immediately eligible to play out the redshirt year that he saved as a freshman.

2. If Casey Pachall is my QB, I feel good about the future. The kid is a baller.

3. The demise of the Big XII appears imminent. Texas A&M should officially join the SEC this week. Rumblings are that UT, OU, OSU and TTU may soon head to the Pac-whatever, as was originally planned in 2010. I’m left wondering:
a. If unequal revenue sharing and dedicated TV networks were such a thorn in A&M’s side, why did the school re-commit to the Big XII last summer with full knowledge of the planned conference model? In fairness to the Aggies, it seems that the recent re-opening of conference exploration was due to Dr. Loftin and the Board of Regents asking themselves that exact question.
b. Did Texas A&M in fact turn down a chance to partner with UT in a television network?
c. I support Texas A&M’s desire to seek what it believes is the best situation for the institution and the athletic program going forward. I remain skeptical that the Aggies will be competitive in the SEC, but that’s why we have Touchstone #1, and not just my thoughts on this blog.
d. Mark Cuban thinks that the breakup of the Big XII is a bad, bad idea. Working on the assumption that a super-SEC and a super-Pac-whatever will be a harbinger of an FBS college football playoff in the next 5-10 years, I’d tack on a few additional points to Cuban’s scenario. Forget worrying about the absence of cupcake warmup games or intersectional games like OU-LSU…what incentive would schools have for scheduling any non-conference games at all? If the road to a playoff is determined by having each conference function as a mini-tournament, what would be the point to a non-conference schedule? Why would coaches put their players in harm’s way for games that don’t matter? And if there’s no non-conference games, how long will it take for fans to get bored by seeing the same teams over and over, year after year, with no variety at all other than switching which 4-team division you play in a given year?

I’m too tired to write anything else. I’ll save it for next week.

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The problem with the LeBron “Decision”

  By mike | July 9, 2010 - 11:30 am | NBA 1 Comment

Подарък иконатрапезни масиSince there haven’t been enough opinions shared about this topic, I’ll go ahead and add my own. This whole LeBron situation has disgusted me since he gave up in game 6 vs. the Celtics. I used to be a fan. I used to love watching the guy. Now I can’t stand him. I’m sure that will change over time, but this entire situation has just been a magnification of everything that is wrong with professional sports and its divas, and it is all embodied in a single player.

For the record, I have no problem with him going to the Heat. In fact, if you took out the way it was handled I would have applauded him, Dwyane, and Bosh for getting together and deciding to try and win a championship together. I’ve always thought it would be awesome if a few superstars got together to do this.

Here are my real problems with the situation: