The Texan trap
Page 8 of 25 -- -- David Berg, New York, NY
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A: Well, let's see. Parcells just hands him the job that he's promised him for years, and the next day he quits.
Would you vote for Jim Rice in the Hall of Fame?
Does it bother you that Manny Ramirez wears Dwight Evans' number 24? If the Sox stick to their policy of retiring numbers (play ten years and make the Hall of Fame) that means it is likely Wade Boggs will have his number 26 retired. I think it is stupid to retire his number and not Evans or Rice. What do you think?
-- Chris Watson, S. Portland, Maine
A: I have voted for Jim Rice for the Hall of Fame (I have a vote) since he was eligible. Yes, it bothers me when the numbers of former great Red Sox are given out. I believe the criteria for deciding which numbers the Sox will retire is in the process of being changed. I think the new ownership and administration has received numerous complaints and suggestions to change the current criteria.
From ESPN.com/nfl - Continuity Drives Unit to Excel, By Mickey Spagnola, Pro Football Weekly 11/12/03
"Although Parcells is generally hailed for turning around the fortunes of this struggling franchise, he barely touched the defense."
From sports.yahoo.com/nfl - New England plans for NFL's top defense, By Howard Ulman, AP Sports Writer 11/13/03
"Parcells is a big reason for that, having installed a more aggressive defense after taking over for Dave Campo following Dallas' third straight 5-11 season."
So is this Parcells' defense or not?
Which one of these guys didn't do their homework?
Spagnola is PFW beat writer for the Cowboys and Ulman is an AP writer for Boston sports in general.
Obviously Spagnola then is the more credible source.
I know this only sports, but where does it begin and end?
Should I, as a news consumer, question the reliability of every source?
I don't want you throw anyone under the bus, but as a sports fan should this be condoned as good journalism?
-- Hugh Kirkpatrick, San Francisco
A: Mike Zimmer was retained as defensive coordinator. The defense is his. Parcells has let him run it, just as Belichick has let Romeo Crennel run his defense.
Teams such as KC and Dallas are having great seasons because their solid starters (as opposed to easily replaced marginal ones) have not suffered any significant injuries. Assume that no one else on the Pats gets seriously injured from now until December 1st and that everyone who is expected to come back over that time returns on schedule. How healthy would you then say the Pats would then be relative to an average NFL playoff-bound team on December 1st? Is having one Pro Bowler (Colvin) and two productive veterans (Patten and our starting center) out for the season still considered pretty bad luck relative to teams such as Indy, Tennessee, St. Louis, Baltimore, Carolina and Philadelphia? Will those teams have suffered similar losses, on average, by December 1st?
Continued...
