NFL needs to take back the night

Michael McCann, Sports Illustrated:

New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis has been charged with felonies for his alleged role in an altercation that took place in Pittsburgh last Sunday. Revis has been charged with robbery, terroristic threats, conspiracy and aggravated assault.

Conspiracy is a similarly worrisome charge for Revis. Conspiracy entails that Revis and his associate planned to commit a crime—in this case, knocking out the 21- and 22-year old men. Witnesses told the police that the two men were unconscious for about 10 minutes. They were both hospitalized and one of them suffered a serious facial injury.

A crucial piece of evidence was left behind: the 22-year-old’s cellphone and its video contents. An officer reviewed the video and confirmed that Revis was present at the scene.

The New York Jets could attempt to void his contract and thus nullify any obligation to pay him guaranteed money. If successful, such a move would relieve the Jets of having to pay Revis $6 million in guaranteed money in 2017.

Shore patrol are service members who are provided to aid in security for the U.S. Navy while on shore. They are often temporarily assigned personnel who receive limited training in law enforcement and are commonly armed with a baton. Their primary function is to make certain that sailors on liberty do not become too rowdy. They will also provide assistance for sailors in relations with the civilian courts and police.

I was a 19 year old Seaman in the United States Navy assigned to Shore Patrol in Naples, Italy while aboard the USS FDR(CVA-42). The normal rule for assigning sailors to Shore Patrol is to select from a list of veterans who had served at least two years in the service. I had only been in the Navy for six months, but I was chosen so I showed up for duty.

We took the liberty boat from the carrier and met at the dock at noon. I was matched up with a 6 ft. 6" 240 lb. 12 year veteran. The assignment consisted of walking the streets, checking in at bars and whorehouses, and having a presence in the area where the sailors would congregate. The shift would run until midnight.

It was a hot summer day and the first day in port after two weeks at sea. I carried a walkie talkie and a black nightstick. It was fun to watch everybody enjoying themselves as I walked the beat. I couldn't wait for my chance to see the world. We stopped around 6PM(1800) for dinner. The meal was 'on the house' at a streetside stand, two chicken shish kabobs, french fries and a coke.

The relatively uneventful evening took a turn for the worse around eight when a fight broke out between two sailors from our ship. One lay unconscious on the sidewalk while the other guy was kicking him in the head. As we ran to the scene, I radioed for assistance. He was handcuffed and taken away. I went to the hospital with the sailor who was seriously injured. My pants were torn, my shirt bloodied and my hat was gone, and I was uninjured. Welcome to the real world.

At Captains's Mast the next morning at 0700, we were all dressed in our white uniforms. We had filled out reports as to what had transpired the previous evening. The combatant had spent the night in the brig, and had but 27 days to go before he would finish his four year enlistment. The Captain wasted no time in delivering his verdict. The sentence for jail time would be three months plus the 27 days.

" I am not wasting one cent of the government's money to send you home when you can't behave. My job is to ensure the safety of all my men, and I can't do my job if you are stomping and kicking them. That boy has a mother who expects me to hold up my end of the bargain."

The NFL wasted two years of our time over pressure in a football. According to Rovell, the estimated cost of Deflategate has bled all parties involved a combined $22.5 million. That means $14.7 million from the NFL (the largest financial loser in this equation), $7.1 million from the NFL Players Association and $750,000 from the Patriots.

Here is hoping the NFL and New York Jets act like the military and put a stop to this outlandish behavior. Our Navy Captain would have thrown away the key.

Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy

19 angry billionaires have it made and don't even know it

I’m not sure “angry” describes all of the characters. The picture shows men confronting their own emotional and experiential pasts and those of their fellow jurors as they decide whether or not to send a youth to the electric chair for the murder of his father. Some are plagued while others are buoyed by their respective personalities in this stressful situation, but each one has to decide how to move forward. They smoke, they sweat, they swear, they sprawl, they stalk, and they get angry.

The late Ralph Wilson Jr., 92, long-time owner of the Buffalo Bills and one of the founders of the American Football League, served in the Navy during World War II. None of the present owners ever served in the military.

Sports Xchange:

19 of the NFL's 32 teams are owned by billionaires. Seattle Seahawks' owner Paul Allen tops the NFL list at $17.5 billion. Allen started Microsoft with Bill Gates, who remains the richest person in the world with a net worth of $75 billion. Miami Dolphin's owner Stephen Ross is second on the NFL list at $12 billion, followed by Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke ($7.7 billion). Robert Kraft of the New England Patriots sits at $4.9 billion.

The NFL is now looking into the Seattle Seahawks' situation on CB Richard Sherman’s partially torn MCL, and head coach Pete Carroll noting that he wasn’t on the Injury Report. Carroll said that Sherman had suffered a MCL injury in his knee during a game and played through it during the second half of the season. However, Sherman's injury was never disclosed on the league's official injury reports.

