We are still a little worn out from the weekend, and can’t come up with anything clever to say. So let’s just jump right into this week’s TMQ after the jump…
Football practice is the most dangerous part of football, and should be more strictly regulated at all levels (pro, college, high school, and lower). You can now skip the first 1,000 words of this week’s column.
One of our problems with TMQ is that he’ll make an argument, but then fail to take the obvious next step. For example, in this week’s column, he condemns such dangerous drills as the Oklahoma Drill (“two players confined to a small area, instructed to run and smash into each other repeatedly until one yields”) and the Nutcracker Drill (“a version of the Oklahoma, in which two players repeatedly bash helmet-to-helmet”) as being almost designed to cause injury. “Some coaches are conscientious about practice safety. Others are not.” But it doesn’t make economic sense for any coach to want his players injured, so why do these drills continue? TMQ doesn’t ask or answer that question.
A reality check on Kevin Kolb, Arizona’s great QB hope (3-4 in seven starts, a 73.2 passer rating). Atlanta should adopt an Angry Birds theme after getting their butts handed to them by The Pack.
How could TMQ forget Eartha Kitt? Even Lee Meriwether thinks she was the best Catwoman. Give me your money.
Carolina is making up for past mistakes, but is Cam Newton the answer? Da Bears have always been pass wacky. “What’s up with Texas?” And: “Tom Landry has more career victories than all other Cowboys head coaches combined.”
We don’t need a trailer to get us interested in Grand Pursuit
TMQ is dubious about this being Detroit’s year. The major problem with more touchbacks: more annoying commercial breaks. Only 20 percent of surprise onside kicks were successful last season. People forget that The Pack just barely got into the postseason last year. TMQ finds it unrealistic that people can have enormous shootouts in the streets and the cops never show up.
Much like the Chargers, the Giants had great offensive stats last season…and missed the playoffs. Bad Irene predictions.
How heavy should a helmet be? The Vikings: 12 quarterbacks in 10 years. Andy Reid and the Eagles need to improve in the playoffs. Does anyone really go for 90 hours without sleep, or “work” a 70-hour week? The Saints are too legit to quit.
“TMQ thinks the country would be in better shape if presidents took more time off to relax and get away from the synthetic Washington sense that everything is a crisis and the only possible response is to launch yet another ‘dramatic’ program.” Gregg Easterbrook, please pick your wookie suit up from the cleaners.
Boise State blues. Mad props to TMQ for quoting Marx Brothers routines. “…the 13 percent [of Americans who think Congress is doing a good job –DB], who are these crackpots?” Second call for that wookie suit, Mr. Easterbrook.
The Rams haven’t had a winning season since firing Martz. Can Seattle accomplish anything this season? Creep. TMQ was wrong about Ohio. Drinking beer is good for the economy. Tampa Bay desperately needs to figure out how to beat Atlanta. Chainsaw Dan Snyder has questionable judgment. (“…the ‘five-year, $88 million’ contract [McNabb] signed in November 2010 lasted nine months and paid a little under $2 million.”)
No, there’s never been a student coach, and there can’t be, at least in Texas. But John Gagliardi is a class act. Christmas creep. The Football Gods are still punishing New England.
And that’s it for this week. Next week, cherry blossoms fall, temperatures cool (we hope, because this 100+ crap is getting old), and TMQ does his annual haiku predictions.