13
Sep
2011
Cowboys Fan Uses Taser During Brawl at Jets-Cowboys Game (VIDEO)
We’ve generally avoided covering the hot new trend of in-stadium fighting at sporting events, but things seem to be reaching new heights this year, as this latest incident clearly demonstrates. Let’s just say we won’t be taking our kids to any NFL games any time soon.
59-year-old Leroy McKelvey was arrested on Sunday and charged with three counts of aggravated assault and two weapons counts after using an illegal taser on other fans during the Jets-Cowboys game at MetLife Stadium. Apparently McKelvy – a die hard Cowboys fan from South Carolina – and three friends refused to stand and were talking loudly during the pre-game 9/11 ceremonies, which offended a US Marine sitting nearby, and ultimately led to a halftime scuffle. At that point, McKelvey unleashed the taser (which are illegal in New Jersey) he had snuck into the stadium past security. Three people were hit with the stun gun, but all refused treatment at the scene.
From the Cliffview Pilot:
“A Marine at the end of the row noticed that McKelvey and three others in his party would not stand or take their hats off for the national anthem,” a law enforcement officer told CLIFFVIEW PILOT. “So the Marine tells McKelvey he better not have to get out of the row cause he won’t let him out.”
Sure enough, during the halftime show, McKelvey got up. Words were exhanged.
Keep in mind that this happened on the tenth anniversary of 9/11 … in metro New York. In the grainy cell phone video of the tail-end of the incident (above), you can clearly hear the taser being used, and you can also hear fans wondering aloud, “How did he get in there with that thing? On 9/11? How the f**k did that happen?”.
12
Sep
2011
Sunday’s biggest losers
Sunday confirmed Indy's worst fears. (Source: NBCSports.com)
Week 1 in the NFL is a lock to produce its share of over-the-top, knee-jerk reactions. Half the league’s fan base wakes up Monday morning feeling great about themselves — and life. The other half are looking around the house for sharp objects. The meaningless preseason has given way to real games, and losses can’t be shrugged off — for some teams, Sunday was a reality check. Here’s a look at yesterday’s biggest losers:
5t. Cleveland (27-17 to Cincinnati): Extremely disappointing for the Browns. Cleveland has won only ONE opener since 1999, despite hosting every one of those games. With their new pass-oriented attack run by Colt McCoy, the Browns looked poised to take a step up in the AFC North — instead, they’re 0-1 after dropping a stinker to Cincy, who many considered worst team in football.
5t. New York Giants (28-14 to Washington): Every other team in this division gets massive media hype, but Washington could end up surprising. They’re immediately dismissed because Rex Grossman‘s at quarterback, but the Shanahans love this kid, and he performed yesterday. For the (heavily banged-up) Giants, a loss that raises more questions about Eli Manning, but not earth-shattering. They played even in the first half and, more importantly, this is a team that does not give up.
4. Kansas City (41-7 to Buffalo): A nightmare opener for the Chiefs, who were as lifeless as they appeared during a tumultuous preseason. Last year’s 10-6 team looked hundreds of miles away.
3. Dallas (27-24 to New York Jets): The Cowboys ended this one in embarrassing fashion, but it was the loss of their starting three corners for most of the second half that allowed Mark Sanchez to find his receivers (including the tedious Plaxico Burress) and climb back in. It’s a bitter defeat for Dallas, but they looked fantastic defensively early on, and there’s reason for hope here. Jason Garrett is putting together a team that could (or should, at least) defeat anyone else on this list.
2. Pittsburgh (35-7 to Baltimore): Are the Steelers in trouble? Not yet. The team has climbed out of bigger holes than this. The team is aging, yes, but they are among the best-coached squads in the game. The Ravens wanted this one more — and it showed.
1. Indianapolis (34-7 to Houston): Nobody picked Indy to go anywhere without Peyton Manning, but Sunday’s trainwreck was clear confirmation that the Colts are in jeopardy without their all-everything quarterback. Granted, it’s going to take Kerry Collins time to learn the offense, but there was very little, if anything, to be hopeful about in this one.
11
Sep
2011
Tony Romo Fumbles Away Game vs Jets (VIDEO)
(Photo: Louis DeLuca/Dallas Morning News)
The Tony Romo we’ve come to know and love finally showed up in the 4th quarter of tonight’s Jets-Cowboys tilt at the newly-christened MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford.
