Did I mention that Owner Jones confounds me? He allowed the man everybody, including myself, believed to be his No. 1 candidate for the Cowboys coaching vacancy, Norv Turner, to hop back on a plane for San Fran without a contract or an offer.
What are the chances that the Cowboys owner has somebody else in mind? Probably not good. Norv remains the front-runner until further notice, mainly because he has an inside track with Owner Jones.
"It helps me a great deal, from a comfort level, certainly knowing what Jerry is looking for," Turner said after his interview Sunday. "From his standpoint, there is not that period of time trying to get used to someone or figure someone out." What he needs, if he has any chance of being successful with the Cowboys, is for Owner Jones to have learned a little and changed a little in his time with Coach Parcells.
The Cowboys and their new coach need the owner to be just a little less hands-on -- on draft day, in coaching staff selection, in football matters. And, while I try to figure out if I need to read anything into Turner's return trip, let's dive into this week's edition of The Hate Index. 1.
Gary Bettman is an idiot. No, seriously. He has zero idea how to sell the NHL in this post-lockout world, as evidenced by Stars-Penguins on Friday.
It was an amazingly fun game. The building was packed. The game was really exciting.
It was probably the most "into a game" I have seen a crowd since the glory days. There were young kids throughout the arena. Owner Tom Hicks was on site.
Overtime consisted of many quality chances. When the game ended in a shootout, everybody was standing. Sid "The Kid" Crosby was in the building.
He sold the tickets. He produced the buzz. And thanks to the genius of Bettman, he will not be back for a long, long time.
What is crazy is, just days ago, Bettman and his friendly neighborhood general managers decided to stay with an unbalanced schedule, which basically guarantees that The Kid does not hit every arena every season. Typical Bettman. 1a.
Like Hillary Clinton and Newt Gingrich, I am assembling an exploratory committee. 2. Mark my words: Nine out of 10 reunion tours stink.
For every Eagles reunion tour, there are at least nine Def Leopards, Led Zepplins and Van Halens. They get the band back together. They play the old songs.
And, almost without fail, it is never quite as good as you remember. Are you listening, Turner supporters? A big reason so many like the idea of Turner is, he reminds them of the '90s, of winning, of the good old days.
What everybody fails to realize is, this is like a Beatles reunion tour without John Lennon. Without him, it is just not going to be the same. 3.
All of this squawking about the Cowboys skirting the Rooney rule is silly. There are two African-American coaches in the Super Bowl. Results speak for themselves.
Any team stupid enough to need the NFL to force them to consider minority candidates in their search does not deserve the hint. Now, if the NFL execs are anything more than pile of hypocrites, and I am not so sure they are not, they would apply the Rooney rule, that a minority needs to be interviewed for every opening, to front-office jobs and jobs with the league. 4.
If Tiger Woods and Roger Federer were to play for a championship in air hockey or foosball, or really any sport besides golf and tennis, who wins? Sunday was another reminder of just how dominant these two have become in their respective sports. The only difference is, "all Tiger all the time" seems to be drawing more fans, while Roger domination has turned dude tennis into a yawner.
5. T.Faux has a party planned in Miami, which very likely will be as close as he gets to a Super Bowl with the Cowboys.
Things have a way of changing quickly at Valley Ranch, especially with a coach yet to be determined or hired. Yet, I am hearing a persistent buzz from Valley Ranch that Owner Jones has decided to say goodbye to everybody's favorite receiver. Of course, we have to wait until June -- when T.
Faux's $3 million roster bonus is due. Count me in on the Super Bowl. Please, however, feel free to conduct Super Bowl-week without me.
The parties. The celeb sightings. The endless stories about Peyton Manning and his legacy, Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith being black and any player on any team who has overcome so much as a hangnail absolutely bore me.
So wake me on Sunday, so I may enjoy plenty of pre-game hype and a Super Bowl party. 6a. Mark me down for Colts 27, Bears 20.
7. I am also an idiot. His which appeared in Sunday's paper, had me actually thinking that this edition of the team has a chance to contend.
Of course, I thought this last season, based on Phil Nevin and Adam Eaton. All ended in failure, at least in Texas, thus leading to another manager and another plan and another crap shoot in free agency. Will this year be different?
I am inclined to think, maybe. Of course, I realize this makes me an idiot. 8.
Why is technology so amazingly difficult, or "Why I am an idiot, Part II"? It is true. Mr.
Hate bought me Nike's latest gadget for runners, something called Nike ID that includes shoes and a chip and, when paired with an iPod Nano, is supposed to be in sync with your stride or something to that effect. 9. Dirk Nowitzki believes his boring style is why he won't be a starter in the All-Star Game.
And he's cool with it. His vanilla personality and 20-foot-jumper game certainly do not generate many fan votes. And, while he sounded all right with his less-than-flashy reputation, the NBA would be wise to reward his game, his consistency, his professionalism and, yes, him.
Great is great. Even if it doesn't include windmill jams, mad hops or a rap album. 10.
Your turn: Who is geeked about the thought of Norv Turner coaching the Cowboys? And why? Jennifer Floyd Engel can be heard weekdays from 9 a.
m. to noon on The Little Ball of Hate Show on ESPN/103.3 FM.
News RSS