Does The Boss Belong in the Hall?
by Eddie Mayrose
As talk of George Steinbrenner’s possible induction into the Hall of Fame swirled around Old Timer’s day at Yankee Stadium, I was asked 
by Cheap Seater Jim Case if the late Steinbrenner had been good for baseball. A difficult question to answer, no matter how you felt about The Boss during his reign in the Bronx. While most Yankeee fans are sure to point to the many championships won since Steinbrenner bought the franchise in 1973, his detractors make note of the mockery he made of the pinstripes with his endless firings of managers and pitching coaches as well as two suspensions that resulted from a felony conviction and an extortion attempt. However, almost all will use the phrase, “George just wants to win.”
The thing I always found interesting about the “just wants to win” theory is that the Yankees never, EVER, won a title when the impetuous Boss had the final say about the roster. His first championships were won under the watchful eye of GM Gabe Paul, who threatened to quit whenever Steinbrenner insisted on a ridiculous player move. When Paul had had enough, he resigned, leaving the reins in George’s hands and the fans with a drought that would last eighteen years. Continue reading »
by Eddie Mayrose
New York Jets Cut Corners in Acquiring Corner
So, now we find out that one game short of the Super Bowl is the moral evacuation point for the New York Jets when it comes to the 
formation of their roster. Flush with the excitement of their improbable run to the AFC Championship game and desperate to fill a new stadium through a PSL extortion campaign, Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum has his eye on the prize; and, seemingly, nothing else.
His first big splash of the off season was to acquire Antonio Cromartie, former first round pick and Pro Bowl cornerback, from the Chargers. The idea of pairing Cromartie, the San Diego record holder for interceptions in a season, with Darrelle Revis, the game’s best, gave Tannenbaum the impetus to ignore the personal baggage Cromartie brings east. Gang Green’s new defensive back has been a busy young man; fathering seven children with six women in five states; all by the age of twenty five. With at least one paternity suit pending, the Jets felt it necessary to advance Cromartie $500K of his 2010 salary in order for him to satisfy delinquent child support payments. They can only hope he doesn’t start dating before training camp begins. Continue reading »
By Eddie Mayrose
New York Jets Suddenly Not “Same Old”
This time it was different. The Jets loss to the Colts in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game just didn’t feel as bad as the 
litany of playoff debacles that have dotted the team’s history. There was no fumble on the opening kickoff or a roughing the passer call with a win virtually sealed. There was neither mud nor A.J. Duhe. The Head Coach was not so frightened as to forget that a quarterback sack stops the clock or paranoid enough to claim that he received a crank phone call from Al Davis. Even the blown lead was different; surrendered not to turnovers, as was the case at Mile High Stadium in ‘98, but to a good, old fashioned, butt-kicking at the hands of one of the greatest to ever play his position. What felt so different was that, this time, the other guys were just better. Continue reading »
Gil Lock’s Take on the AFC and NFC Title Games
Things went better than expected last week for the star of Ryno Rife Sports Handicappers. He may not have won any 
money, but he did manage to break even on this season’s first venture into the world of pro football. Gil, having assured us he’d confer with his wife, Jill, returns this week to give his two cents on who we might be watching two weeks from now in Super Bowl XLIV.
by Eddie Mayrose
Football Gods Still Smiling On New York Jets
Shonn Greene had just crossed the goal line at the end of a bruising fifty-one yard run that had given the Jets a stunning 
17-7 lead over San Diego with seven minutes left in their Divisional Round playoff game on Sunday. As Greene was being mobbed by his teammates and my sons and I were jumping all over the living room, the phone rang. It was my dad, a well-meaning yet naive Giant fan, calling to congratulate us on a big win. I picked up the phone, horrified, and said, “Are you crazy? You can’t call me now. Do you have any idea how much disaster the Jets can pack into seven minutes?” And, sure enough, Rex Ryan immediately suffered his only brain cramp of the day; electing to squib the kickoff and hand the ball to the Chargers on the New York side of the field. There wasn’t a fan over thirty that didn’t believe we were about to be treated to another Jet horror show.
It was then, however, that Gang Green entered the Bizarro World, one where the opponent Continue reading »
