Here comes the HARBOWL

Random rambling stumbling bumbling thoughts

• if the NY and National Sports media had a brain, why aren't they calling for about 15 other coaches to be fired, because off the top of my head that is the # of coaches who have been Head Coaches since 2009 that have less playoffs wins then Coach Rex - including the coach to the northeast of NYC
• Expect CBS to can Shannon Sharpe because he dared to blast Coach William for not speaking to Steve Tasker as all losing coaches have done in the AFC Championship game recently.  My take:
• Great coach, but a bully, a liar, a thief ($1MM of Leon Hess’ $), and a cheat (both in football & in life).  And what is sad is that he did not have to cheat to win – but history will damn him just like Bonds – who may have hit 600 homers clean instead of 750+, or Nixon, who was going to get 60% of the popular vote but still felt the need to authorize a burglary of his opponent’s office.
• And Kraft is no better – because he condones and enables this behavior
• Rough week for Stoney's Aztecs....that 1st half against Wyoming brought back ugly memories of SJU trailing Georgetown 41-9 late in the first half in early January 1982.
• Atlanta rolled up 300+ yards and 24 points in the first half and then got shut out in the second half - have never even HEARD of anything like that before.
• If Brady is not fined for trying to intentionally kick and injure Ed Reed than the amazing league should refund Suh is $30K for what he supposedly intentionally did to Schaub on Thanksgiving.
• Caught most of the 5th set between Wawrinka and Djokavic....epic.  Tennis at it's best.
• The Zebras did their best to hand NE the game as usual
• only called 1 of 15 holding penalties on Nate Solder
• called BS personal fouls on Lewis and Pollard - both led with their shoulders and both receivers ducked their heads
• Dennis Pita gets drilled in the chin by the crown of a NE player's helmet and no flag came out
• It was a miracle the zebras did not overturn the Pollard laying out Ridley fumble - which clearly was a fumble as his knee dislodged the ball before his dead ass hit the turf.
• When the Douglass non-catch was being reviewed I turned to my friend and said "they will simply say 'the ruling on the field is confirmed' with no explanation," that is when you know the home cooking fix is in.  That ball clearly hit the ground and moved - was an easy reversal in my opinion.
• That is all for now - not everybody has the day off today...time to go to work.
 
 
 
 
 

Kicking off 2013 Hunter S. style part II

January 12, 2169, when my great great great great great grandson David Andrew Joseph William Paul Stitzer lets the public in for the grand opening of the J E T S museum of natural history most fans will immediately flock to the January 12, 1969 hall to see for themselves that this franchise actually did win the Super Bowl.  As these same fans cruise through the 2015-2058 Flag Football era exhibits (real football was installed again in 2059, history later proved that Robert Kraft III bribed the Commish to do this after he drafted defensive players in 6 consecutive drafts, still did not help, and since 2016 NE has been the worst franchise in football, just like they used to be) and the 2096-2108 London Werewolves dynasty era in which the JETS lost 26 consecutive North Atlantic Division games to the Wolves and managed to lose a whopping 22 games 6 times in that period (note: the season expanded to 24 games in 2046), they will eventually arrive at the 2009 Draft exhibit.  My great great great great great granddaughter Broadwina Josephine Wilhemina Rose Barbara Ann Stitzer, using technology that we have not even dreamed of yet, will show fans a live shot from the past of her great great great great great grandfather’s reaction to his beloved JETS trading the 17th and 49th picks up to #5 to draft a QB.  A stunned audience will then get to see the artifacts which remain from the famous broken remote control – a family heirloom passed down from generation to generation – which never caused fighting between the offspring as only one son decided to follow me down the green & white.  The other 2 kids followed their Mom’s Chargers, and by 2078 the entire trees of those 2 families were housed in an insane asylum at the infamous Spanos building of Scripps Hospital in La Jolla.

Back to the present (unfortunately), under the pre-2011 salary cap structure was there a worse risk-reward scenario a team can enter into than drafting a QB in the top 10?  Yes, you can TRADE UP TO DRAFT A QB IN THE TOP 10!  Tannenbaum is unemployed because he he hit on a 16 against a picture instead of surrendering and saving half his chips – not trading up and not even drafting a QB at 17 either was the right move.  Want more proof, look at the Lions who went 4-12 despite having a QB that delivered the ball to record-setting Calvin Johnson, why?  Cause they have so much $ tied in up Stafford that he needs to play like Montana, Manning, or Brady at their absolute best to compensate for a roster that has lots of holes because there is not enough cap $ to fill those holes.  That broken remote was completely justified, I would do it again.