Sherman's injury situation marks the third time the Seahawks have violated NFL rules. The Seahawks violated offseason rules in 2016 and 2014. They were disciplined for excessive contact during OTAs in 2016 and impermissible contact in 2014. League owners are up in arms over the fact that the Seahawks were not punished.

Rich Hill, SBNation:

The issue with DeflateGate runs deeper than just the flaws in a system that allows NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to hear and rule on the appeal of a penalty he issued himself. It's more than Goodell.

It boils down to the pettiness of owners. Owners that have managed to stay out of the spotlight by deflecting the focus on Goodell. Owners that have hit the Patriots with a lasting penalty because they can't stand the fact that their teams aren't as successful on a consistent basis. Owners that have found a way to get the greatest player in the history of the sport suspended for four games over nothing at all.

The owners have made this about taking down New England owner Robert Kraft, with QB Tom Brady being merely collateral damage, and Patriots fans are forced to deal with the repercussions.

If Henry Fonda plays Roger Goodell in the movie, they will really have something to cry about.

And Lee J. Cobb plays Robert Kraft as the last one to "let it go."

Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy

Revenge is for suckers

Alec Nathan, Bleacherreport:

"When it happens to your son, it's a whole different context. Or your daughter or any one of your kids and I think any parent kind of understands that. They'd rather take the slings and arrows in the heart than have their kids take it. For what the league did to him (Tom Brady) and what Roger Goodell constantly lied about is beyond reprehensible as far as I'm concerned.

“He (Goodell) went on a witch hunt and went in way over his head and had to lie his way out in numerous ways, and the reality is that Tommy never got suspended for deflating footballs,” Tom Brady Sr. said. “He got suspended because the court said that he could, Roger Goodell could do anything he wanted to do to any player for any reason whatsoever. That’s what happened. The NFL admitted they had no evidence on him.” If the Patriots win Super Bowl LI, Brady and Goodell would inevitably cross paths during the handing off of the Lombardi Trophy. Steve believes that Roger shouldn’t even be on the same stage as his son. “ Somebody that has Roger Goodell’s ethics doesn’t belong on any stage that Tom Brady is on.”

Prior to Super Bowl 1, Green Bay Packers' Head Coach Vince Lombardi remarked that "you players should be proud of your profession." 50 years later, Tom Brady Sr. and New England Patriots' owner Bob Kraft want to incite the masses and upstage NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The four game suspension levied against Patriots' star QB Tom Brady pales in comparison to the one year penalty that Packers' RB Paul Hornung received. Hornung, along with Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alex Karras, were banished by Commissioner Pete Rozelle on April 17, 1963 indefinitely for betting on NFL games and associating with undesirable persons.

Paul Hornung was the 1956 Heisman Trophy recipient from Notre Dame. He is the only winner from a team with a losing record. He was the first person to be inducted into the High School, College and Pro Football Hall of Fame. His 176 points in 1961 were an NFL record, and his 19 points in a NFL title game still stands. The suspensions lasted only one season, the fines were minor ($2,000 for each player) and the betting incidents now appear small. But the suspensions were crucial, representing the establishment of his authority and the backing of the owners. "I felt relieved," Pete Rozelle said. Forthright in admitting to his mistake, Hornung's image went relatively untarnished.

In 1990, the NFL instituted the Pete Rozelle Trophy to honor the Super Bowl MVP. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle died at home on December 6, 1996 in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Paul Hornung attended the funeral services.

In the final act of The Sting, Henry Gondorff(Paul Newman) tells Johnny Hooker(Robert Redford) that "You beat 'em, kid." Hooker's response was "You're right. It's not enough, but it's close." Tom Brady Sr. and Bob Kraft would be best served in watching this four star gem.


Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy

Conspiracy theory, and Roger Goodell is in on it

On the Kirk & Callahan show on WEEI Radio this morning, guest host Trenni Kusnierek told the listeners that Super Bowl LI was already fixed. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell would tell head referee Chad Cheffers and his crew that the New England Patriots like to hold their opponents, and commit offensive interference all the time. Their job was to call penalties on the Patriots' at appropriate junctures during the contest allowing the Atlanta Falcons a pre planned victory.

Super Bowl LI head referee, Chad Cheffers - As a college student, Cheffers became interested in officiating through his father, and decided to work intramural sports to make additional income. Enjoying the experience of student sports, he sought assistance from his father to officiate high school football games to begin a career. Starting in 1980, he worked several high school playoff games, and two high school championship games. By 1995, Cheffers began officiating in the Pac-10 where he worked for five seasons before being hired by the NFL.

Cheffers worked as a side judge before being promoted to referee (crew chief) beginning with the 2008 NFL season. In his promotion to referee, NFL officiating director Mike Pereira said of Cheffers, "Carl has been extremely successful on the field. He is very knowledgeable of the rules, a good rules guy. Strong presence.