After an impressive three quarters of football, Romo and the Cowboys led New York 24-17 with 9:12 remaining in the game, and 3rd & goal from the 2-yard line. With a chance to seal the win with a touchdown (or at least a field goal), Romo took the snap from shotgun, looked right, then left, then straight downfield before tucking the ball and deciding to run for it. See if you can guess what happens next:
The Jets later tied the game on a blocked punt & return for a score, and Romo – who finished 23-of-36 for 342 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT – had a chance at a game-winning drive with under a minute to play. But Romo’s first pass attempt was an awful one, getting picked off by Darrelle Revis, which set up Jets kicker Nick Folk to be the hero, drilling a 50-yard field goal with :27 to go.
16
Aug
2011
Separated at Birth: Rob Ryan and The Dude?
Image via Reddit.com/r/NFL
This one comes to us from Reddit, where at least one astute user noticed the increasing physical resemblance between Cowboys Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan and the hero of the greatest film of all time, The Big Lebowski - The Dude, as portrayed by Jeff Bridges. The picture pretty much speaks for itself, but if you needed any more reasons to love the Ryan brothers, here you go.
13
Mar
2011
TheDarkHorse’s 2011 Mock Draft – Picks 6-10
Colt McCoy needs a dance partner. A.J. Green will do. (Source: BCSknowhow.com)
For picks 1 through 5, go here.
Let’s continue with picks 6 through 10.
6. Cleveland Browns – A.J. Green, WR, Georgia: Cleveland’s in a terrible spot. They’re moving to the 4-3, but have nothing along the defensive line. They have a promising young quarterback in Colt McCoy — and they’re moving to the West Coast Offense — but he’s got almost nobody to throw to. They just cut NT Shaun Rogers along with a flock of grizzled defensive veterans — a fiscally sound move, but one that’s left Browns fans wondering who will take the field next season. Changing offensive and defensive philosophies during a lockout-hampered offseason in which coaches cannot communicate with players is tougher. The free-agency window possibly opening for mere weeks, if at all, is tougher. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh and Baltimore have stayed the course. This draft is critical for the Browns, forced to address needs all over the place. Pat Shurmur was brought in to groom McCoy and flip the switch on offense — and Green is the kind of sizzling wideout the team’s been missing since Braylon Edwards broke free in 2007 — and before that, since Webster Slaughter. Still, many could question the Browns passing up one of the blue-chip defensive linemen — but how do you meet two needs at once?
7. San Francisco 49ers – Da’Quan Bowers, DE, Clemson: This is a tough one for me. In a mock with trades, I see Jim Harbaugh and the 49ers pressing for a quarterback, or possibly even trading down into a spot where they can gather picks and select Florida’s Christian Ponder late in the first. Honestly, how many more coaches can call Alex Smith their starter? That experiment needs to cease. With Cam Newton and Blaine Gabbert off the board, the 49ers select Bowers, a defensive end who comes with question marks around the health of his knee, but, if ruled healthy, could serve as defensive stronghold while Harbaugh seeks a quarterback elsewhere. Moroever, there are some promising young passers to be had later in the draft, such as Washngton’s Jake Locker and Nevada’s Colin Kaepernick – not to mention the polarizing Ryan Mallett out of Arkansas.
Picks 8-10 after the jump.
20
Jan
2011
Holy crap! At age 48, Herschel Walker looks like this (PIC)
In case you’ve been asking yourself, “hey, what’s Herschel Walker up to these days?”, wonder no more.
The former Georgia, USFL & NFL great has been training for his second professional MMA fight, which is set to take place on January 29th against Scott Carson. And if there was any question as to whether or not Walker was taking his training seriously, this picture of the 48-year-old Walker at the gym yesterday should silence the doubters:
No, that's not Herschel on the right (Photo via SBnation.com)
Jebus. I don’t envy this Carson guy for having to go into the cage against that. The former Heisman trophy winner has long been infamous for his insane workout regimens, which have obviously translated over to his new career. I mean, just look at the guy, and then remind yourself that he’s FORTY-EIGHT YEARS OLD!
