Glenn Frey was the engine that propelled the Eagles. Along with Don Henley the pair helped to create a sound that has stood the test of time and in many cases the songs have become anthems for a generation. As we mourn his death stemming from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia, today we pay homage to his legacy.
YOU CAN’T HIDE YOUR LYIN’ EYES
Roger Goodell would suck at poker. He is as obvious as a Pamela Anderson dress – as disingenuous as they come; yet he keeps his $35M per year job in the ivory tower of 345 Park Avenue. Why? Because he helps to keep the wallets of NFL owners overflowing with dead presidents.
Perhaps you are old enough to remember how hesitant the league was to move franchises back in a day. There was a time when the owners had empathy for communities and moving a franchise was akin to a Catholic cursing the Pope.
Not any more!
If it adds to the league’s bottom line, “Do it!” No holds barred.
And so they have done it to St. Louis, a city that worked hard to put together a new and worthy package to keep the Rams, only to have their proposal summarily dismissed and filed away as a lucrative Plan B in the event another team might consider moving, assuming of course it makes fiscal sense to Goodell and his 32 bosses.
The NFL grows dirtier by the day and at some point fans will reach their breaking point if Goodell keeps pushing the pedal of greed. And for now, he does so with a smile, poker face or no poker face.
ALREADY GONE
Congrats to Morgan Cox on his nomination to the 2016 Pro Bowl team by Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid. Cox, arguably the least recognizable Raven because he does his job well (think about it), is off to Honolulu and the timing couldn’t be better for the team’s long snapper – and potentially it couldn’t be worse for the Ravens.
Cox is an unrestricted free agent and he will more than likely want to cash in. And therein lies the rub. The Ravens typically keep long snappers until they become too expensive and given the Ravens salary cap issues, the team’s Wolfpack just might be getting a new member in 2016.
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE
When the Pittsburgh Steelers visited Denver during the Divisional weekend they were without Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell. Stepping up in the absence of Brown were Martavis Bryant, Markus Wheaton, Sammie Coates and Darrius Heyward-Bey. Suffice it to say that the Steelers are loaded with speed and the Ravens, if they want to aim for the AFC North title in 2016, will have to compete in the fast lane.
PEACEFUL EASY FEELING
The first thing you hear after the name Ted Marchibroda is mentioned is, “what a great guy”, or some peaceful, easy description close to it. But that nice guy persona didn’t always translate to the practice field.
Ted is known for his two-a-days in pads during blistering training camp days of August and those practices, compared to the more player friendly scrimmaging conducted by Brian Billick, at least in part must have inspired columnist Mike Preston’s coinage of the term “Camp Creampuff”.
Marchibroda had a great offensive mind and was an innovator, a skill that is often dismissed by Baltimore football fans. For them, the memory that resonates is his conservatism with play calling after Bert Jones led offenses took the lead in games.
But let’s not forget that Ted was a driving force behind one of the more innovative offensive approaches during the NFL’s modern era – the “K-Gun” operated by Hall of Famer Jim Kelly who helped guide the Buffalo Bills to four straight Super Bowls.
IT’S ANOTHER TEQUILA SUNRISE
Today’s NFL is ripe with specialists and the Ravens have a few of the best in the aforementioned Morgan Cox along with Sam Koch and Justin Tucker – all Pro Bowlers at one time.
But as talented as Tucker is in life and on the football field, could you imagine him playing another position? Like say defensive tackle? Well that is exactly what former Baltimore Colts kicker Lou Michaels did during the 60’s at Memorial Stadium.
“I loved playing defense,” he told The Sun in 2009. “When I missed a field goal, I wanted to rush the passer harder to make up for it.”
Had Billy Cundiff adopted a similar approach he could have morphed into Lawrence Taylor following the 2012 (2011 Season) AFC Championship Game. But I digress…
Michaels, who recently passed at the age of 80 was known to enjoy the night life and as reported by The Sun, once after frolicking on The Block while breaking the Colts’ curfew, ran his car into a lamp post at 3 in the morning.
Soon thereafter the headlines read: “Colt Kicker’s Car Hits Upright”.
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