My quick take on what led to Jauron’s downfall:

- Injury mismanagement.  Every team has injuries, but the Bills’ injury problems always seemed worse.  Why?  Because Jauron mismanaged the IR, in part by putting injured players on it in September who were ready to play by November (Crowell last year, Posluszny in his rookie year).  Also, too many non-contact practices leave the team in poor shape to withstand the season.

- Clock mismanagement and bad play-calling.  Jauron simply gave away several games off the top of my head: Denver, season opener ’07; Dallas, MNF ’07; Cleveland, MNF ’08; and the second Jets game last year.  No clock awareness and no ability to make the correct decision at the right time.

- The complete and utter absence of anything resembling a clue on the offensive side of the ball, which in turn led to the inability to develop a quarterback.

- What kind of coach seriously says that  “You better have guys that are self-motivated, because if you have to motivate them, the odds are it’s not going to happen for you”?  A LOSING coach.

Add all this up, and you’ve got a guy who has a 60-82 lifetime coaching record.

Dick Jauron may be a nice person – heck, Chris Berman once said you won’t find a better human being – but he is not a good football coach.  And fortunately, as of now, he’s no longer OUR football coach.

Brett Favre to wait several weeks before decision about 2009 – ESPN

Seriously ESPN, isn’t there a cup stacking tournament going on or something?

I’m still pretty torn up about Kevin Everett.  I’m so glad he’s starting to regain some movement,  but he’s got such a long way to go that anything but cautious optimism is probably misguided.

My condolences to the Walsh family.
ESPN – Former 49ers head coach Bill Walsh dies – NFL

Ahman Green and Jason Simmons of the Houston Texans are apparently above such petty behavior. Green signed with Houston during the current offseason, but his #30 that he’d worn with the Packers for many seasons was already taken by Simmons. When he approached Simmons about a deal for the number, Simmons had a plan. Instead of accepting money, Simmons asked Green to make a $25,000 down payment on a home for a deserving single mom. A search was conducted, a single mother with a 7-year-old autistic son was chosen, and the checks (including a matching $25,000 from Texans owner Bob McNair, one of the classier owners in sports) were presented yesterday in an emotional ceremony.

In a sports world where athletes are routinely involved in criminal activities, such a story makes me happy to be an NFL fan. If only there were more players like Simmons, Green and Warrick Dunn of the Falcons (whose charity work Simmons’ idea just might have been inspired by).

The quote above is intended to illustrate exactly how serious this situation is. No, Mr. Clinton Portis, it’s not simply a bunch of guys who choose to have a little fun by getting their dogs together for a little playtime. These people are loathsome creatures who murder dogs for profit in vile and gruesome ways.

If Michael Vick is proven to be involved in this dogfighting ring, I hope he’s banned from the NFL for life. He won’t be, of course, but I’d be happy with a year’s suspension. Anything less indicates the NFL treats marquee players differently than the rank-and-file. Time to put your money where your mouth is, Roger.

The full story, including more of the grisly details is right here.

San Francisco: You need a wide receiver.  Desperately.  Oakland will probably take JaMarcus Russell, so trade up with Detroit to get Calvin Johnson with the #2 pick.  You have like 4 million picks in the fourth round – package one of them with the #11 overall pick and take advantage of the fact that Matt Millen is a moron.  Please, for the love of all that is holy, give Alex Smith someone to throw the ball to.

Buffalo: Marv, if you manage to pull off the Michael Turner trade, this is easy. His name is Patrick Willis.  If the Turner trade doesn’t happen, then I’m happy with Marshawn Lynch here. Not getting a linebacker or a running back at this spot is criminal.  Please don’t draft a thousand defensive backs like you did last year.

Four of the last five guys to grace the cover of Madden have gotten significantly injured, missing at least four games – and in most cases, suffered significant statistical dropoff. Michael Vick in 2003 is the best example of this. Shaun Alexander, who had never missed a game due to injury, missed 6 games with a broken foot last year – clearly the football gods were not pleased that he scoffed at the idea of the “Madden Curse“.

Clearly something sinister is afoot here. Don’t doubt the curse!

Does anyone truly feel remorse for these two hoodlums?

Pacman and Henry are two excellent examples of how, until now, the NFL has failed to relate to the average fan. Sure, everyone makes mistakes, but getting questioned by police 10 times within a year (Jones) or being arrested 4 times in 14 months (Henry) is a good indication that A) you’re not learning from those mistakes; B) you don’t care because you’re not getting punished anyway.

The fans are tired of seeing multimillion dollar athletes act like deplorable trash and get nothing more than a slap on the wrist, be it from the legal system or the NFL, every time. In fact, I have heard it said by others that the behavior of some of these players was beginning to turn them off to the NFL. The unwillingness of the league to police its players was one of the most oft-mentioned criticisms of Paul Tagliabue, and Roger Goodell seems to understand this (finally).

Let’s hope these two suspensions have a tangible effect on the actions of other NFL players – as well as athletes in all leagues.