His lone occupation is: NFL referee.

111.9 million viewers watched Super Bowl L. $132 million was waged through 50 sports books legally in Las Vegas. Using the gaming association's estimate, the Super Bowl bets legally placed at Nevada's casinos amount to a mere 2.8% of the total wagered nationwide. Americans spent at least $4.2 billion betting on Super Bowl L, the American Gaming Assn., a casino trade group, estimated. CBS-TV set the base rate for a 30-second advertisement at $5,000,000, a record high price for a Super Bowl ad.

Yesterday on ”MAD DOG Unleashed” show on Sirius Radio with Chris Russo, the annual Super Bowl contest was in play. A contestant needs to answer four NFL questions correctly, and they will win two tickets to Super Bowl L1, including hotel and airfare. Chris will ask the contestant what his favorite team is, and start off with a relatively easy question. The fan said his team was the Baltimore Ravens. " Who played in Super Bowl XLVII?"

After two minutes of dead air, the caller stated that he did not know the answer and he was eliminated from competition. His Baltimore Ravens had defeated the San Francisco 49ers, 34-31 just four years ago.

From Trenni Kusnierek, imagine how uncomfortable Roger Goodell is going to feel handing the Vince Lombardi Trophy to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots after they win? It will be unbearable when Tom Brady turns his back on the commissioner. That will be payback for the four game Deflategate suspension that Tom had to serve. This act of defiance will preserve Tom's legacy.

Roger can be just like that contestant who couldn't remember the Super Bowl winner from four years ago. He only has to please the 32 billionaire owners. At $35 million a year, who the hell cares about legacies?


Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy

Tom Brady is not smarter than an eighth grader

For the eighth grade students at Emerson Junior High School(named for Ralph Waldo Emerson) in Concord, MA, it was routine to travel to Emerson Playground(named for Ralph Waldo Emerson) twice, daily. The distance was 440 yards(one lap on the track) between the two, and the address was Thoreau Street(named for Henry David Thoreau). One trip was for morning recess, and the second one was during lunch hour.

Emerson Playground had been used by the Boston Patriots in 1960 and 1961. The new American Football League franchise held practices in the summer. The grounds had their usual spectacular look, even though the football being played was not. Fans were encouraged to view the workouts, and many youngsters even shagged footballs for the kickers.

The English Teacher, Miss Lois Keiger, was performing her duties as hall monitor(hall monitors typically check hall passes; maintain overall good conduct in the corridors; and ensure that students are punctual in attending, and are posted to a school's doors in order to prevent unauthorized exit or entry during recess). On this particular Friday, Miss Keiger was on the lookout for Donald Keagan. He had been late in turning in an assignment, and she wanted a signed note from his mother on this matter.

"I will bring it to you after recess," Donald informed the teacher. Time was running short as Donald and his friends schemed over at the playground. A forgery was out of the question, but a blank sheet of paper was not. Gathering dirt from the batter's box and water from the fountain, the white sheet was stomped on several times.

With Miss Keiger at her desk and class about to begin, Donald approached her desk with his soaking, wet, stained, unwritten note. She told him "to throw it in the trash' and get in his seat. Score one for the good guys.

Attorney Ted Wells defended his investigation into the New England Patriots' underinflated footballs and quarterback Tom Brady, saying he was taking the uncharacteristic step of speaking out publicly because his independence was questioned. Wells also said Brady was very cooperative during the process, but refused to let his phone or any information from it be used in the investigation.

Brady refused to permit us to review electronic data from his telephone or other instruments. Most of the key evidence in this case, as in most cases, come from people's cell phones. I want to be crystal clear -- I told Mr. Brady and his agents I was willing to not take possession of the phone. I said 'I don't want to see any private information. You keep the phone.

The problem for Ted Wells was that the phone was unavailable. The data was gone because the phone was in a puddle, somewhere. Brady was questioned extensively at his appeal hearing on the crucial four-month period about the gap in text messages. Tom also asserted that it had always been his practice to have his cell phones destroyed every so often.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's decision upholding Tom Brady’s four-game suspension was that Brady’s cell phone was destroyed shortly before meeting with Ted Wells and his investigators. Ted Wells said he bills by the hour and the investigation was "no question" in the "millions of dollars."

The three-judge panel for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit signaled from the outset that, rather than focusing on the question of Goodell’s authority, they were more interested in the details of Deflategate, including why Brady destroyed a cellphone the N.F.L. wanted to see and whether a four-game suspension was appropriate for tampering with how much air was in a football.

The goat is noted for its lively and frisky behavior. Tom Brady, the so called G.O.A.T., tried to play cute, and he will be forced to sit out the first four games of the 2016 NFL season.

Eighth graders have a problem. They take 15 minutes to diagram the play in the dirt, and execute it.


Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy