The NFL continues to mystify those of sound mind and body. The scandal over the deflated footballs used by the New England Patriots gets even more bizarre.
Last week, Commissioner Roger Goodell (through Senior Vice President Troy Vincent) leveled a four-game suspension on Patriot Quarterback Tom Brady, not to mention a $1 million fine to the team and the loss of future draft picks. On the surface, it almost sounded like the NFL was finding its way when it came to a path to credibility. I spoke too soon.
Since then, the players association has gotten involved, along with the threat of legal action by Brady and the Patriots. It gets better, as Brady filed an appeal with the league on his suspension. It will be heard by no other than (you guessed it) Goodell, the commissioner. Strange and yet true, as this is how the NFL rolls. The players association is planning on calling Goodell as a witness. And they say there are too many lawyers in the world.
Did I mention that owner Robert Kraft is debating on whether he should jump the reservation of owners and take this thing to court, which is frowned upon by the owners?
With all the woes of the NFL, one wonders how this league can find its way these days, and yet they have ratings higher than most hockey games on TV when they show the draft. While each league tries to stay in the news for a variety of reasons, the insanity that is being displayed by the NFL, its leadership and owners these days is beyond sad. Normally, their media stooges would be trying to cover their players in their off-season transgressions. Have not heard much about that lately. Let’s all knock on wood and hope they can stay straight.
On the local front, the NFL cannot get out of its own way either. Just because it’s the NFL is no longer a reason to support the Rams, as their leadership has failed miserably in so many ways. Buy a ticket? Why?, Oh yes, It’s the NFL. No sale here.
I think the Rams should be treated like they have treated St. Louis. Instead of year to year, try week to week when it comes to buying tickets. The players and coaches are the only reason why I would even suggest that. There are people at Rams Park who do not deserve to put in the middle of this mess, but those who are in control should be held accountable for their actions. They call it a business, so it should be treated like that on both sides of this fence.
If there will be football in St. Louis in the future, it will have to be by a different ownership group as this one has played its last hand. Whoever owns the next team should take a good, hard look at what not to do, as the Rams have set the template that should be remembered by all fans of what you don’t want in an ownership group.
Then there were four
The conference finals for the NBA are underway this week and, my, have the faces changed. No Kobe, D-Wade, Durant, Bosh or any of the other faves from the past. I guess for the annual front runners who flock to say their team is the team now, you might want to familiarize yourself with the players that are not named LeBron. Say hello to Curry and Thompson, LeBron and Kyrie, Horford and Carroll, and Harden.
When you look at the teams, the one that stands out is the Houston Rockets. They have James Harden, a scorer who plays for himself most nights, and Dwight “coach killer” Howard. They were left for dead in the last round, until they realized who they were playing: The Clippers. Yes, those Los Angeles Clippers who have found a way to remain the crowned princes of the NBA no matter who is coaching them or who wears the uniform. It was a bad collection of players to start with, and Coach “Doc” Rivers had only so many speeches and not enough depth on his bench to beat anyone after the second round.
As for the Golden State Warriors, what don’t you like about them? They can score with anyone and play defense to back it up. Maybe one jump shot too many at times, but they play more as a team than the Rockets and they are more fundamentally sound. Houston has Harden and Howard, but the key is Trevor Ariza. He is good on both ends of the floor, a winner with the Lakers and is a clutch player who can make a free throw.
In all, it should be a great series. I like the Warriors.
The other side features LeBron against the Atlanta Hawks. Seldom have we seen a coach like Cleveland’s David Blatt have so little to do with the outcome other than make sure he does what LeBron says. Kyrie Irving is really good when healthy, so the Cavs have their work cut out for them. The Atlanta Hawks went wire to wire during the regular season and have been solid in the post-season so far. Damare Carroll is one of the few players who give LeBron a problem defensively, so let’s see if King James has to remind the referees that he is on the throne and they should acquiesce accordingly.
I love the fact that new faces are here and some may be here for a while.
New coach at Ritter
It was not long ago that Cardinal Ritter made a change in their coaching staff in parting ways with Hall of Famer Marvin Neals. The manner in which they handled it was not ideal, if not classless. Now there is a new coach on the scene, and he is Randy Reid.
Reid was a high school standout at Vashon and in college at Kansas State. An overseas pro career is also on his resume as well as stellar high school coaching career in St. Louis. Coach Reid is coming from St. Louis Community College at Forest Park. He will do well at Ritter. He will keep the tradition alive and well at Cardinal Ritter.
As for the vacancy at Forest Park, there are lots of names that have been tossed around. Floyd Irons is, not was, a good basketball coach. Yes, he had a legal issue that has been well documented, so there is no reason to go back in time now. With that said, if there is a person who has the people skills as a mentor, coach – and a man with some hard experiences to convey to prevent others from going down that path – it may be Irons.
It would also give him a chance to assemble a team of players that could compete on a national level, as well as develop some young coaches who can pursue a coaching career with a vast amount of experience. Irons could intertwine the program and its players in the community, where the next generation will have something and someone to look to for the right reasons.
Enough time has passed; it’s time to move on. Too many good ones are on the sidelines now in Neals and Irons. Fierce competitors as coaches when they faced each other, but I could not think of two others I would rather have leading the way. Too much knowledge is being wasted with them on the sidelines.
