Bleacher Report - Articles by Mike Allen

Charlie Weis To Return To Patriots?

Mike Allen — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:39:20 -0500

Rumor has it that Charlie Weis, head coach at the University of Notre Dame for the past five seasons, will hear his fate when the team returns from it's game versus Stanford today in California.

Weis, with a .573 won loss record for those five years, has a lower winning percentage than the two previous head coaches, both of whom were fired as Notre Dame head coaches.

If Weis is let go by Notre Dame, it is said that he has about $18 million dollars remaining on his contract which the university will be required to pay him—unless they reach an agreement.

All that being said, why would he want to continue coaching football?

In my opinion, the answer is that he has always had a strong desire to be a head coach in the National Football League.

When no team offered him a head coaching position, he agreed to fill the high profile vacancy at his alma-mater, Notre Dame.

For two seasons at Notre Dame, he had reasonable success, guiding the Irish to two BCS bowl games.

However, things turned sour in the past three seasons and as many know, the Notre Dame alumni have very short fuses. Winning is everything in South Bend.

If things do not go well for Charlie, there is a lot of speculation that he could return to the Patriots, either as the offensive coordinator, assistant head coach, and heir to the throne currently occupied by Bill Belichick.

That would seem to be very logical, but will Weis be willing to wait for Belichick to retire before he becomes the head coach of the Patriots, if in fact that is what is in the cards?

I believe there will be a monkey wrench thrown into the equation. I look for Weis to be offered a head coaching position, right away, by the Buffalo Bills.

The Bills are in the market for a "name" head coach. Several names have been mentioned, including former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher.

Cowher currently is working as an NFL TV analyst and has said that he is not interested the Bills head coaching position.

If that is true, then, in my opinion, the logical choice for the Bills would be Weis. He has years of experience with the Patriots in the AFC East, the same division the Bills play in and his familiarity makes him the front runner.

The next few days should be very interesting.

Of course, there is still one other option. And that, of course, is if Notre Dame opts to keep him rather than shelling out a huge amount of cash for a coach who will not be roaming the sidelines.

Cowards Permeate Official NFL Review Booth

Mike Allen — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:26:33 -0500

Much has been said about New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick opting to go for the first down from his own 28-yard line in order to salt away the victory against the undefeated Colts.

The decision was highly controversial, and in the end, it created a stir like nothing in recent time about a coach's decision in a key game like the one played that Sunday night in Indianapolis. It was billed as "The Game Of The Decade."

Belichick has been rolled over the coals because the Pats failed to make the necessary two yards for the first down. At least that is according to what the on-field officials determined as they handed the ball, and eventual victory, over to the Colts.

Truth be told, as you watch the video linked below, the Patriots did in fact make the first down. The video will prove it.

At the end of the play the scoreboard clock read 1:57. For some unknown reason, the on-field officials had the clock reset to 2:00. As we know, the decision whether to look at a play rests with the NFL officials in the booth for the final two minutes of the first half and the fourth quarter.

Here is the link to the video. Watch it, slow it down, stop and start it, and you will see the truth that the Patriots did in fact make the first down.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0ZrvtmRbfo

The video clearly shows the following:

Faulk did, in fact, bobble the ball, slightly as was suggested. The bobble happened when he had his left foot down, short of the first down.

The video then goes on to show that he gained full possession at a time when his right foot was on the ground, well past the first down marker. It was then that he was pushed back by the Colts defender.

The fact that the official did not give him the forward progress vexed me, but not as much as what did NOT happen after that. That would be the review by the booth officials where the clock was reset from 1:57 to 2:00. The way the replay rule reads, it says that the booth officials have the option of having an official review in the last two minutes. That, to me, would include from when the clock reads 2:00 on down to 0.00

This was considered to be a key game. In fact, it was being billed as the game of the decade in some quarters.

That being so, the officials both on the field and in the booth should have done anything and everything to ensure that the final outcome was not determined by an incorrect call.

Even if they determined after looking at it that it was not a first down, I for one would at least felt that they did what they could. However, by not even looking at it smells to high heaven and leaves a very bitter taste.

