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Since second-year unknown Tom Brady was forced into the starting lineup via an injury that made Drew Bledsoe the Wally Pipp of the new millenium, the New England Patriots have been the most dominant franchise in football. In a dozen seasons they've missed the playoffs twice. In both those years they failed to win the AFCE on a tiebreaker. In the remaining ten seasons they have gone to seven AFC championship games and five Super Bowls. They've won three rings, missing two others on miraculous pass plays. Their cumulative winning percentage for the era is staggering. Bill Belichick's Patriots have been a lock to win their division for as long as the Red Auerbach's Boston Celtics were a lock to win the NBA East, Casey Stengel's Yankees a lock to win the AL pennant, Paul Brown's namesakes a lock to win their conference (AAFC or NFL), or Toe Blake's Canadiens a lock to finish first among the Original Six. That's heady company.
It's not supposed to work that way anymore. Those teams were unshackled by free agency, salary caps and the like and had control over their rosters. Once you were good you stayed good unless or until somebody else got better. Yet since 2000 the Patriots, Ravens, Giants and Steelers have accounted for nine of the thirteen NFL championships.
It has to do with beating a system designed to create parity, and teams blessed with strong organizations have done it well, New England being the creamiest of the crop.
The Giants, of course, always have money and glamor on their side. The Steelers have had a Rooney at the helm for ages. New England's Kraft era has been a watershed. The Ravens and the Patriots both have some Paul Brown DNA in their systems --- New England has Bill Belichick, not only an ex-Browns head coach but also an ardent admirer and student of Paul Brown, and the Ravens are the team Paul Brown built.
But even the mighty have their limits. With New England, almost every season begs the question of how they intend to do it this time around. And this year, suddenly the mystery has deepened.
The Patriots went into the offseason stung by their loss to the Ravens, but clearly confident. They had a bunch of money to throw at free agents. Their draft slate was depleted by old trades, but you could almost smell them dealing their first-round pick for lower spots. Amazingly, they scored four of them.
It's a team that has transitioned from a defense-first grinder to an offensive powerhouse over the years. The defense has been lacking lately. This past season the rebuild was supposed to be just about done, and they looked the part all the way up to Aqib Talib's hamstring injury. But most observers thought they still needed DB help and a better pass rush. They have taken steps in that direction so far, but they haven't made a big splash. That's their style, and it isn't likely to change.
But suddenly the defense has taken a back burner. New England has won lately on the back of its offense. That offense suddenly looks a bit different.
Wes Welker is gone, and worse, gone for cheap money. Even worse than that, gone to a huge conference rival. Acrimony seems to have been involved. While Danny Amendola has been acquired, many Patriot fans were looking forward to the unleashing of Julian Edelman, the versatile ex-QB who seemed on the verge of stardom last season when several uncharacteristic injuries struck. Without him the kick return game fell apart, the kick defense suffered, and the offense became Welker-centric again. Now we hear that he's 'reinjured' his ankle in the offseason. And to make matters worse, Rob Gronkowski has apparently partied his way into a fourth surgery on his forearm. That may lead to a fifth. New England essentially has to write him off for 2013. Jake Ballard, picked off the Giants' IR in 2012, might be ready to fill the slot, but he's coming off an injury too, one that sidelined him a full season. And Brandon Lloyd is gone. One assumes Deion Branch is more suited for coaching material than for receiver material at this point.
Who exactly is going to catch the ball for an offense that seemingly must produce big numbers? Right now names like Hernandez, Ballard and Amendola jump out, but what else? Like Giselle said, Tom can't catch the ball too. And Tom is a bit picky. Even of those guys, two are complete newbies. New receivers are always a question mark in the Patriots' system. Joey Galloway? Chad Ochocinco? These were superstars elsewhere, no-shows in New England. A number of high-profile wideouts were available in the offseason. None were aggressively pursued. Anquan Boldin? Mike Wallace? Nope. Lloyd and Josh Cribbs are still out there. Are they on the radar? New England may regret not having signed at least one of them prior to the latest injury reports.