2
Jan
2011
Why Jason Garrett Will Coach the Cowboys Next Season
(Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images North America)
Every generation has a team that seems to have the talent to be elite but, when it comes getting time, time to deliver, for whatever reason, that team isn’t what anyone thought it was. Warren Moon’s Houston Oilers. Randall Cunningham’s Minnesota Vikings. Joe Montana’s Kansas City Chiefs. Donovan McNabb’s Philadelphia Eagles. For these teams (and others I am forgetting), it seems that every year great expectations gave way to epic disappointments. For Warren Moon it was the Comeback, in which his Oilers surrendered 35 unanswered points in the second half to the Buffalo Bills (playing with their back-up QB, Frank Reich) to lose 38-35 in the playoffs. For the Vikings it was going 15-1 in 1998 only to lose to a not-very-good Atlanta Falcons team, and then to spend years pissing away wads of talent. At least the Eagles made the Super Bowl. But, the only thing I remember about that game is hearing after that McNabb was out of shape, dry heaving on the field.
Tony Romo’s Dallas Cowboys are undeniably that team for this generation. Every year, it seems, this team finds new ways to embarrass itself. Hype, with these guys, has been badly out-paced by reality as this team has repeatedly dry heaved on the field when it mattered. And, at this point, no one can know for sure if its that they lack heart (see December collapses, culminating with 2008 last game of regular season in Philadelphia with a playoff spot on the line), discipline (see penalties), talent (see terrible defense all season long and poor offensive line play), or any combination of the three.
Earlier today, ESPN reported that the Cowboys were ready to name Jason Garrett the team’s permanent head coach. This evening, however, Jones denied those reports, claiming that he had not yet made up his mind. While it is possible that Jones is being sincere, with Jones “sincerity” is more art than science. He often speaks in hyperbole and has a love-affair with making a “splash” in the off-season. What better way to keep the 6-10 Cowboys in the headlines for a few days than to kick around some marquee coaching names while Garrett hangs in limbo?
Mixed reports aside, though, Jones ultimately will make Garrett the next head coach. Why? Four reasons:
- Because Jones– who “buys the groceries” for this team– doesn’t think that the problem is talent. Simply put, Jones thinks this team has the talent to contend. He likely understands that he needs to fiddle (good-bye Marc Colombo, Roy Williams, and Marion Barber) but wholesale changes are not in the cards. Jones has to think this team has the talent: he has dumped long-term megabucks into a laundry list of players on this roster. Romo. Ware. Austin. Witten. Newman. Fat contracts all along the offensive line. He also is positively giddy over some of the young players on this team. Dez Bryant. Felix Jones. Sean Lee. There is no way that Jones brings in someone with the balls to say: “Jerry, I know you paid these guys a ton of money, and I know you love so-and-so, but these guys just aren’t that good.” Holmgren might do that. Gruden might do that. Jason Garrett won’t. He just won’t– too inexperienced, and too much involvement with picking these guys to disown them. Jones knows that Garrett will be all in with the core they already have on the roster.
- Because Jones Doesn’t Want Garrett to be His Next Sean Payton. Sean Payton was the heir apparent who got away when Bill Parcells overstayed his welcome. Jones liked everything about Payton- who is Jason Garrett (bright offensive mind) with some Parcellsian moxie (balls) built in. Payton is undeniably a great head coach . . . and he was right under Jones’ nose. Nothing would embarrass Jones more than having Garrett come in, earn monster paychecks as an assistant, get some experience in a lost season as the interim coach of the Cowboys, and then coach the Raiders (or some other team) to the Super Bowl. Call it the: how could Jones let Payton and Garrett get away factor. (This is not to say that Garrett is the next Payton. It is to say that Jones doesn’t want to find that out watching him coach someone else to the promise land.)
- Because Jones Has Already Told Us Garrett Will Be the Next Coach. If you listen carefully to what Jones has said about Garrett, he has told us that he thinks Garrett is the right man for the job. Jones has said that what he likes about Garrett is that he is organized and a good motivator. For a long time, Jones didn’t believe in “rah-rah” coaches. For a long time, Jones didn’t believe in changing coaches mid-season, either. In the wake of Wade Phillips’ 1-7 start this season, Jones has been forced to reconsider a lot of things and has finally realized what all of us already knew: Dallas isn’t disciplined and needs to be motivated. Enter Garrett. The antidote for what ails what Jones still believes is a talent-laden roster.
- Because the Reasons Not to Hire Garrett Don’t Matter in Jerry’s View of the World. One concern Jones has expressed is that Garrett is inexperienced as a head coach. That would matter more if Jones thought there was a talent problem. In Jones’ world, he doesn’t really care if Garrett can put a roster together– that just makes GM Jerry all the more indispensable. Through half a season, Garrett’s game calling has been solid, and Garrett proved he could what Phillips could not– get this team’s attention. Garrett got this team to play with passion when it had nothing on the line– something Phillips could not do even with plenty on the line.
