Rumor at the Ranch is that TO is History...
THE HATE INDEX
Norv better hope he doesn't know Jerry
JENNIFER FLOYD ENGEL
In My Opinion
Did I mention that Owner Jones confounds me?
He allowed the man everybody, including myself, believed to be his No. 1 candidate for the Cowboys coaching vacancy, Norv Turner, to hop back on a plane for San Fran without a contract or an offer.
What are the chances that the Cowboys owner has somebody else in mind?
Probably not good. Norv remains the front-runner until further notice, mainly because he has an inside track with Owner Jones.
"It helps me a great deal, from a comfort level, certainly knowing what Jerry is looking for," Turner said after his interview Sunday.
"From his standpoint, there is not that period of time trying to get used to someone or figure someone out."
Norv needs to hope that is not the Jerry he knew.
What he needs, if he has any chance of being successful with the Cowboys, is for Owner Jones to have learned a little and changed a little in his time with Coach Parcells.
The Cowboys and their new coach need the owner to be just a little less hands-on -- on draft day, in coaching staff selection, in football matters.
And, while I try to figure out if I need to read anything into Turner's return trip, let's dive into this week's edition of The Hate Index.
Nobody asked me but ...
1. Gary Bettman is an idiot.
No, seriously. He has zero idea how to sell the NHL in this post-lockout world, as evidenced by Stars-Penguins on Friday.
It was an amazingly fun game.
The building was packed. The game was really exciting. It was probably the most "into a game" I have seen a crowd since the glory days.
There were young kids throughout the arena. Owner Tom Hicks was on site. Overtime consisted of many quality chances.
When the game ended in a shootout, everybody was standing.
What produced this atmosphere?
Sid "The Kid" Crosby was in the building. He sold the tickets. He produced the buzz. And thanks to the genius of Bettman, he will not be back for a long, long time.
What is crazy is, just days ago, Bettman and his friendly neighborhood general managers decided to stay with an unbalanced schedule, which basically guarantees that The Kid does not hit every arena every season. Typical Bettman.
1a. Like Hillary Clinton and Newt Gingrich, I am assembling an exploratory committee.
This one will look into me running for NHL commish in 2008.
2. Mark my words: Nine out of 10 reunion tours stink.
For every Eagles reunion tour, there are at least nine Def Leopards, Led Zepplins and Van Halens.
They get the band back together. They play the old songs. And, almost without fail, it is never quite as good as you remember.
Are you listening, Turner supporters?
A big reason so many like the idea of Turner is, he reminds them of the '90s, of winning, of the good old days. What everybody fails to realize is, this is like a Beatles reunion tour without John Lennon.
The Jimster was their John.
Without him, it is just not going to be the same.
3. All of this squawking about the Cowboys skirting the Rooney rule is silly.
The rule needs to be abolished anyway.
There are two African-American coaches in the Super Bowl. Results speak for themselves. Any team stupid enough to need the NFL to force them to consider minority candidates in their search does not deserve the hint.
Everybody else already got it.
Now, if the NFL execs are anything more than pile of hypocrites, and I am not so sure they are not, they would apply the Rooney rule, that a minority needs to be interviewed for every opening, to front-office jobs and jobs with the league.
4. If Tiger Woods and Roger Federer were to play for a championship in air hockey or foosball, or really any sport besides golf and tennis, who wins?
Neither seems capable of losing.
Sunday was another reminder of just how dominant these two have become in their respective sports.
The only difference is, "all Tiger all the time" seems to be drawing more fans, while Roger domination has turned dude tennis into a yawner.
5. T.Faux has a party planned in Miami, which very likely will be as close as he gets to a Super Bowl with the Cowboys.
Things have a way of changing quickly at Valley Ranch, especially with a coach yet to be determined or hired.
Yet, I am hearing a persistent buzz from Valley Ranch that Owner Jones has decided to say goodbye to everybody's favorite receiver.
Even with Coach Parcells gone.
Of course, we have to wait until June -- when T.Faux's $3 million roster bonus is due.
