Foggy Goals In London

What is the goal of the NFL for playing games in London? It's a great way to grow the game on an international basis, but are they really serious about putting a franchise there? They will play two games there again this year.

Today, the Steelers and Vikings played. I'm sure the league thought it was a good idea to send two of their iconic franchises to London, but who would have thought they would both be 0-3. The Vikings won 34-27, the stadium was full and the ratings were good as well.

Travel time is the biggest hindrance to locating a franchise there. The Jacksonville Jaguars would probably jump at the chance to move if it was closer.

The league will continue to schedule games there, but with an unclear vision of what they really want to do.

The Tony and Rob Show

The Pats and Falcons game should have been a showcase for two of the best tight ends to play the game. Rob Gronkowski has already been ruled out. He never made the trip. We will be seeing the last of the great Tony Gonzalez who will be retiring at the end of the season after 17 years in the NFL.

Gonzalez has established himself as the best to ever play tight end. His numbers are staggering. Some of it is due to playing for so long.

Gronk is on the pace to match his numbers, but I can't see him playing for 17 seasons. The way it's going now, he will be lucky to last 8 or 9 years. It's hard to tell because he has been injured from the start of his career.

Gonzalez is the career leader for tight ends with 1,253 receptions, for 14,371 yards and 104 TD's. Gronk after three seasons has 187 receptions, 2,663 yards and 38 TD's.

Gronk's best shot at a record is the TD one as long as he has Tom Brady. Could you imagine the numbers Gonzalez could have if he played with Tom Brady?

LT & Boomer

Players have their own personal battles on the field with each other. Some get fined for it and move on. Other times, they continue it into their post-playing days. We are seeing that with Hall of Fame LB Lawrence Taylor and QB Boomer Esiason.

Taylor is the subject of a Showtime documentary on his life: "L.T. The Life and Times". It's a very unflattering view of Taylor's life off the field, especially when he played for the New York Giants under Coach Bill Parcells and defensive coordinator Bill Belichick.

Esiason claims that Taylor received preferential treatment from both coaches. He acknowledges that in his autobiography I read a few years ago. Boomer commented in the Showtime bit as well as a "60 Minutes" story ten years ago.

They are now engaged in a war of words and name calling, some of which cannot be printed in the newspaper or said over the air. I don't think they will be patching up their differences any time soon.

Having His Favorites

Coach Belichick can never catch a break with his critics. He has been vilified for routinely running up the score against opponents. His response has always been that you need to play for 60 minutes, even when you're leading by 40 points.

It was different last Sunday against Tampa Bay. It's well known that Belichick and Buc's coach Greg Schiano are good friends. Both teams scrimmaged in training camp and Schiano's former school Rutgers has become a pipeline for talent to the Pats.

The game was hopelessly out of hand late in the fourth quarter. The Pats were moving the ball down the field and burning the clock. When it came to 4th down and and easy field goal, Belichick decided to go for it. The Bucs stopped them and got the ball back. By then, it was too late.

Belichick has been taking a beating on sports talk shows because some callers feel that he made Schiano an exception to his rule. Maybe he did. He has that right. The defense always needs to stop the offense. It's very basic and these guys get paid a lot of money to do it.

Smith Sets His Standard

Aaron Hernandez set a new standard for bad behavior off the field when he was arrested for murder. Everything else pales in comparison to that.

LB Aldon Smith of the 49er's is making a name for himself for all the wrong reasons. He was arrested last Friday at 7am for drunk driving and pot possession after he drove his car into a tree. He showed up at the 49er's practice a few hours later.

He was arrested for DUI back in January 2012 while in Miami, but the charges were reduced to reckless driving. He is still waiting to see if he will be charged with illegal possession of assault rifles. The guns were found at his place after gang members crashed a party he was hosting. Smith ended up getting stabbed while two other guests were shot.

The 49er's decided to let Smith play last Sunday in spite of being arrested at 7am, two days before their next game. Smith was the 7th overall pick in the 2011 draft. He is immensely talented, but very immature. He has guaranteed salaries of $2.34 million for this year and next, but faces a possible suspension by Commissioner Goodell for his behavior.

To soften his landing, the team and Smith decided it would be best for him to check into a rehab facility. It's a good idea to seek treatment, but it sounds like he is being forced to get it.

Fans Need To Chill

I think fans need to take a step back and look at the Pats being 3-0. It remains to be seen what happens from here, but they got off to a good start. Only seven teams have that record.

This doesn't seem to please a lot of fans who want the team to play better. They see Tom Brady yelling on the sidelines and know the team could be performing at a higher level in all phases of the game.

