Yeah, so here are some unasked for thoughts on the latest rounds of roster cuts. Some of the info was found looking through the lists on NFL.com and some of it was found on Peter King's gossip column MMQB, but as always (what is this, my second post? third?) the thoughts and blame are all mine.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have got the have the NFL office seriously concerned. I understand the league is (and was) riding high when they awarded Jacksonville a franchise, but economic downturn or no, this franchise is eating enough shit it gotta be close to dying. Mr. King talked about a couple of their cuts being obvious money, not football, decisions and looking at the salaries involved, he appears to be right.
The bad news about Jacksonville started being apparent (to me at least) right after the Super Bowl they hosted three or four years ago. The players and the media just fuckinghated it there. The upshot of their bitterness, from what I could see, was that the nightlife sucked, and I am sure that's true, but all complaints about the weather aside, people dealt with the Detroit Super Bowl and let it go. They had one i Houston, and believe me, there ain't shit to do in that town. Now before all of you (at this point my blog has netted one (1) reader, and it's my wife, but you never know...) Houstonians give me holy hell, go research why EssenceFest came right back to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina when 35% of our old residents couldn't pull the same trick. The audience for EssenceFest couldn't find the parties they like to attend in Houston, and while the Super Bowl ain't exactly the NBA All-Star game, I can't imagine the demographic is all that different. But Houston had their Super Bowl and people in the Media let it go.
Jacksonville got burned in the media, burned bad, and I was somewhat surprised at the time. I've only been to Jacksonville once, and it was for a sports tournament and all I did was hit some crappy keggers, but what did I know, I was 19 years old. But it's Florida, and people basically would suck off Florida and pose for pictures if that got 'em a trip. The players don't like playing there, by several reports, and that's not easy to do considering it is a franchise in a state without fucking income tax. I mean, that saves people in the athletes bracket some serious change.
And that stadium, which is pretty damn new, just stays empty. I bet every single home game gets blacked out this year. All of them. And it's a downward spiral at that point, because if your fans don't care enough to show up to your stadium, how are you gonna drum up interest if the locals can't even watch the team on television?
You hear a lot about teams like the Saints (never happen, if there's a God, I don't care how perfect the team name would be) and the Rams moving to Los Angeles, but for my money. there just isn't a future in Jacksonville. (From what I understand, L.A. has quite a ways to go, even discounting ownership issues before they can even consider landing a franchise, chief among them a new stadium. The only option right now is the Rose Bowl, and there is no way the NFL puts a team in that dinosaur. No way. And getting a new stadium built in these massive metros in no joke. I know both the NY baseball teams got it done somehow, but take a look at the site issues for the supposed Brooklyn Nets if you want to see a clusterfuck).
UPDATE: Just finished King's MMQB article which inspired this post, and he has this one-liner suggesting the London Jaguars. If he sees this, the trouble is tangible.
RAIDERS: First off, and this will become apparent if I can keep any kind of regular posting going, Al Davis is my boy. Straight up and down, I love that guy. I hated it when the national media jumped all over him for that bullshit with Kiffen. I think that anyone who has been paying attention to Kiffen then and now can see the man was never going to mesh in Oakland. There isn't room for another ego like that when Al is in the building. Plus, when people were killing Davis for that stunt with the overhead projector, it just made me kinda sad. Like a bunch of bullies were making fun of my grandfather. Leave the man alone! He's old and doesn't need your fucking lip! He had a problem with Lane Kiffen and wanted the world to know how and why his gripes with the man came to such a boiling point. Here's is Point A) I think the kid's an asshole...here's Point B) He's a slippery snake and I should cut his head off with a shovel...here's point C)...
I mean, I thought Al came off pretty good. So sue me. I also thought Mark McGuire was the only guy who didn't come off like a soulless jerk at that congressional testimony, though, so I guess people have a different read on these types of situations than I do. Someday I will tell y'all the reasoning behind the baseball stuff, but this post is already running long as all get out.
anyway (deux)...RAIDERS: The most inevitable cut of the entire preseason goes to...Jeff Garcia (cue trombones: enter penny whistles). From what I've read, people are surprised by this, but I don't see why. JaMarcus Russel has guaranteed money somewhere in the neighborhood of Costa Rica's GNP, and Garcia holds a clipboard with all of the panache of Bob Barker delivering stray kittens. It is just antithetical to his life's work, which is to sit back and lobby for a starting job with every ounce of his being. After he took Philly on that post-season chase/playoff games several years ago, he even brought out the waterworks and gave the ole "greatest teammates ever" schtick. (best part of this was when T.O. copied it for the "that's my QB!" routine. "Garcia's a wee bit lavender, but GAWDDAMN, that was a good press conference..." and so on. Awesome). I don't know what that says about JaMarcus (LSU, good man), but you don't get on the hook for that kind of loot, and then sign Jeff Garcia to take every offensive lineman out to dinner so they can talk about "what's best for the team". If they were planning on keeping Garcia, that basically tells 40 million dollars worth of number 1 overall you don't trust his ass, and even if you don't, you kinda cross your fingers and give the kid a couple more years. Seriously.
JETS: Yeah, I bet they signed Kevin O'Connell because they love his football IQ. Sure. That and whatever you remember of the Patriots playbook outta get you a year or two. The more things change, Rex Ryan, the more things change...
I got more, but not in me right now. Maybe I'll hit a couple other teams tmrw, but no goddam promises. You'd hate me for them later, everybody does...
Upcoming posts, in order of likelihood they ever see the light of day:
-Review (term used loosely) on the launch books for Vertigo Crime.
This is actually pretty much written, so loyal reader (singular by design), you can actually set your watch by this one.
- A look at one of my pet topics, now getting major play in the mainstream media, the DT. Tony Sigagusa, Haloti Ngata, and whatever the rook from USC's name is especially referenced. We'll see how long this takes, but it will eventually be written. I need the gratification of agreeing with my own thesis.
-A look at the Saints for this year. I was uncharacteristically down on them last year, mostly for reasons of talent. They essentially added nothing but solid role players, yet I am bullish on the boys this year. Contradictions and hypocrisy await...
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