Certainly the setbacks to Gronkowski and Edelman were probably not foreseen, but New England's plan for its indispensable passing game was somewhat mysterious prior to that spate of bad news. Now it has become nearly incomprehensible, as has the general strategy for the upcoming season.
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Hello folks and welcome to this week’s edition of Sexy Action Sports Saturday with your old pal IHM.
This week, we heard a little something out of Redskins owner Daniel Snyder when he came out and publicly stated the team would ‘never’ change its name. Over the years, we’ve been up in arms about quite a few name changes here at the Gab. The most recent and notable was the University of South Dakota Fighting Sioux changing their name despite the support of the Sioux nation. But, with the name “Redskins” you are talking about a whole new ballgame. This name isn’t a tribute to proud warriors who once faced off with what equated with invaders attempting to take their land and way of life away from them… this is a reference to skin color that would with any other race have caused a fucking riot and boycott of all things NFL to this point. Hell, if someone named a team the “Detroit Darkskins”, there would be a public outrage on an international stage. So why is it still okay for the Washington Redskins to continue to exist? Personally, I say it is time for a change, despite the objections of owner Daniel Snyder, and I believe the NFL is going to have to force the issue in order to save face. What say you, Gabitants? Is it about damn time the league steps in and does something to change what is arguably the most offensive team name in the history of professional sports in the year 2013?
The Lions agreed to terms with Ziggy Ansah today, the final of their 9 2013 draft picks to sign. With his signing, the Lions are ready to roll into camp with a full house. Unfortunately, that means they will have Ziggy Ansah under contract for five years now! Hopefully I am wrong here, but I still say the guy is out of football in two years. Oh, and more great news as Darius Slay, the second round corner, had surgery to repair his meniscus this week, so he’ll miss rookie camp. All right, because we know Mayhew has a great history of taking guys with injury history… right Jhavid Best? Ryan Broyles? Titus Young? Mikkeal Leshoure?
At least one Lion is upbeat this offseason, as DT Nick Fairley has predicted the Lions will go to the Super Bowl this year. If there were next day, mandated drug tests for saying stupid shit, you’d better bet I’d have his ass on a plane somewhere to get one done after saying that. Not that I’m mad at the guy for dreaming or anything… but history isn’t exactly on their side, either. The only team to go from 4 wins to a Super Bowl win in NFL history was the 1999 St.Louis Rams… and let’s face it, the Rams we ain’t, despite Bill Polian’s insistence.
Last year at this time, Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera was having a solid year with 7 homers, 27 RBI and hitting around .285. This year after the same amount of games, he’s at 40 RBI, same seven home run total, and hitting nearly a hundred points higher at .382. As it sits now, he leads in 2/3 Triple Crown categories, and is four home runs behind AL leader Mark Reynolds of Cleveland.
Speaking of Cleveland, aside from Friday night, they’ve been playing some damn good ball of late. The aforementioned Reynolds has provided some nice pop with 11 HR/30 RBI, and is even hitting a respectable .283. Ryan Rayburn hit .171 with 1 HR/12 RBI all of last year (205 ABs) with the Tigers. This year with Cleveland, he’s hitting .329 with 4 HRs and 11 RBI. Even spring training invite Scott Kazmir, a forgotten former All-Star pitcher with the Rays, is contributing two wins so far with three straight quality starts. Right now, the Tigers, Indians, Royals and Twins are all within three games of the AL Central lead, with the White Sox in the cellar and 5.5 back.
Can someone please get David Ortiz to shut the fuck up? My God… you want to know why people think you cheated and continue to cheat to this day? Look at your baseball card from back when you were a Minnesota Twin, hitting .260 or so with a career high of 20 home runs to, in 2003 when you used those “vitamins”, hitting 30 home runs and having 100 RBI. The very next year was your first 40 home run season. You followed that up with two more, then the drug testing program you “support” kicked in and you haven’t topped 40 home runs since. As for the “prejudice” remark in regards to the Boston writer mentioning your Dominican roots, it’s just reality pal. Look at how many former Dominican players have been busted cheating, including a few of them that were on the same 2003 report you were. It’s not prejudice; it’s more so being a realist.
