Good morning, all! It’s hump day!
Two years ago, Robert Saleh and Brian Daboll were rivals on the biggest stage. Now they are on the same side. I break it down in the above video.
Here are some other thoughts, as the football Hall of Fame becomes a laughingstock:
So the story broke by ESPN on Tuesday, that Bill Belichick, the greatest football coach in the modern era, would not be elected to the pro football Hall of Fame on the first ballot, that he would have to wait at least another year to gain entry. Belichick, who coached the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl championships and was one of five finalists up for election for the Hall of Fame’s class of 2026, failed to gain the necessary 40 votes for entry by the 50-person committee. Social media erupted in protest. As well it should. In my book, the Hall of Fame committee is a joke, taking out any personal animus it might have toward Belichick by denying him the ultimate honor- first ballot entry. Someday Belichick will be elected, and when that someday comes, I know what I would do if I was him, take that Hall of Fame plaque and shove it!
Here are the Belichick numbers, for those keeping score at home: Six Super Bowl titles as head coach, plus two SB wins as assistant coach, 12 SB appearances overall (A record), second all-time NFL wins (333), 31 playoff wins (A record), 17 divisional titles (A record).
An unidentified Hall of Fame voter told ESPN the cheating scandals of which Belichick may have been a part (He was fined $500,000 for Spygate), cost him first ballot entry. Bullspit! Either he is in or not. You’re going to tell me, if he gets voted in next year Spygate no longer counts? Does this mean Tom Brady is denied first ballot entry, when he becomes eligible? Repeat. If I was Belichick, who was never suspended over Spygate, as Sean Payton was for BountyGate, when he was coach of the New Orleans Saints, I would tell the pro football Hall of Fame voters to stick it.
Apparently, that 3rd-and-5 naked boot leg run by Patriots QB Drake Maye to keep the ball out of Denver’s hands for good and seal the AFC title on Sunday was a surprise even to the Patriots. An unidentified Patriots coach told Ben Volin of the Boston Globe only Maye and OC Josh McDaniels knew about the play so as to create the ultimate surprise, even to the offensive line. The fear was the line would tip-off the play, if they knew something was up. Whatever works, I guess.
Tuesday was certainly the day for ex-New York Giants head coaches. On the same day Brian Daboll was hired by Tennessee, Mike Kafka joined the staff of the Detroit Lions.
Meanwhile, in Buffalo, people are scratching their heads over the hiring of OC Joe Brady as the Bills next coach. The Bills mafia is trying to figure out what ownership meant by change, dismissing the fiery Sean McDermott for someone who was on his staff, the bland Brady. Maybe that is the change.
In Denver, the Broncos, who made some questionable calls in the 10-7 loss to the Patriots, put the blame on OC Joe Lombardi, rather than head coach Sean Payton. Lombardi was given the pink slip on Tuesday. Was it his fault the Broncos passed up an easy field goal attempt that would have given them a 10-0 lead over the Pats and instead went for it on fourth down with a backup QB? In the NFL, the buck doesn’t always stop with the head coach.
That is going to do it for today’s newsletter. As always, thank you for subscribing and have a wonderful Wednesday!
DAN