All that I can determine is that the booth officials decided not to look at it for fear that they would have to overrule the on-field decision, and that they did not want to do that in Indy against the Colts.

Thus, they took the coward's way out.

This is yet one more example of the "Curse of the Tuck."

I believe that NFL officials are honest, and that for the most part, do the best job possible under difficult situations.

They are, however, human and human beings have a psyche. I believe that ever since that night in Foxboro when the "Tuck Rule" was legitimately used, NFL officials doing Patriot games have a psychological problem without them even realizing it. This is that in the latter stages of games, when they have the opportunity of making a decision that might aid the Patriots, they don't do it. They just allow a non-call to happen.

They psychologically have a mental block that wont let them reverse a call that would give the Patriots a late opportunity to salvage a game for fear that it would look like, once again, they were in the Patriots pockets.

So, what they do without even knowing that they are doing it, they take the coward's way out.

World Series Theme Song for '09: "Winter Wonderland"

Mike Allen — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:37:50 -0400

A few years ago, I wrote an article regarding the length of the Major League Baseball season, and some ideas as to how to shorten it.

Watching players and fans alike dressed more for an outdoor hockey game rather than a baseball game, not just an ordinary game, but a World Series game, one that could decide the world championship, just gave me chills up, and down, my spine.

This year's schedule makes me shiver even more.

The series is scheduled to begin on Oct. 28 at the American League home park and end, if it goes seven games, on Nov. 5 at the American League home park.

Those are the dates if there are none are lost to inclement weather, which could extend the series even deeper into November.

As of this writing, three of the five teams in contention play their games in the northern tier of the country—the Yankees, Red Sox and Tigers.

The Twins, of course, play in a dome, and the Angels play in sunny Southern California.

In the National League, we have the Rockies and the Phillies, and who can ever forget the '07 Series, with snow on the ground in Denver?

All of that being said, I would assume that some of the biggest MLB postseason fan paraphernalia to be sold in sporting apparel shops and on the Internet will be team ski jackets, wool hats and thermal gloves, not to mention the snow boots.

How many of us have yearned for an official pair of MLB Red Sox thermal gloves and snow boots?

Hip side flasks will also be a big seller, as will Jack Daniels and Old Grand Dad.

And, we probably won't hear the vendors walking down the aisles screeching out "Hey, ice cold beer here, get ya ice cold beer." Well, maybe that's carrying it a bit too far. I can't envision the beer drinkers switching to hot chocolate, with those cute little marshmallows floating on the top.

Baseballs for the games, of course, will be kept in a nearby microwave oven so they can be thawed out before being given to the home plate umpire.

And, outside the ballparks, you can pick up a free portable pocket heater with every gallon of Prestone Anti Freeze purchased.

Now, that's what I call a fun night at the ballpark!

So, what can we do to get back to the point where Major League Baseball is played in the kind of weather it is supposed to be played in, and in weather in which the fans arent bundled up, and the pitcher doesn't have to thaw out his fingers between pitches?

The answer is simple. It's the same answer I had a couple of years ago. Shorten the length of the regular season by going back to the good old days, when teams played doubleheaders on Sundays. Yup, almost every Sunday of the season, teams would play two afternoon games, one right after the other, between a short break, and, now get this....all for the price of ONE ADMISSION.

What, you say. Make these players play two games on the same day? Two consecutive games, like one after the other?

Yeah, I guess you're right. How could we even consider asking these vastly underpaid athletes to play twice in the same day? Yeah, they just aren't making enough money to warrant that, right?

Not to mention that the player's union would scream and holler, and the owners would cry that they are losing money by doing so.

My GOD, they would say, we can't afford to turn the lights on as it now stands, what will happen if we don't take in separate admissions for each game? We will have to cancel one of our annual six vacations, or stop driving one of the six autos in our garages, or maybe even rent out one of our vacation homes to time share folks.

It will be such a hardship, I suppose, to have single admission doubleheaders on Sunday afternoons.

But what about the comfort of the fans—the fans who will be paying through the nose to sit in the stadiums at these postseason game? Or the good will of allowing some younger fans a chance to witness playoff or even World Series games in the afternoon, when it just might be a little warmer? Maybe even bring back the good old "knot hole gangs." Those things really don't matter much, do they?