They want wins now and expect the team to go deep in the playoffs. Who knows what will happen between now and the end of December?

I feel good about this team.

Time To Come Clean

College football continues as a shining example of hypocrisy. Schools pretend that players never receive any money or favors from alumnae. When the NCAA discovers money has been paid, they come down with a hammer on the offending school.

Houston Texan RB Adrian Foster admitted in an upcoming documentary that he took money during his senior year at Tennessee. He cited financial problems and the inability to pay his bills and rent. He said it was a "normal" thing to do and didn't see anything wrong with it. He was hoping that the NCAA would not punish his former school.

The NCAA and the schools need to change their ways. Players should receive some type of stipend. Some are getting money now under the table. It corrupts the entire system. Why not bring it to the surface? It's about time for some honesty from all parties.

Polamalu To Get Cut

After ten years, Troy Polamalu will get his mane of hair cut. The Pittsburgh Steelers safety will have a trim on Veteran's Day at a VFW Hall. His locks will be auctioned off for charity. Others will be asked to cut their hair and make a financial pledge.

He has been a big supporter of various veterans groups. Polamalu has a charity named in honor of his grandfather, a military veteran of world War II.

He has perhaps the biggest head of hair in the NFL. He has appeared in commercials for "Head and Shoulders Shampoo". At one point, his hair was insured for $1 million.

Rumor is that he will have up to ten inches cut. He has locks longer than that. I bet when they finish, he won't look much different.

I saw him on the NFL Network talking about this. He had his hair pulled back. It didn't look that long, but it's a different story when he wears it under his football helmet.

Everyone Wins and Loses

Wins and losses in the NFL are often determined by a few points. When the Pats face Tampa Bay on Sunday, they will face a team that is 0-2. It might sound bad, but the Bucs lost their games by a total of three points. It's like that around the league every week.

After two weeks, there are only eight undefeated teams, but that will change on Sunday. Usually by week six, all teams will have at least one loss. The owners want it that way. Parity is great for the league. It keeps the interest of fans and drives the television ratings.

Some teams are perennial losers. Before Tommy Kelley signed with the Pats, he spent nine losing seasons in Oakland without a trip to the playoffs. At this point in his career, winning is paramount.

Return of Andy

Andy Reid made his return to Philadelphia last night and lead his Kansas City Chiefs to a 26-16 win over his former team.

He was the longest tenured coach in the NFL with the same team before he was fired at the end of the 2012 season. He became the target of fan frustration of having only one Super Bowl appearance in 14 seasons.

The Eagles went to the NFC title game five times, but had only one win to show for it. Fans and the media stated the call for change a couple of seasons ago after the team missed the playoffs. The writing was on the wall.

When he left the Eagles, he took 27 coaches and support staff with him. At least those people didn't lose their job.

Reid has lead the Chiefs to a 3-0 record. With 13 games left in the season, the Chiefs hope to build on that and finally make the playoffs.

Looking at the 2nd Round

The Pats take a regular beating on talk shows when the discussion focuses on their draft picks over the last few years.

Coach Belichick likes to trade out of the first round to get "better value". He especially likes to pick in the 2nd round. From 2008-2011, the team found solid players in Sebastian Vollmer, Brandon Spikes, Rob Gronkowski and Shane Vereen. They have all contributed to the team's success.

On the other hand, they struck out with Terrence Wheatley, Darius Butler, Patrick Chung, Ron Brace, Jermain Cunningham and Ras-I Dowling. Chung and Butler were able to catch on with other teams. The others spent too much time on the injured list while they were on the Pats roster.

You can't blame the front office when players get hurt. Some players never get their career off the ground because of injury. You see it all around the league. It's been going on forever.

No Help In Sight

The Pats have only played two games and already there is a major concern over the offense. Nobody seems to feel that things will fall in place with the three rookie receivers.

Two local writers had some different ideas today. One suggested that the Pats try to trade for Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals. It doesn't matter that he has a $15 million annual salary and would command a couple of draft picks. I don't believe in trades in the NFL. Anything can happen on any play. The Pats could make the deal and then Fitzgerald could be hurt on his first play.

Another writer wanted the Pats to sign Terrell Owens. That makes a bit of sense. I'm sure the Pats have thought about it, but Owens seems to be toxic based on all 32 teams not offering him a contract this year or last. Owens is 39 and brings a great deal of baggage with him. He might be getting a payback for all of his controversial moments during his career.

The Pats would be better of with Deion Branch or Dante Stallworth. I wouldn't be surprised to see the team sign one of them at some point this season.