I Am Alive (and with a surfeit of free time)
January 19th, 2009 by Tank
Notwithstanding my lengthy absence from the OGS, I am alive, and thanks to the ongoing bear market (its still not too late to short financials, incidentally), now have plenty of time to post here without pesky distractions like work. In honor of our numerous graduates of the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, I’ll start by linking to an HR-oriented post on the correlation between reining in locker room problems and success in the NFL.
I think the thesis breaks down a bit over the Giants and Plaxico, given how poorly they did in the weeks after he fragged himself, but overall it seems pretty solid.
January 26th, 2009 at 10:22 pm
First, the only time (since the Vermeil/Jaworski reign) that the Eagles actually won an NFC Championship Game was with TO on the roster. Now, he didn’t play in that NFC Championship Game - but he did play (very well) in the Super Bowl. Without TO, the Eagles are now 0-4 in NFC Championship Games. I’m not sayin’… I’m just sayin’.
Second, Coughlin let Plax be Plax last year - and that is why they won the SB. As you note, without him this season, they lost in the(ir) first round of the playoffs.
Third, the Cowboys have not won a playoff game since Barry Switzer rode Jimmy Johnson’s sloppy seconds to a Super Bowl title (a game that I was at, btw… great, great game). TO isn’t the issue, and neither is Pacman Jones. The issue is that - outside of Bill Parcells - Jerry Jones has had crappy head coaches since parting ways with Jimmy Johnson. I’m unclear as to why Parcells couldn’t get at least one playoff win (and I don’t blame TO, fwiw) - but I cannot be the least bit surprised that Wade Phillips has as many playoff wins in Dallas as Dave Campo did. This just in: Wade Phillips is not a good NFL head coach. Seems like a swell fella, but he’s not a leader of men. Sorry.
Fourth, if you indeed have free time on your hands, could I propose a Black Hole Tagout for the annual Mecca ticket drive in mid-February? I’ll be at my in-laws on Friday morning, February 20, when tickets go on sale online. Would you be able to step in for me and assist Gonzo, Danny and BA (and hopefully one or two others) as they attempt to secure somewhere between 24 and 30 tickets to each game of a weekend series in August (forget the opponent). Naturally, I’d also hope that you (and Ada, if you like) would indeed use some of the tickets being purchased on that day… as you’ve been sorely missed the past few years. Please advise.