One of the 4 lessons in life my Dad instilled in me was “don’t believe your own bullshit.”  That lesson went out the window when it came to this team, and specifically the QB, the last 4 seasons.  Sanchez sucked as a rookie after week 5.  11 games of crap, well 12 if you throw week 4 in there, but he did bounce back in week 5.  After the New Orleans game in week 4 the JETS traded for Braylon Edwards “because the QB needed more weapons.”  Excuse me, but if you draft a QB at #5 shouldn’t he be making people around him better?  After we get through the QB, you will then get to see the 2nd reason why Tanny is unemployed – the billion traded draft picks.  And when Sanchez hurt his knee and missed 1.5 games, Clemens came in to lead the team to 2 victories – so I maintain that in 2009, with that defense, and that running game, AND THE 17TH AND 49TH PICKS ON THE ROSTER (like maybe a wide receiver and an OLB that can rush the passer) Clemens could have guided this team to at least the 9 wins they got in spite of Sanchez.  But then Sanchez stepped up in the playoffs.  And then the kid played better in 2010, and really stepped up in the playoffs by leading a game winning drive against Indy, outplaying Brady (well really outplaying the shitball NE defense), and almost leading an improbable comeback in Pitt.  Then the awful decisions to get rid of Braylon and Jericho and replace them with Plax & Mason behind an OL that included the worst right tackle in the history of the league, Wayne Hunter.  It should have been very clear that the 2011 version of Sanchez, year 3 mind you, was what you have.  Looking back, at least a remote control got spared when Tanny extended his contract to free up 2012 cap $ because I actually thought it was a good move.  They could have been done with Sanchez, now he is a an albatro$$ for another year.

Now we get to all the draft picks Tanny traded away for players or to move up.  Not all were bad trades, and some were quite good:  Holmes for 5th round pick, Cromartie for a 2nd were great deals.  The Kris Jenkins deal was a great trade – getting the best nose tackle in the league for 3rd and a 5th?  Awful break that he was only healthy for 18 of the 48 games during his 3 years.  Imagine what the Baltimore D would be like if they did not Ngata for 2+ seasons?  But when you keep trading picks you lose depth.  You must rely on scrap-heap undrafted free agents on special teams and sometimes in starting roles when you have the inevitable injuries.  Trading up to get Revis and David Harris were good moves.  Trading up to get Keller & Greene – hurts depth.  Trading to get Tebow, a guy that once you had him your coaches said “he cannot throw the ball,” you did not know that by watching film?

The new GM must focus on rebuilding the OL and finding a QB – which as Russell Wilson and Kirk Cousins are proving does not have to be some 1st round guy that Kiper and Mayock fawn over.  The GM will also have to determine the fate of the head coach after 2013 – you know, the guy that the media wants to fire who has more playoff wins since 2009 than every coach except John Harbaugh.

I standby what I wrote two days ago and I hope the Denver defensive backs and Refs were at least smart enough to book different flights to whatever tropical destination they are headed to with their bag of loot.

SF is a 3.5 favorite Sunday. I cannot ever remember a conference championship game where the road team is giving more than a FG. 

AFC game could go either way, NE blowout or Balt close win.  Do not think NE wins a close game.  Their recent history in street fights is not good – they are frontrunners and are capable of blowing anyone out – but they do not like to get hit in the mouth.  And spare me last year’s AFC championship game.  Lee Evans caught the ball and had 2 feet down – the play is over at that point.  That call is in the dictionary next to the phrase “getting jobbed.”

Nice to see the NHL back.  Too bad the NBA cannot go away.

Stoney’s Aztecs better stop blowing leads and letting teams back in the game.  It almost bit them in the buttocks.  Big one tomorrow night against UNLV at Montezuma Mesa – thoroughly looking forward to being there and losing my voice.  New Mexico comes in Saturday the 26th.  Imperative to hold serve at home in the nation’s 3rd best conference and the conference with the best non-conference winning %.  The Mountain West has few duck walks on the road this season. 

Frankie the Fixer was alive in well in Denver Saturday

Before we get to part II, even 8 years later, the NFL is doing everything they can to try and get NE a non -*** title (ironically by doing so it just adds a potential 4th *)

• Denver up 7-0, gets a 3 and out except for an awful PI call that extends drive - 2 plays later Baltimore TD
• There was both defensive holding (on Stokely) and PI on Decker on the Balt pick 6 - no flags
• next Denver drive, blatant PI on a deep ball against Balt #29 - no flag
• but this is the worst sequence
  • Denver picks up 1st down on a 3rd and 1
  • offensive holding called - you know the penalty that is never called anymore, and was not called once a few weeks ago when a certain team threw the ball 65 times (so that is 325 combined plays by offensive linemen that did NOT hold - despite every SF linemen having blue dye from the other teams gloves all over their jerseys)
  • fumble next play, which should have been a tuck rule

I will quote my friend for the icing on the cake: "if #26 & #32 aren't on the take on the game tying td then I don't know anything about life"

This was Frankie the Fixer Acavano's best job since he told to Harry Vallentini and Mo Dickstein to bet the 2 horse in the 2nd race....an order which they disobeyed, instead, placing $10K on My Baby to win (if you have no idea what I am referring you should immediately buy "Wise Guys" and watch it.

Stitz

Kicking off 2013 Hunter S. style PART I

The poor little media had it’s feelings hurt that the Owner and Coach went on vacation – most likely to get away from the turds that are the media. So let me get this straight: the media bombards this team every day for 6 months, blows every quote out of proportion, calls the atmosphere a circus because they seem fit to print report on every word and blast the organization for talking too much (which of course every team does but I guess the other 31 teams the media does not care about because they do not camp out at their complex nor write about every fart they let loose), then the team says NOTHING and the Media says “the circus continues.” They would have some credibility if they actually reported on FOOTBALL – you know, stuff like here is why the General Manager got fired. Which is what I am about to do.

