Fire from the Hip: Thoughts on Sports & Real Life

Settling in for another quiet day at work this morning, I made my routine visit to my fantasy league home pages, the Cleveland sports pages, CNNSI, and ESPN. What I came across on one of the league messageboards irked me tremendously. A person in our league posted these comments about Bill Belichick: "Who the hell knows if he's a good coach? We know that he's a good coach when he cheats. But what about when he has to play by the same rules as everybody else?"

As a Browns' fan, my feelings for Belichick are predictably hostile. Surrounded by Patriots' fans when I was in college, I ripped Belichick whenever possible for his horrendous coaching job in Cleveland. With enough talent that SI predicted the Browns would win the conference, Cleveland's teams consistently under-achieved in Belichik's five seasons to the tune of a 36-44 record. "Spygate" has left me with mixed feelings when talking about Belichick's legacy and the Patriots' legacy under his tutelage.

I think his reputation has been tarnished in a more permanent way than many people realize. He has jeopardized his Hall of Fame candidacy due to the fact that "guardians of the Hall of Fame" (bombastic sportswriters) will now debate how much influence "ethics" should have as a category for HoF candidates. The voters didn't seem to have a problem voting for Lawrence Taylor and Michael Irvin, who were well-known for their off-the-field activities. It will be intriguing to see if the voters zero in on this incident, especially coming from a guy like Belichick who isn't known for his media-savvy.

Despite his transgressions, Bill Belichick has become one of the best Head Coaches of the modern-era. Since taking over in New England, he has done a fantastic job, hiring capable assistants and delegating responsibility to them. Coaches that got their start under Belichick include: Nick Saban, Charlie Weis, Romeo Crennel, Eric Mangini, Kirk Ferentz, and Al Groh. His speciality has always been defense. Even in Cleveland. The team had the 7th best D in 1994, and were number one in points allowed per game at 12.8. To put that in perspective, only the Ravens (12.8) and the Bears 12.4 have managed such a number in the last three seasons. The biggest mistake he made in Cleveland was trying to be the Offensive Coordinator.

Now, that I've gotten that off my chest, I offer my thoughts from yesterday's slate of games.

1. Right back to the Patriots...the only person doing a better job than Belichick in New England is Scott Pioli, VP of Player Personnel. The guy has accumulated countless picks in trades the past few seasons and netted Randy Moss, a guy who is going to rewrite the Patriots' receiving record book, for a fourth round pick!

2. The Patriots are one of the most complete teams that I've ever watched. Think hard about the best teams in the league the last five or ten seasons? I can't think of a better team. Granted, it's only been three weeks but I think we may be watching one of the most dominant teams of the modern era.

3. As disappointing as the Chargers have been, I am disgusted by the play of the St. Louis Rams. Their offense was horrible yesterday. The only thing worse was the defense. The Rams are allowing 150 plus yards a game on the ground, good enough for 28th in the NFL. I am just shocked by their start.

4. My friend remarked to me yesterday as we glanced over at the Packers/Chargers game, "Look at Tomlinson, doesn't he look angry at life right now?" CNN/SI's Don Banks thinks Larry Johnson is going to blow his top soon but L.T. may not be too far behind. For a competitor like Tomlinson to be not producing and losing, it's only a matter of time before he erupts.

5. Of all the victories for teams who were 0-2 yesterday, no victory surprised me more than the Giants in Washington. Down 17-3 and the season hanging in the balance, they found a way to score 21 unanswered points, stealing a victory from the Redskins at home.

6. Last week, I declared the Jaguars as the team most likely to frustrate people by winning games unexpectedly and losing games in much the same fashion. Seems right on, but perhaps, let's throw the Giants into that group too.

7. That might be all she wrote for lil' Rexy Grossman in Chicago.

8. The Texans are a legitimate team this year and beyond. That's good news for Houston fans who deserve a competitive team after years of ineptitude.

9. The formula for beating the Ravens is so simple. It's a real tribute to the Ravens coaching staff that rarely are teams neither able to completely stop the Ravens one-dimensional offense nor exploit their susceptible secondary.

10. Did anybody else notice the ridiculous white Fu Manchu mustache of Browns Punter Scott Player? In a word: AWESOME!

Labels: Bill Belichick, National Football League, New England Patriots, NFL Week 3, Scott Player