Ultimately, Garrett remains attractive to Jones for the very same reasons he made him the highest paid assistant in the NFL. Here is a former player– a former Cowboy– who has learned under Jimmy Johnson (how to motivate), Norv Turner and Ernie Zampese (how to scheme), and Nick Saban (how to lead). He is friends with Aikman (a link to the glorious past!). He is Ivy league, seemingly no nonsense, but not yet big enough to challenge Jones’ way of doing things (like splitting up training camp into two locations to make more money, but arguably to the disadvantage of the team). Facts, though, are facts: the Jones’ formula for winning has yielded one playoff win in 15 years. Whether Cowboys’ fans like or not, whether that trajectory changes is tied to Tony Romo and the cast that Jones has assembled around him. By giving Garrett the gig, which will happen, Jones is making the safest of choices, a choice that effectively allows him to keep the gang (sans Wade) together in the hopes of better days to come.
13
Dec
2010
Tashard Choice apologizes for Vick autograph, has poor timing
(NBC Image via Mediabistro.com)
As we all know by now, Cowboys RB Tashard Choice turned into a giddy little kid around Michael Vick last night … unfortunately for Choice, he couldn’t have picked a worse time or place for it to happen.
Following Dallas’ 30-27 loss to the Eagles on Sunday night, fans everywhere watched in disbelief as Choice pulled out a glove for Vick to autograph … in the middle of the field … moments after the game had ended … on national TV … with cameras surrounding them:
We realize that pretty much everyone is drinking the Michael Vick kool-aid right now, but this is getting a bit ridiculous! Afterward, Choice took to Twitter to defend himself, explaining that the autograph was actually for his nephew:
Listen y’all I know vick. That glove was for my nephew who is 3. Not for me.@HERO681 I don’t care abbout that we all exchange autographs. That’s so stupid for people to get mad at.
Well then I guess Tashard would consider a lot of people to be stupid, because people everywhere are upset with the guy after what he did last night. Not necessarily because he asked for Vick’s autograph, but that he did it right after a tough loss to a division rival. Regardless of who it’s for, that’s simply neither the time nor place for that sort of thing. And besides, if Choice really knows Vick as he claims, one would think he could have arranged for the autograph at some other time, right?
Today, Choice responded to the backlash, again, via his Twitter account:
If its anybody that cares about winning and the d cowboys its me. I apologize to the people it was just an innocent jesture [sic] for my nephew.
30
Nov
2010
NFL Week 13 Power Rankings (featuring the “Berserker Number”)
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Does anyone want to play the Bills right now? (Source: BuffaloNews.com)
Note: For the teams from 32-17, I’ve tagged them with my BERSERKER NUMBER (B#). Ranging from 1 to 100, it rates a team’s ability to cause havoc for teams attempting a playoff run. Young, developing squads just beginning to show power (but stuck with losing records) are helped, in my rankings, by a high B#.
For the teams from 16-1, I’ve added my DESTINY SCORE (DS). Again, 1 to 100. Here, I’m attempting to weed out teams resembling, for instance, the 1988 Chicago Bears. Teams with towering regular season records that (we all know) will not get to — back to — the Super Bowl. Teams, well, missing something special.
My (totally subjective, imperfect) Week 13 Power Rankings:
32 Carolina Panthers (1-10) (B#4)
31 Arizona Cardinals (3-8) (B#8)
30 Cincinnati Bengals (2-9) (B#14)
29 San Francisco 49ers (4-7) (B#22)
28 Denver Broncos (3-8) (B#33)
27 Detroit Lions (2-9) (B#28)
26 Buffalo Bills (2-9) (B#68)
25 Dallas Cowboys (3-8) (B#41)
24 Minnesota Vikings (4-7) (B#42)
23 Oakland Raiders (5-6) (B#52)
22 Washington Redskins (5-6) (B#43)
21 Seattle Seahawks (5-6) (B#54)
20 Cleveland Browns (4-7) (B#73)
15
Nov
2010
The New Meadowlands Smells Like Poop
Slightly concerned about the state of the Cowboys, I decided to attend this week’s Giants-Cowboys game live, in the belly of the beast: the new Meadowlands. I figured, if Dallas was going to make a move this season, at 1-7, it was getting kind of late in the year and I wanted to be there to see Ol’ Red (Jason Garrett) flip the switch.