Well, all of that being said, I am sure that none of what I am suggesting will ever happen.

The games will go on. November will come, and maybe even Thanksgiving will come.

I guess they could always bring in John Madden for Thanksgiving day, when Game Seven of the World Series will be played, and he can give out a drumstick to the MVP.

Maybe they can find John Henderson, of John Deere fame, to clear off the snow around the pitcher's mound so pitchers can get a good footing much in the way that Patriots kicker John Smith did when he kicked the game-winning field goal, in the snow, to defeat the Dolphins, 3-0.

Or better yet, I am sure that Santa Claus would gladly throw out the first pitch when he finishes his duties at the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade.

Maybe I should not have written that last sentence. It sort of sounds like I am conceding the AL to the Yankees. No way. Jose.

The 2009 World Series will be played at Fenway Park and Dodger Stadium. At least there will be two, maybe three, games in which the players, and the fans, won't need their parkas and sled dogs.

Anyway, a little hint for the organists (if there are still any left). Dig out the sheet music for the theme song for this year's World Series—"Winter Wonderland."

Dear Senator Specter: A Letter from an NFL Fan Sick of Spygate

Mike Allen — Thu, 15 May 2008 19:04:38 -0400

My open letter to Senator Arlen Sphincter. (Oops, I mean Specter)

Senator:

As a long time fan of the New England Patriots, since their inception in 1960, I have determined that it is time for me to write this letter and congratulate you for your intention of opening up a complete, and total, investigation into alleged “spying” and “ corrupting practices” in the National Football League.

This is something that needs to be done to expose the league for the immoral, and, possibly, illegal things that they have perpetrated on their fans and the nation as a whole.

I commend you, sir, for doing the “right thing”.

According to you, the New England Patriots are guilty, very guilty, of illegally taping opposing team signals, defensive and perhaps even offensive, and by virtue of the tapes were able to “steal” vital signals, and gain important information that they used in order to become “World Champions” in three separate instances.

That being said, once again allow me to commend you for the actions you intend on pursuing, much in the manner in which professional baseball came under the scrutiny of the United States Congress in regards to their use of illegal pharmaceuticals.

That being said, I would assume, as much as I hate to use that word, that you will not limit your investigation to the New England Patriots, alone.

I would assume, there’s that word again, that you would want to expose any, and all, use of any and all methods that all teams in the National Football League may have used in order to gain an advantage over their opponents, not just video tape, as other methods may have also been used.

For example, Denver Broncos head coach, Mike Shanahan, has said that they did not use video equipment, but instead employed the use of binoculars to watch opposing coaches, and to intercept their signals.

You will, of course, invite coach Shanahan to testify, won’t you?

And of course there is the case of former NFL coach Jimmy Johnson, a very well respected coach, formerly of the Miami Dolphins, and of course another team that was very successful on the field, the Dallas Cowboys.

Johnson, of course, recently admitted that his teams also used video recordings of opposing team’s coaches for the purpose of intercepting signals.

That, in my opinion, would be very valuable to the Congress in the terms of testimony that could be given.

Therefore, once again I must assume that you would have complete intentions of calling Coach Johnson before your committee to give his valuable testimony on how he and his coaches were able to use video cameras to tape opposing coaches. That would be valuable to the investigation, would it not Senator?

And please sir, don’t stop there. Might I suggest that you call in some other witnesses that might prove valuable to your investigation, such as John Madden, Terry Bradshaw, Chris Collinsworth and several other notable NFL personalities who have gone on record as saying that the interception of coaches signals was rampant and quite ordinary.

Senator, I think that all of these individuals would be very helpful to your investigation and if you are going to call for one to begin, you should, of course, not miss a single witness that could expose the fact that many, if not most, of the NFL teams were actively involved in some form of signal stealing.

You could blow the entire league right off of it’s foundation!

In fact, if you really dug deep, I am sure you might even be able to find a few skeletons in the closets of the Steelers and Eagles , the two teams from your home state of Pennsylvania.

