Posted: July 26, 2008 at 5:40PM EST
Let's say that everything we have heard is true and that the New York Jets have been given permission to talk with Brett Favre about the possibility of acquiring him in a trade. It seems to make sense on the surface, in that Favre is a much better solution than either Chad Pennington or Patrick Ramsey to be the starter at quarterback for 2008.
I have a much better idea for the Jets. For the sake of this discussion, assume that I am the general manager for the Jets. This is what I would do.
Before contacting Green Bay again, I would call the general manager of the Minnesota Vikings. One of the reasons that Green Bay is relunctant to simply place Favre on waivers is because they fear that one of the teams in their own division might try to grab him. This would mean that not only would Favre play the Pack twice in a season, but Green Bay would receive no compensation for him. Minnesota is projected by many experts to make the playoffs this year, due to the emergence of a great defense and second-year RB Adrian Peterson. Favre would likely elevate them to a superior Super Bowl contendor.
So, as Jets GM, I would say the following the Vikes: "Yo, listen, this is a conversation we need to keep on the down lo, but hear me out. If I can acquire a certain future hall of fame QB that is not wanted on his team and once starred in a movie with Cameron Diaz, we would be willing to trade him to you in exchange for a 2009 1st round pick, a 2009 3rd round pick, and a conditional 2010 3rd round pick that becomes a 2nd rounder if you make the playoffs in either of the next 2 years, and becomes a 1st rounder if you go to the Super Bowl in either of the next two years. There would be a 24-hour waiting period so you could have the news cycle all to yourself."
The Vikings would absolutely make this move to get Favre. Then, as Jets GM, I would call the Pack and tell them, "Hey, I'll take Favre off your hands and give you that 1st round pick you want for him, but I need your 3rd round pick next year and will give you my 4th rounder next year. So Favre and a 3 for my 1 and 4. Deal?"
The Packers would say yes because they get the 1st rounder they think makes this a sucker deal, and they get Favre out of their hair once and for all... until the Vikes get him from me 24 hours.
And what do the Jets get? Well, they give up their 2009 1st and 4th round picks, but get Minnesota's 1st and 3rd round picks, plus Green Bay's 3rd round pick, and a 2010 pick from Minnesota which can be a 1, 2 or 3. The Jets also get to avoid taking an aging player who will surely retire again in the next two years, and they can maybe package the 3 3rd round picks to move up into the 1st round, giving them two first rounders next year. For a team trying to re-build that has no shot of beating out New England in 2008, this is the only right move they can make long term.
It's what i would do - this way everybody wins.
Just a thought...
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
New KFL Franchise Name
So some of you know that I started a fantasy football league last season involving co-workers. Well, we're back for another season, even though some of us are no longer there (I know, some of us were never all there to begin with). The name of the league is the Kokua Football League, and we are hosted on ESPN.com again this year. They have a great service.
So I am again running this league as commissioner, and we have begun to organize the league in preparation for a late August draft. I did horribly in this league year, due to injuries and bad decision I made. It's odd because in my other league, I went 13-1 and won the league title.
Soon I will be creating both a facebook landing page for the league and a separate blog for it as well. Last year, I named my team after actress Jessica Biel. But this year, I have decided to name it in honor of my old street hockey team from the late 1980's: The Montvale Whalers. Here is the logo:
I'll keep you posted on league details soon...
So I am again running this league as commissioner, and we have begun to organize the league in preparation for a late August draft. I did horribly in this league year, due to injuries and bad decision I made. It's odd because in my other league, I went 13-1 and won the league title.
Soon I will be creating both a facebook landing page for the league and a separate blog for it as well. Last year, I named my team after actress Jessica Biel. But this year, I have decided to name it in honor of my old street hockey team from the late 1980's: The Montvale Whalers. Here is the logo:
I'll keep you posted on league details soon...
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Brett, Shark, and other things summery
Whoever said July is a slow month for sports needs to have their heads examined...
ITEM ONE: Green Bay's "Favre-ite" QB
So is anybody surprised by the fact that Brett Favre wants to play football again? No. Is anybody surprised at how poorly this is being handled by both him and the Packers? Absolutely.