TAKING THE T OUT OF T-REX: Why is Mike Tannenbaum unemployed? 

It is a complex question with dozens of detailed answers. But the simple answer is that he made 3 moves from the 2008 – 2012 that botched the QB position, the most important position by far in today’s flag football version of the NFL. Now for the detailed analysis

• The QB Position
• Tanny inherited Chad Pennington, coming off his umpteenth shoulder surgery and Brooks Bollinger – a career 3rd stringer, who was pressed into a starting role in 2005 after Chad, Jay Fiedler, and signed off the couch old man Vinny T. went down for the count with injuries.
• Tanny drafted (what we though) was the QB of the future in the 2nd round of his first draft: Kellen Clemens of Oregon
• Tanny added Patrick Ramsey by trading a 6th round pick to the Redskins (as we shall see later, Mr. T departs with draft picks like he ain’t got a care in the world)
• Coach Mangini creates a 4-way QB competition in training camp – which Chad wins in Secretariat ‘73 Belmont fashion.
• Chad has a nice, not thrilling, but nice 2006. Stays healthy, guides team to 10 wins and a playoff berth with smoke and mirrors.
• Chad hurts his ankle early in 2007, Clemens starts week 2 at Baltimore (marking the 78th straight time the JETS face Baltimore with a backup QB) and was a Justin McCaerins drop (never thought you would hear that name again) from capping a 17th point 4th quarter comeback. Ironically, the defensive coordinator for Baltimore that day….R E X
• Chad starts a few more games, the season is clearly going nowhere as the decision to not pay Left Guard Pete Kendall blows up in the franchise’s face as his replacement Adrian Clarke turns in a Wayne Hunter-like performance. Stubborn Mangini still plays a 3-4 w/o a true nose tackle and with a whole year of film in the history books, opposing offenses are no longer fooled, no longer try to get cute, and simply ram the ball down their throats. Clemens starts some games and looks “ok” at best, but at least he cut his teeth.
• The 2007-08 off-season lands Alan Faneca and Damien Woody to join D’Brick, Nicky M. in the middle, and Brandon Moore, one of the most underrated guards in the league. Kris Jenkins is acquired in a trade (3rd and 5th round draft picks). Overnight, the Green & White, on paper, had the best offensive line in the league and the big guy to man the middle on the other side of the ball. Thomas Jones is also acquired in a trade. The plan is simple – give young Kellen a dominant run game in his first full year at the helm…..everyone is assuming Chad will back up Kellen and provide the grizzled veteran leadership, until
• Favre
• I am back – had to go into the garage and let out a primal scream so the kids would not become alarmed. Dumb move, they should be used to it and at 5:15am it is a balmy 49 degrees in the garage – what, you think it never gets cold in San Diego?
• Trading for this prima donna 4 weeks before the season is going to start and releasing Chad to create salary cap room was a move I did not like then and still do not like. I agreed with Tanny that a broken-down Chad was probably not going to take this team to the Super Bowl because he just did not provide the vertical threat and the better defenses had the speed to take too much of the field away (see Baltimore @ Miami in playoffs that season after Chad, with even more smoke & mirrors than 2006, got Miami to 11 wins – in large part thanks to 4 west coast teams having to play 10am games at Miami, and Parcells the GM was a genius, and Parcells the rat slunk out of town once expectations were there and they stunk again after that - mainly due to lots of personnel moves the self-annointed genius made). The whole offense had to be re-worked to accommodate Favre. More importantly, THE HEAD COACH DID NOT WANT HIM! But why listen to the head coach when it comes to personnel decisions of the most important position?
• After a lackluster 3-3 start, the green & white rip off 5 wins in a row, including a dominating performance at Tennessee to hand the 10-0 Titans their first loss. The 8-3 J E T S are looking like “the team to beat” in the AFC.
• But as always, since 1968, something goes wrong. In this case, Favre hid an injury and either defied the Coach and would not allow himself to be benched OR the Coach did not have the Stones to bench him. Add Kris Jenkins all of a sudden not being 100% and you have a very leaky run defense. Favre was AWFUL in the last 5 games. The JETS blew the division and the playoffs – as a matter of fact the only game they won down the stretch was a miracle home win over Buffalo when Sean Ellis returned a fumble for a TD.
• 9-7, the Coach who did not want the QB gets fired the day after the season.
• Enter the next Coach: Rex Ryan “we will be the most physical team in the league, we will have an all weather offense that is ground & pound; on defense, we’re gonna let the fur fly, that read and react is for someone else, and with our fans, man I’m excited for the way we are going to make life difficult for opposing offenses.”
• The 2009 draft……I need to pause here and sedate myself before I am capable of getting to part II. we will also cover the playoffs, college hoops, and a few other things.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

This was the first ball in NY that was not dropped by #6 in the past 4 months