Norv better hope he doesn't know Jerry
JENNIFER FLOYD ENGEL
In My Opinion
Did I mention that Owner Jones confounds me?
He allowed the man everybody, including myself, believed to be his No. 1 candidate for the Cowboys coaching vacancy, Norv Turner, to hop back on a plane for San Fran without a contract or an offer.
What are the chances that the Cowboys owner has somebody else in mind?
Probably not good. Norv remains the front-runner until further notice, mainly because he has an inside track with Owner Jones.
"It helps me a great deal, from a comfort level, certainly knowing what Jerry is looking for," Turner said after his interview Sunday.
"From his standpoint, there is not that period of time trying to get used to someone or figure someone out."
Norv needs to hope that is not the Jerry he knew.
What he needs, if he has any chance of being successful with the Cowboys, is for Owner Jones to have learned a little and changed a little in his time with Coach Parcells.
The Cowboys and their new coach need the owner to be just a little less hands-on -- on draft day, in coaching staff selection, in football matters.
And, while I try to figure out if I need to read anything into Turner's return trip, let's dive into this week's edition of The Hate Index.
Nobody asked me but ...
1. Gary Bettman is an idiot.
No, seriously. He has zero idea how to sell the NHL in this post-lockout world, as evidenced by Stars-Penguins on Friday.
It was an amazingly fun game.
The building was packed. The game was really exciting. It was probably the most "into a game" I have seen a crowd since the glory days.
There were young kids throughout the arena. Owner Tom Hicks was on site. Overtime consisted of many quality chances.
When the game ended in a shootout, everybody was standing.
What produced this atmosphere?
Sid "The Kid" Crosby was in the building. He sold the tickets. He produced the buzz. And thanks to the genius of Bettman, he will not be back for a long, long time.
What is crazy is, just days ago, Bettman and his friendly neighborhood general managers decided to stay with an unbalanced schedule, which basically guarantees that The Kid does not hit every arena every season. Typical Bettman.
1a. Like Hillary Clinton and Newt Gingrich, I am assembling an exploratory committee.
This one will look into me running for NHL commish in 2008.
2. Mark my words: Nine out of 10 reunion tours stink.
For every Eagles reunion tour, there are at least nine Def Leopards, Led Zepplins and Van Halens.
They get the band back together. They play the old songs. And, almost without fail, it is never quite as good as you remember.
Are you listening, Turner supporters?
A big reason so many like the idea of Turner is, he reminds them of the '90s, of winning, of the good old days. What everybody fails to realize is, this is like a Beatles reunion tour without John Lennon.
The Jimster was their John.
Without him, it is just not going to be the same.
3. All of this squawking about the Cowboys skirting the Rooney rule is silly.
The rule needs to be abolished anyway.
There are two African-American coaches in the Super Bowl. Results speak for themselves. Any team stupid enough to need the NFL to force them to consider minority candidates in their search does not deserve the hint.
Everybody else already got it.
Now, if the NFL execs are anything more than pile of hypocrites, and I am not so sure they are not, they would apply the Rooney rule, that a minority needs to be interviewed for every opening, to front-office jobs and jobs with the league.
4. If Tiger Woods and Roger Federer were to play for a championship in air hockey or foosball, or really any sport besides golf and tennis, who wins?
Neither seems capable of losing.
Sunday was another reminder of just how dominant these two have become in their respective sports.
The only difference is, "all Tiger all the time" seems to be drawing more fans, while Roger domination has turned dude tennis into a yawner.
5. T.Faux has a party planned in Miami, which very likely will be as close as he gets to a Super Bowl with the Cowboys.
Things have a way of changing quickly at Valley Ranch, especially with a coach yet to be determined or hired.
Yet, I am hearing a persistent buzz from Valley Ranch that Owner Jones has decided to say goodbye to everybody's favorite receiver.
Even with Coach Parcells gone.
Of course, we have to wait until June -- when T.Faux's $3 million roster bonus is due.
posted by The Gryphon at 6:27 PM
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