The Giants came into the game with momentum. Manning has been very good and the Giants’ defense has looked as though, at long last, Tom Coughlin’s testicles have once again descended from his body cavity. That vaunted pressure defense had returned. The buddy I went with to the game, a long time Giants season ticket holder, matter-of-factly told me on Saturday night: “Giants 35, Dallas 10″.
Gameday began oddly. On my way to the sports bar where I was going to meet my friend, I stopped in Times Square at a red light. Standing next to me: Montel Williams. Freaking Montel. (Swear to God: Montel!). He was wearing a black leather shirt. Not a black leather jacket: a black leather shirt. And, of course, he was sporting his trademark Montel ‘stache. You know the one: the highly manicured, jet-black ‘stache. Vintage Montel.
I considered saying “Hi, Montel, huge fan of your show” but I didn’t quite have my bearings and the moment passed. I regret it. Could be a Sliding Doors moment for me.
Giants fans use inflatable dolls to find one another in the city on gamedays.
My friend and I watched the first half of the one o’clock games at a bar on 44th street between 8th and 9th avenues, mostly watching the Browns go toe-to-toe with the Jets with other Giants fans. Notwithstanding all of the nice things I say about him, TheDarkHorse used the texts I sent him (“Hillis is the Man!”) to say not-very-nice things about Jerry Jones. For my part, I took the high road. (I always do.) At half-time, my buddy and I settled up and made our way to the new Meadowlands.
At first blush, the new Meadowlands is impressive. We hit no traffic on the way over and, as we drove through the badlands of New Jersey, the new Meadowlands made for an imposing sight– a silver, edgier, more foreboding version of its predecessor.
As we got closer, though, certain things began to bother me. First, they built the stadium next to the fugliest shopping mall in the world. As best I can tell, the mall has no windows and appears to be made from plastic color panels ripped right from the pages of the Ikea catalog. I don’t care if your taste is modern, contemporary, traditional, or old fashioned: nothing about that mall looks right.
The stadium is also next to what used to be the Brendan Byrne arena. If you have ever been inside Brendan Byrne arena, then you know that it just isn’t very nice, either. Worse still, it is no longer called the Brendan Byrne arena. Instead, it is now known as the Izod Center. One thing is for sure, when I think New Jersey Devils hockey: i think Izod. (Apparently they paid $200 million dollars for naming rights. Izod: WTF. How does Izod even have $200 million?) Part of the parking garage used by the Giants also doubles as an indoor ski slope. (And they say Jerryworld is a circus!)
The inside of the stadium is nice. Wide concourses. Staircases in all the right places. Lots of beer and food lines and, most importantly, excellent vantage points from seemingly everywhere in the stadium (including the escalators).
The Meadowlands when the technical glitches began (note the dead Jumbotron).
As Artie previously reported, though, the Giants’ $1.6 billion dollar stadium revolted in the third quarter. First, half the lights in the stadium went out. I have actually been at sporting events in the past where that has happened. The difference here, though, was that it appeared as though no effort was made to turn the lights back on. After making an annoucement (along the lines of: we have concluded that there is enough light to still play the game) the game continued. A few minutes later, though, the whole stadium went black. Everything. Disorenting blackness.
When the lights came on, I turned to the guy sitting next to me (some teenage Jints fan) and said: wouldn’t it be kind of fun if, when the lights came back on, John Kitna was face down at midfield, with a ketchup stain on the back of his jersey, and thus the “Who Killed John Kitna Mystery Party!” begins. He didn’t think it was funny. I did, though, and I laughed and laughed about it. And I thought of Tom Coughlin on the jumbotron, delivering a speech filled with clues. And, of course, in the end Lawrence Tynes would be the killer because no one ever suspects the kicker.
What is not being reported on TV, though, and what ReadAndReact can exclusively report, is that the new Meadowlands simply doesn’t have enough bathrooms. Not even close. The lines were pee-in-your pants long. The kind where, once you go to the bathroom, you might as well just get back in the line to go again. How can you build a $1.6 billion stadium and not have enough bathrooms? (The urinals themselves are also oddly narrow. Whatever happened to the big pissing troughs?) Worse still: the bathrooms honestly smelled like poop. The smell in the 300 section bathroom was toxic and dangerous. People were pouring out the bathroom door besides themselves with the bad odor. Really bad smell, like I would imagine a Dirty Sanchez smells. Theories as to the source were plentiful– shouts of “somebody went on the floor” caromed off the walls. One person suggested that the smell was simply New Jersey.