Consider both sides for a moment... Favre basically said he didn't want to the Monday through Saturday stuff that comes with playing quarterback in the NFL, and just wants to play on Sundays. Of course, so would the rest of the population. Still, I found a couple of things odd: (1) The interview he does to discuss this was with... Greta Van Susteren? Really? Good choice Brett, I mean was Katie Couric not available? Is Campbell Brown a Bears fan? Hell, why not going completely off the grid and have Tabitha Soren do the interview? There's avoiding someone who could ask actual questions, like why you insisted you were done just 3 months ago, and how you have completely underminded Aaron Rodgers before he even takes his first snap. But can we get someone to do the interview that actually has more association to football than being a person who gained fame covering a former football star's double-murder trial? (2) The Packers can't trade you because you still have 3 years left on your deal, which you knew. They aren't just going to release you so the Vikings or Bears can scoop you up - come on dude, you are smarter than that. (3) If Ted Thompson lied to you, why didn't you go public with this in March? Don't you think fans and media would be even more willing to back your play if you were considering retirement because of this? And (4), with all the meida saying you've still got it because your 2nd half numbers were better than your 1st half numbers, they all seem to overlook one thing: you are the one who threw an INT in OT at home with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Still amazes me that no one made more out of that.
Then again, it's not like the Packers are blameless here. They should have obviously handled things in-house a lot better before Favre retired. They had to know this was going to happen. I know I did.
ITEM TWO: A damn good consolation prize
Now I remember one of the major reasons why Tiger Woods coming onto the scene in 1997 was such a great thing for golf and for golf fans: we wouldn't have to endure anymore Greg Norman meltdowns at major tournaments.
Like Charlie Brown spotting Lucy holding the football, I was once again suckered into watching the British Open this past weekend hoping that "The Shark" would win another major. He would have become the oldest ever to win a major. And in the absence of Tiger, it made the first three days of the tournament watchable.
Then on Sunday, he didn't just lose, he lost in an agonizing way that felt like watching a car wreck on a highway; you feel helpless and sorrowful for the victim, and yet you cannot turn away from the carnage.
It may me remember what golf was like back in Norman's prime. At the 1996 Masters, or as I like to refer to it: The Masters in the Year 1 B.T. (Before Tiger), he had a huge and seemingly unbreakable lead, only to collapse in a way that has only since been rivaled by the 2007 Mets and Britney Spears.
And yet, considering that Norman is very successful in other businesses and is married to Chris Evert, it's hard to feel sorry for him.
OTHER QUICKIES:
No one breathed a bigger sigh of relief that the All-Star Game didn't end up in another tie than Bud Selig. And yes, part of me was hoping it would just so he could be lambasted again... BTW, a simple solution to that problem: allow for 2 players to be selected before gametime to be eligble for re-entry into the game after the 10th inning, and any pitcher selected for the team that pitches on the Sunday before the game is allowed to attend the game but is automatically replaced by a another relief pitcher, so that the Kazmir/Webb situation never happens again... I forget exactly which day it was, but there was a day earlier this month when, on the ESPN networks, I was able to watch Maria Sharapova play tennis, Natalie Gulbis and Paula Creamer play golf, and Jennie Finch play an Olympic warm-up softball game. The only things missing were Erin Andrews calling the action and Amanda Beard swimming in an Olympic trial to make it a full day... Speaking of ESPN, can we please stop trying to manufacture feature segments and show more highlights? Last summer, it was the Who's Next Tournament. In February, it was the Greatest Highlight. Now, I can't get away from this stupid Titletown USA nonsense. Please stop the madness... Thank god NFL training camps start this week, and thank you to the Giants for trading away Tara Reid to the Saints. I think the Jaguars will come to regret not pulling the trigger for Jason Taylor... I wasn't going to watch the HR Derby last week, but when Josh Hamilton started hitting all those bombs, how do you not keep watching. He reminded me, in terms of his swing mechanics and body type, like Barry Bonds before the steroids.
Later...
