1. ABOUT THE PETITION, HERE’S A VIEW FROM A PSL HOLDER: This came via e-mail Sunday from a longtime Rams fan, AW: “I would have preferred the Rams players sign their petition of endorsement for Jim Haslett on the field for the past 10 games. Now, THAT would have been a great recommendation for the job. A petition in the locker room? That is the kind of ‘freedom of choice’ that unions now want with card check legislation. How do you NOT sign? Anyway, I would be more impressed if all of the free agents around the league that will replace our current roster were to sign the petition – not the bunch of losers who have been using up my PSL investment.”
OK, here’s the Bernie take on this: the fact that Rams players want Haslett back is one of the reasons why owner Chip Rosenbloom should be skeptical about the idea of bringing Haslett back. Unless I missed it, the Rams were 5-27 over the last two seasons with most of these players — so how exactly did they earn the privilege of recommending coaching hires? Why would the GM and owner listen to them? It’s like letting those Wall Street sharks write the new rules that give them the same freedom to get away with their conniving ways. It’s laughable. If Chip and GM Billy Devaney want to retain Haslett, then they should do so for other reasons.
2. A FEW GOOD REASONS WHY THERE’S HOPE FOR THE 2009 RAMS: This year’s postseason field features seven teams that didn’t make the playoffs last season… that includes Miami, 1-15 in 2007. And Baltimore, 3-13 in ‘07. And Atlanta, 4-12 in ‘07…. and the NFC West is basically mush. There’s an opening for immediate upward movement for a team that has a smart, aggressive offseason…. and then there’s Steven Jackson. The Rams RB can be a tremendous talent, and his performance against ATL was exhilirating. As I wrote in a column about a month ago, this is a much different (and better) team when No. 39 is healthy and attacking defenses. But is this the latest tease? Can the Rams ever count on Jackson operating at full throttle over 16 games? The short-term future of the franchise depends on it.
3. OUR NATIONAL NIGHTMARE BEGINS ANEW: Here we go again, and may God help us all. Will Brett Favre retire? Will he play on? Will he retire and then change his mind? Will he retire, come back, and retire again — all in the span of a month? ESPN is standing by with 24/7 coverage of this crisis — whether we want it or not.
And in a related note… Miami’s Chad Pennington – dumped by the Jets to make room for Favre — has made a compelling case for the MVP award. He finishes the regular season with a 97.4 QB rating. In the last five games, when the Jets desperately needed to win them all — he completed 71 percent of his passes for 8 TDs and one INT for a QB rating of 107. In terms of payback, it’s tough to top what Pennington did against his old Jets team on Sunday.
4. NFL FRAUD ALERT: (A) Denver coach Mike Shanahan was 54-18 (inc. postseason) with John Elway as his QB. That’s a winning percentage of .750. Since Elway retired, Shanahan’s winning percentage is .557, including a 1-4 record in the playoffs, and the Broncos are 17-22 in their last 39 games. And they just staggered to one of the worst late-season chokes in NFL history, failing to make the playoffs after holding a three-game lead through Week 14. (B) Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden. Since winning the Super Bowl with Tony Dungy’s players in 2002, Gruden is 45-53. (C) Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Since the start of the 1997 season, the Cowboys are 95-102, and that includes an 0-5 mark in the playoffs. If Jones has built such an elite franchise, please explain why he’s won fewer games than the Rams (who are 98-104) since the start of the 1997 season? Please explain why the laughingstock Rams have won six postseason games to the Cowboys’ ZERO since the beginning of the 1997 season?
5. AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, I’M ONE OF THOSE CRAZED, INSUFFERABLE SPRINGSTEEN FANS: But something about Bruce and the E Street Band performing at halftime of the upcoming Super Bowl doesn’t sit right. I don’t like it, and I can’t even explain why. Other Boss fans have told me I’m being silly and that I should lighten up. Maybe so. But I can’t embrace it. I’d rather that the Boss stick to what got him this far — say, by playing a 3 hour 15 minute show at an arena in Tampa the night before the Super Bowl
30-SECOND BONUS: Mizzou 37, Northwestern 27 in the Alamo Bowl. That’s assuming that the MU coaches make at least one halftime adjustment.
As always, your comments and dissenting opinions are welcome…
-Bernie