Shouldn’t they be right there, at your side, to expose this horrific and demonistic signal stealing that your investigation will expose as being done by many of the NFL teams, not just the New England Patriots?

Senator, just think how many coaches you could demand be fired, not just Bill Belichick. You could rack up a baker’s dozen, perhaps.

And owners of the teams, Senator? Wow, you could really clean house!

You could go down in history as the man who cleaned up the National Football League. It really shouldn’t matter that a dozen or so of the teams ceased to exist.

At least you exposed them for the vile and disgusting cheaters that they are. Kudos to you senator. You can be a hero, one to be remembered for all of historical time.

So Senator, I am behind you 100 percent. Go and get it done. Just remember though, don’t stop with Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft, and the New England Patriots.

Don’t do a half-assed job Senator. If you’re gonna get em with both barrels drawn, then go for the whole nine yards. Wait Senator, that puts you one yard short of a first down, so go for the whole ten yards, and nail 'em good.

Nail all those cheaters Senator. Don’t let a single one of them escape.

You will be a hero. Go for it.

Regards,

Mike Allen

Don't Say "Super Bowl"...The Super Bowl Police Are Listening

Mike Allen — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 03:25:31 -0500

Last week, while shopping at the local sports store for some Patriot items, I ran into a couple who were New York Giants fans.

After the initial friendly "smack talk", was exchanged, he told me that he owned a New York-style pizza parlor in Glendale, AZ, the home of Super Bowl XLII. (Oops, I mean "Big Game 42.")

Well, a few days later my wife and I happened to be in the area, we live in Phoenix, and I decided to drop in. We exchanged greetings, a little more smack talk, and we ordered a pizza.

My wife has a very limited menu of foods that she can eat, so we ordered a half and half, hers an "all white" half, and mine loaded with mushroom and anchovies.

And then we got into conversation with Andrew, the Giants fan and owner of the restaurant.

He told us of the big party he was having on Super Bowl Sunday and the restrictions that were placed on him by the NFL. He was told that he can NOT hang a banner in front of his store that had the words "Super Bowl" on it. He could not use the words "Super Bowl" in any promotion of his event.

And it goes beyond that. He is not permitted to use the words "Patriots or Giants" on any banner, signs, or anywhere else on his property regarding his party.

He can use "Big Game," New York, New England, but can not even show a picture of the Lombardi Trophy.

By the way, the pizza was awesome, and even though Andrew has a rare disease called "New York Giantitis," I will return for more pizza.

Continuing with the control that the NFL, hereinafter referred to as the Fifth Reich, I came across the following this morning while perusing through my Sunday newspaper, the Arizona Republic.

There were ads all through the flyer section—you know, the department stores, grocery stores, etc.—and not one of them used the term "Super Bowl."

Fry's Supermarket, for example, at the top of their big ad as the following: "Big Game Essentials."

The "Port Of Subs had a coupon advertising "Big Game Special."

Target's flyer said "Big Game Special," and on and on it went. Advertisement after advertisement, flyer after flyer, not one of them used the words "Super Bowl," "Giants," "Patriots" or anything that even resembled it.

Even at a big sports store in the Westgate City Center, in Glendale, AZ, just a few hundred feet from the stadium, they are prohibited from using the condemned words.

They have a huge stock of Super Bowl merchandise inside the store, and they had a huge replica of the Lombardi Trophy that they were going to put in their store front but the NFL Brownshirts came and said "Nein," and they took it down. Now it sits in their store room in the back of the store.

Licensing of NFL products, as well as those in all of the other major sports has gotten out of control, out of hand.

I understand that there is a huge investment, but now it seems that it has gone way beyond any sense of fair play.

I recently was given gifts of three great jerseys on eBay. You know, the kind that has everything sewn on, are called "authentic," and have all the Reebok labels on them, and so on.

They were bought for prices that are 75 percent lower than if they had been purchased them in a licensed store.

Are they knock-offs? Sure, they probably are, but they look, and feel, as good as the "real" ones you can purchase for about $200 each. It was less than $100 for all three, Maroney, Bruschi and Moss.