Before I call it a week, I wanted to take a moment and give a warning to all of you out there planning on a relaxing, care free weekend. Maybe you plan on heading to a lake, pond, or natural setting. Well, I give you this warning: beware of beavers. That's right, a dolphin will rape you, but a beaver will fucking kill you! A man in Belarus was bitten by an angry beaver, severing his femoral artery and causing him to bleed to death before he could get to help. Here is the terrifying video proof that nothing will ruin your weekend quicker than an angry beaver:
That’s all I’ve got for the week, folks. Thanks as always for reading and for any comments you leave on the way out. Have a great weekend, Gabbers.
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“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
When Major League Baseball first made the decision to institute limited instant replay in August 2008, the move was met with a feeling of inevitability. It was an inevitability that a game that always fought progress, would finally succumb to it.
Well, it was also inevitable that the same backward thinking that took it so long for the league to implement the measure would then also impede it from being used properly.
As a game, baseball has long been built around the judgment of the individual, a belief that one person’s naked eye should be the end-all, be-all judge of all. By instituting limited instant replay on home run balls (fair/foul, out of the park or not), the league as a whole caved to the realization that the naked eye is not always to be believed. Bud Selig even admitted as much during his initial press conference on August 26, 2008.
"I believe this is right," Selig. "I think the umpires believe it. I think the players believe it. The evidence [for using it] became overwhelming the more I looked at ballparks. You've got an umpire running out and he's 300-400 feet away, and it became impossible [for him to make the right call]. I'm delighted we're able to make this adjustment.
Yes, here we stand, nearly five seasons after the system has been introduced, and we still rely on the judgment of one person to dictate the outcome of a ballgame?
On Wednesday night, the Oakland Athletics were handed a loss by the Cleveland Indians after they failed to push a tying run over the plate during the 9th inning. However, that should not have been the case, as Adam Rosales hit what appeared to be a game-tying home run with two-outs in the inning. However, the umpire crew called the ball in play rather than a home run and Rosales ended up at second base.
This is the type of situation replay was instituted to resolve. The Athletics protested and the umpires decided to go to the replay, which clearly showed the ball hitting a railing above the yellow line at Progressive Field and bouncing back into play, which would mean the ball was indeed a home run. However, despite both home and away feeds showing that fact and the umpire crew having access to said feeds, crew chief Angel Hernandez ruled the play would stand as ruled on the field.
Obviously, Bob Melvin was incensed and was ejected for continuing to argue the call on the field. The Athletics would load the bases, but would ultimately fail to push that tying run across.
But that fact is not the real kick in the teeth. That came from MLB’s executive vice-president for baseball operations Joe Torre.
In a ruling on Thursday, Torre admitted that “an improper call was made”. However, Torre left the call as is, saying “By rule, the decision to reverse a call by use of instant replay is at the sole discretion of the crew chief. In the opinion of Angel Hernandez, who was last night's crew chief, there was not clear and convincing evidence to overturn the decision on the field. It was a judgment call, and as such, it stands as final.”
Torre is referring to rule 9.02a which states, “Any umpire’s decision which involves judgment, such as, but not limited to, whether a batted ball is fair or foul, whether a pitch is a strike or a ball, or whether a runner is safe or out, is final. No player, manager, coach or substitute shall object to any such judgment decisions.”
However, it begs to ask that if we are making progress toward the correct judgment, should we not also be progressing toward a way to correct improper judgment?
In this case, the Athletics are allowed an appeal to Torre’s office, but based on the way the rule is written – or interpreted, I’m unsure which – that appeal is for naught, as the umpire’s judgment is deemed the final word. They in essence become the judge, jury, and executioner so to speak.