ITEM ONE: Green Bay's "Favre-ite" QB
So is anybody surprised by the fact that Brett Favre wants to play football again? No. Is anybody surprised at how poorly this is being handled by both him and the Packers? Absolutely.
Consider both sides for a moment... Favre basically said he didn't want to the Monday through Saturday stuff that comes with playing quarterback in the NFL, and just wants to play on Sundays. Of course, so would the rest of the population. Still, I found a couple of things odd: (1) The interview he does to discuss this was with... Greta Van Susteren? Really? Good choice Brett, I mean was Katie Couric not available? Is Campbell Brown a Bears fan? Hell, why not going completely off the grid and have Tabitha Soren do the interview? There's avoiding someone who could ask actual questions, like why you insisted you were done just 3 months ago, and how you have completely underminded Aaron Rodgers before he even takes his first snap. But can we get someone to do the interview that actually has more association to football than being a person who gained fame covering a former football star's double-murder trial? (2) The Packers can't trade you because you still have 3 years left on your deal, which you knew. They aren't just going to release you so the Vikings or Bears can scoop you up - come on dude, you are smarter than that. (3) If Ted Thompson lied to you, why didn't you go public with this in March? Don't you think fans and media would be even more willing to back your play if you were considering retirement because of this? And (4), with all the meida saying you've still got it because your 2nd half numbers were better than your 1st half numbers, they all seem to overlook one thing: you are the one who threw an INT in OT at home with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Still amazes me that no one made more out of that.
Then again, it's not like the Packers are blameless here. They should have obviously handled things in-house a lot better before Favre retired. They had to know this was going to happen. I know I did.
ITEM TWO: A damn good consolation prize
Now I remember one of the major reasons why Tiger Woods coming onto the scene in 1997 was such a great thing for golf and for golf fans: we wouldn't have to endure anymore Greg Norman meltdowns at major tournaments.
Like Charlie Brown spotting Lucy holding the football, I was once again suckered into watching the British Open this past weekend hoping that "The Shark" would win another major. He would have become the oldest ever to win a major. And in the absence of Tiger, it made the first three days of the tournament watchable.
Then on Sunday, he didn't just lose, he lost in an agonizing way that felt like watching a car wreck on a highway; you feel helpless and sorrowful for the victim, and yet you cannot turn away from the carnage.
It may me remember what golf was like back in Norman's prime. At the 1996 Masters, or as I like to refer to it: The Masters in the Year 1 B.T. (Before Tiger), he had a huge and seemingly unbreakable lead, only to collapse in a way that has only since been rivaled by the 2007 Mets and Britney Spears.
And yet, considering that Norman is very successful in other businesses and is married to Chris Evert, it's hard to feel sorry for him.
OTHER QUICKIES:
No one breathed a bigger sigh of relief that the All-Star Game didn't end up in another tie than Bud Selig. And yes, part of me was hoping it would just so he could be lambasted again... BTW, a simple solution to that problem: allow for 2 players to be selected before gametime to be eligble for re-entry into the game after the 10th inning, and any pitcher selected for the team that pitches on the Sunday before the game is allowed to attend the game but is automatically replaced by a another relief pitcher, so that the Kazmir/Webb situation never happens again... I forget exactly which day it was, but there was a day earlier this month when, on the ESPN networks, I was able to watch Maria Sharapova play tennis, Natalie Gulbis and Paula Creamer play golf, and Jennie Finch play an Olympic warm-up softball game. The only things missing were Erin Andrews calling the action and Amanda Beard swimming in an Olympic trial to make it a full day... Speaking of ESPN, can we please stop trying to manufacture feature segments and show more highlights? Last summer, it was the Who's Next Tournament. In February, it was the Greatest Highlight. Now, I can't get away from this stupid Titletown USA nonsense. Please stop the madness... Thank god NFL training camps start this week, and thank you to the Giants for trading away Tara Reid to the Saints. I think the Jaguars will come to regret not pulling the trigger for Jason Taylor... I wasn't going to watch the HR Derby last week, but when Josh Hamilton started hitting all those bombs, how do you not keep watching. He reminded me, in terms of his swing mechanics and body type, like Barry Bonds before the steroids.
Later...
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