Ruminations and Ramblings
Thoughts on a October Wednesday:
- The NFL hit Browns safety T.J. Ward with a $15,000 fine for his hit on Jordan Shipley. As expected, the Bengals are still crying over the hit.”I just want to let it be known that it wasn’t malicious intent to knock him out or to get him hurt,” Ward told The Plain Dealer. “It was just part of the game. I just reacted to what I saw and tried to make a play. The way it happened, I didn’t really try to hit him with everything I had, but still it was a pretty violent hit. I wasn’t trying to aim for his helmet in any way. I just hit what I saw. It all happened so fast.” Something tells us that Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco will have one eye on Ward when the teams meet again in December.
- It was three years ago yesterday that the Indians and Fausto Carmona beat the Yankees in Game 2 of the Divisional Series in the game where the midges attacked Joba Chamberlain’s fat head. Seems more like 30 years after the way the Indians have played the past few years.
- Very glad the Browns apparently were not involved in the talks to acquire Randy Moss from the Patriots. While the team does need a major upgrade at wide receiver, it’s hard to see how someone like Moss, while talented, would have fit in with the culture that Eric Mangini is trying to build in the locker room and on the field.
- Not sure how we feel about the news that Boston Red Sox principal owner John Henry wants to buy Liverpool. Certainly getting rid of the current owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett is a positive, and the fact that they are opposed to the sale seems like a good sign. But some are urging caution, making the point that Henry wants the team as a business venture, rather than as a passion. But maybe that’s not a bad thing. The Dolans bought the Indians in part because they are fans and that hasn’t work out so well. Maybe someone with deep pockets that stays out of the way – like Randy Lerner at Aston Villa – isn’t all that bad of a scenario.
- You kind of hate to feel good about another team’s misery, unless it is Pittsburgh, but the news that Max Hall is the new starting quarterback in Arizona gives us a good chuckle. You do have to feel bad for Cardinal fans, though, as they tried to talk themselves into Derek Anderson the way we did in Cleveland for three years. The worse part is betting against Anderson was a nice safety valve to have each week; now that’s gone.
- Only 11 more days until Pittsburgh. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves here a bit.
Red Right 88 