This is not the first example of this, let alone the first time this season. The Tampa Bay Rays were robbed twice by bad calls, once on April 9th when Marty Foster handed Joe Nathan his 300th save on poor strike call and another time on April 4th, when Evan Longoria was ruled to have overrun Ben Zobrist on an RBI single. Unfortunately, you cannot argue balls and strikes, and the umpire refused to ask for help on the April 4th play.
However, the issue at hand is that the appeals system is nearly non-existent. What good does it do to file said appeal if in essence all you are getting to really say is, “I’m really unhappy Joe.”
It is an absolute disgrace to the game that there is no willingness on the part of Major League Baseball to correct a wrong. Instead, they simply say “sorry” and expect that it is fair to both parties to leave things as ruled on the field. With the insertion of replay, we should be making progress against bad judgment calls rather than enabling them to continue unhindered.
Is the long-term legitimacy of the game really worth bolstering up the ego of an individual?
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Hello Gabbers, its been a while since we have chatted last hope everything has been going well for you and the teams that you follow. I found out while I was away that people can be ignorant at best, in how they handle situations and if things keep going the way they are I will be divorced by the end of the summer. But on to the things at hand, I have something sports related issues that I want to get off my chest, I am going to start with a little issue related to baseball that I got into a discussion with a friend of mine at work today.
Craig and I were sitting in the break room eating lunch and shooting the shit about our fantasy teams like we always do, when he brought up J.A. Happ taking one of the side of his head last night, thank God he is alright, a cut and a bruise at best, no concussion. Anyway, Craig brought up instant replay and how he thought it should be used in baseball, and if they had a more broader use of instant replay they could have overruled Jim Joyce's blown call that cost Armando Gallaraga his perfect game and more or less ruin his major league career from that point on. My argument is this: in baseball its used exclusively for home run calls which I understand, because after all you are expecting old men with poor vision to make a judgment call from 200 feet or more away which can be rather difficult at times which is fine with me. I mentioned hockey's use of replay for goal scoring only more or less, the puck travels at 100+ miles per hour for which it can be in and out before the referee and goal judge see it, so I can live with that. What do you guys think?
How many of you Bruins fans are getting a chuckle out of the Ottawa-Montreal series, with the Sen's leading it 3-1 going into Game 5? I know I am, somebody should have told the Penguins and Canadians that the Islanders and Senators were going to show up, and play them tough. What a bunch of dumbasses if they thought those two teams were just going to roll over and let them win. Also who would have thought the Canucks would go down in 4 to the Sharks, wouldn't be surprised to see the coach and a lot of player turn over this summer in Vancouver. Sorry Beeze, the Rangers-Capitals series means nothing to me right now, have not watched enough of that one to form an opinion.
If you can't tell I really could care less about the NBA playoffs, for whatever reason I am not interested what-so-ever. I have watched about 5 minutes of the playoffs because I am more interested in watching the NHL and the Tigers. I know most of all the Astros were glad to see them leave Houston last weekend, getting swept and nearly no-hit by Verlander on Sunday.....
Which NBC dumbass decided to pull the plug on Faith Hill? She was sometimes better than the football game they would show on Sunday night. Oh yes and finally, a little something for the Beeze.....
Finally this one is for Sully, I want to thank him for inviting me to take Old Harry's place this week while he is visiting with his daughter. Hope you have a great time with her Harry as she is home on leave from the Marines. I wish her well, and hope she remains safe as she serves for our country.....
This may even get Old Harry's blood flowing, along with a few others who are from that area. May everyone remain safe, until we meet again.........
