Good morning, Dick Jauron.
Joe Pendry? Marc Trestman? John Shoop? Chris Palmer?
Apparently, Halas Hall is sticking with its favorite decision-making method: rock-paper-scissors.
– Pendry, the Bills’ offensive coordinator who’s one of the finalists for the Bears’ offensive-coordinator job, reportedly favored the brittle and inexperienced Rob Johnson over the more successful and energizing Doug Flutie.
So there you go. Another guy who can’t pick the right quarterback.
Tell you what: Interim coach Dick Jauron is something else.
– Pendry had Johnson. Trestman had Jake Plummer in Arizona. Shoop has Cade McNown.
So there you go. A bunch of finalists who have failed miserably with Pac-10 quarterbacks, one of whom is still here. Tell you what: Interim coach Dick Jauron is something else.
– Marcus Fizer couldn’t stop to talk to the media after practice Tuesday. Reason: He had to attend a media training session.
– Andy MacPhail couldn’t wait to run Mark Grace out of town so he could bring some power to the corners. Then he gets Bill Mueller and Ron Coomer, who are lucky to match a bad year by Grace. But so what? Cubs season tickets go on sale Friday.
– Alex Rodriguez, on the response to his $252 million contract with Texas: “Somebody wins a lottery and they’re a national hero. Somebody works their butt off and he’s a devil.”
– Ravens defensive tackle Tony Siragusa is a big, jolly guy with an ability to stop the run, so he occasionally has been compared to former Bear William “Refrigerator” Perry. Said Siragusa: “You can’t compare me to the Fridge. I’m lean and svelte.”
Siragusa is listed at 340 pounds.
– On NFL Films’ “Sounds of the Season 2000,” which features sound bites from players and coaches in Monday night games, Baltimore coach Brian Billick tells one of his players, “We’ve got to get some physical play here. I don’t care if you hit one of our own guys.”
– Giants offensive lineman Glenn Parker, on his injury against Philadelphia: “I pulled some fat.”
– Cindy Gruden, wife of Raiders coach Jon Gruden, on their life when Jon was video librarian for the 49ers: “We never had any money. We used to go to the $1 movies. The whole theater was only a dollar. I remember one time somebody had thrown up in the seat next to us. But, hey, it was cheap.”
– When Baltimore goes to Oakland for the AFC title game Sunday, former Bronco Shannon Sharpe will face Raiders fans again. “To be honest with you, I’d rather be in prison for a day,” he said. “It’s a lot safer.”
– Somebody spent $6,100 on Ultimatebid.com to watch the Super Bowl from a luxury suite with supermodel Heidi Klum.
– What does Mario Lemieux’s return mean to the NHL? He reignited Jaromir Jagr and will give the league a 100-point scorer for the first time in two seasons.
– Jocelyn Thibault has been winning games in the first period, which is a sign of a goalie playing at top level. It’s also a sign of a team unprepared to play, just in case the breakaway republic known as the Blackovs wanted to know.
– How tough is playing for an expansion team? In Columbus, where the Blackovs play Friday night, teammates Lyle Odelein and Krzysztof Oliwa duked it out twice–the second time in a parking lot.
– The end: LSU Chancellor Mark Emmert, during the ceremony where Shaquille O’Neal received his bachelor’s degree: “I’d like to thank Mr. O’Neal for dramatically increasing the [average] starting salary of this graduating class.”