Do I, as a fan, care if they are knock offs? Hell, no. All I know is that they look great and wear great and mucho bucks were saved.

The manager of that sports store in Westgte Center told me that they are selling all licensed merchandise, and believe me, they have bundles and bundles of it, at suggested retail price, but if you wait to buy the same stuff in the Stadium, or on stadium grounds, you will pay double the price.

Unfortunately that is what the Super Bowl has become...

Oops, once again I slipped up. Of course, I meant to say "The BIG Game."

A mecca for the dollars, for the rich and famous, for the wealthy, most of whom would not know the names of three players on either team, once you got past the Bradys, Mannings, Mosses and so on.

Ticket prices, the face value, for this year's BIG Game are $700 and $900, surely out of the range of the greater majority of real fans.

And, if you try to buy them out on the resale market, you spend anywhere from $2,500 to $5,000 per ticket. Real fans are no longer a part of the BIG Game.

And those "official" Super Bowl parties—yes, they can say "Super Bowl," well, don't even bother to look at the ads, the admission fees will knock you out of your unlicensed socks.

And those that do pay those big bucks with the hopes of talking with a Jessica Simpson, or other big name celebrities—forget it, they don't even know you are there.

So, what we now have is a different NFL once BIG Game day rolls around.

Be careful if you are walking the streets of Glendale, Arizona, or in proximity of the Stadium. Don't under any circumstance utter the words "Super Bowl" or "Patriots"—because before you know it, you will be under the control of the NFL's Brownshirts, and it wont be a pretty sight.

Where is Jack Bauer when needed?

Contrary to Popular Belief, Patriots Manhandled the Giants

Mike Allen — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 08:23:26 -0500

I have heard, ad nauseum, how the Giants gave the Pats a great game, and almost won it.

Did they really?

The Giants scored 35 points—which, on the surface it sounds like a great performance against the Pats.

But was it really? Here's a brief synopsis:

The Giants scored one TD by virtue of a kickoff return.

Another Giants' TD was set up by one bad defensive play by the Pats, when Plaxico Burris beat CB Ellis Hobbs cleanly for a 52-yard reception, setting up another Giants TD.

And another Giants' TD was scored with just under two minutes left in the game—when the Pats were playing soft, allowing the clock to run down, and holding a 10-point lead.

That's 21 points out of their 35 total that were scored against the Pats—not by dominance, but by one play, or against a prevent-type defense.

In addition, the following stats do not, in any way, suggest Giants dominance, or even any state close to equality:

FIRST DOWNS

Patriots 27, Giants 19

TOTAL YARDAGE

Patriots 390, Giants 319

NET YARDS PASSING

Patriots 346, Giants 237

PASSES COMPLETED

Patriots 32, Giants 22

INTERCEPTIONS

Patriots 1, Giants 0

TIME OF POSESSION

Patriots 36:18, Giants 23:42

Those stats alone show a game controlled by the Patriots, with respect to yardage, time of possession, and any and all other facets of the game.

Yes, the Giants played well, and the score of the game was close—until the Patriots decided that enough was enough, and surged to a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter. The Patriot's soft, prevent-type defense, allowed the Giants to keep it close on the scoreboard—but as the stats and comments indicate, it was the Patriots who actually controlled the game, not the Giants.

A valiant effort by the Giants? Of course it was—but in the end, the 60-minute men won out, as they have all season long.

Will they stay unbeaten throughout the playoffs? No one knows for sure, but for now, the Patriots can enjoy their 16-0 season, knowing that they earned it—not that it was handed to them, much in the way the Indianapolis Colts laid down and handed the Tennessee Titans a playoff berth.

In that game, Coach Dungy once more showed the world that he is far from the class act many suggest he is. Reggie Wayne set personal record, leading the league in receiving yardage over Randy Moss.

That was what was important enough to keep Manning and Wayne in the game. As soon as he got the yardage needed, they were done with first teamers, allowing Cleveland to get screwed out of a playoff spot.

One can only hope that what goes around will come around, and the Dungy's Colts, wil never see action past their first game in the postseason. That would be fitting, if nothing else.