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Hello and welcome to another Wednesday of deep thoughts. Tomorrow night I will stand in front of a group of parents for the last time as my son’s high school baseball booster club president. To be honest, the job has been a labor of love. Jim Bouton has a famous quote that goes like this, “you spend part of your life gripping a baseball and in the end it is the other way around.” That is how I feel. I did not play high school baseball. My parents were very uncaring…they took us to the lake and made us swim, fish and ski. Yeah, it was a different time. Baseball was only played in the summer. Instead of organized baseball, we played pickup games, often. My son has a bucket of baseballs that he carries in his trunk. I had one baseball and frequently it was in rough shape. Our field was a field, literally a field with rocks, sticks and flowers. The game we played changed depending on how many players we had. If we only had a few, we would close off left or right field. There were no umpires, we argued until we came to a consensus. It was not fancy, but it was baseball and the grip was established.
Getting their attention is the toughest part...
Working a tournament for a Wrangler fundraiser
After years of coaching my daughters in softball then my son in baseball, it is time to move on. But, there is this tug. It is hard to explain. With the hours invested in the game, I am having second thoughts. There is fantasy baseball, which is great. Of course I love watching MLB…but I miss being Coach Jeff. What Bouton described does not only relate to players. Having a son that plays the game brings an attachment that is difficult to describe. My oldest daughter used to date a baseball player. We would go out to eat and she would get so pissed because we would talk baseball. “Can we talk about anything but baseball?” Players are always looking for answers for a better method to hit a baseball. A different load, a shorter stride…short to the ball, long through the ball. I love the art of hitting a baseball. I totally get Ted Williams. The nuances that Williams marveled at are probably boring to some, but I find them fascinating. Mike Epstein played for Ted Williams and has said that they used to sit and talk about hitting. Where was the best place for the hands? A bit higher than this or perhaps a bit lower? Williams would tell Epstein, if you are going to punch me, where would you start your fist for maximum leverage? There you are, that is exactly where your hands should start. Then Epstein said Williams would say, “hey…I think you are on to something there”. What I would not give to have an hour or two to sit an listen to Ted Williams.
What would be my dream job? Being a MLB hitting coach would be my dream gig. Yeah, that ain’t gonna happen. Instead, I will just continue to follow the game and taking every opportunity to talk baseball. One thing...there are many of us out there. That tug is shared by former players, coaches and fans everywhere, so finding others to discuss the game is not too difficult.
A long weekend tournament. Tired, but happy
There are many great stories in MLB this year, but I happen to really enjoy the story that is the Cleveland Indians. What makes this a cool story for me is that not one baseball expert liked what Cleveland did in the off season. There was something that the Indians did that had me liking their future, hiring Terry Francona. If I was a MLB manager, it would be Francona’s style that I would use. Here is a quote by Francona…” I don’t have any perspective. I live and die with this game. And that'll never change. I like what I'm doing, and it means a lot to me. I'm OK with that.” Cleveland was the perfect place for Francona to land, after the messy end in Boston. Even the most fervent Red Sox fan has to admit that there is much more to being a manager in Boston than baseball. In the softer glare that is Cleveland, Francona is allowed to focus on what he loves. Building relationships and trust with his players is what makes Francona great. It is this ability to create a team that will allow Francona’s Indians to compete this year. Lack of quality starters will force the Indians to frequently need to outscore opponents to win, but that is precisely what they are doing. Winners of 8 of their last 9 games, the Indians have scored at least 6 runs in each game…until Tuesday night. Cleveland took a 1 to 0 victory over Oakland, behind the 5 hit pitching of Zach McAlister. So, even though I figure the Indians are at least a year away from bringing in a couple of arms to make a playoff run…if Jimenez and Masterson become what their potential indicates, maybe they could surprise this year. The Indians are a great story and it could not happen to a nicer guy than Francona.
Francona building a relationship...the difference between Francona and many other managers is that he truly cares about his players.
That’s all I have today, but I will leave you a bit of Jack Handey:
I think someone should have had the decency to tell me the luncheon was free. To make someone run out with potato salad in his hand, pretending he's throwing up, is not what I call hospitality.
If you go parachuting, and your parachute doesn't open, and you friends are all watching you fall, I think a funny gag would be to pretend you were swimming.
Thanks for stopping by and feel free to leave a few deep thoughts of your own.
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