James' Football Blog

For a guy who is coming off a suspension imposed by his own team, New York Giants wide receiver Plaxico Burress sure doesn't sound like a guy who was humbled much by his involuntary time off.

“It was just a situation I had to deal with that morning, and I made the right decision,” Burress said during a conference call. “I don’t have any regrets about the decision I made at all.

“That was the decision they chose to do. I’ll take it at that. I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. I got me some rest and was able to get away for a while and chill out and relax. Things like that happen. I’ll keep moving forward and get back to doing what I do: catching footballs, scoring touchdowns and get back to work...”

“...Some of the demands they ask me to do, I just don’t meet,” Burress continued. “Maybe I have a problem with time or something, I don’t know. I haven’t been able to quite put my finger on it. Does it really bother or affect me? No. When it’s times to step on the field and play, that’s what I do.”

Problem is, it's also Burress' job to be in certain places at certain times throughout the week. Like practice and team meetings. And it's his job to make sure the team knows when he can't be where he is supposed to be.

He claims a family emergency was to blame for this particular incident, and suggests he was in the right... this time. And we agree that family comes first. Had this been an isolated incident, the team most likely would have been more forgiving if he, in fact, had a legitimate excuse. But earlier reports suggest Burress has been fined 40 to 50 times since joining the Giants in 2005 for a variety of infractions. With that type of track record, some sort of disciplinary action above and beyond a simple fine was probably long overdue.

For Burress to return with a stick up his butt, however, making disrespectful comments about how he didn't lose any sleep over being benched doesn't help his case with the team and his teammates.

It will be interesting to see if this drives a wedge between him and the club that eventually turns into a Terrell Owens type battle of wills.

Photo: Jeff Zelevansky / Getty Images

An Oshkosh man says he hasn't missed recording a Packers exhibition, regular and postseason game for the past 23 seasons. There really isn't much to do in Wisconsin, is there?

Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones apologized to Texans' owner Bob McNair for insulting comments he directed at Houston last week.

Despite displaying body language that might indicate otherwise, Detroit receiver Roy Williams says he wants to remain with the Lions. We've been unable to confirm the rumor that Williams was immediately placed in the league's substance abuse testing program immediately after making that statement.

Might Lane Kiffen file a multi-million-dollar defamation lawsuit against Raiders owner Al Davis for comments Davis made at his infamous press conference last week?

Steve Young joined fellow quarterbacks Joe Montana and John Brodie in having his uniform number retired by the 49ers.

Exactly 13 years to the day since former NFL running back O.J. Simpson was shockingly acquitted of killing his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman, in Los Angeles, a Las Vegas jury has found him guilty of 12 counts, which include charges of armed robbery and kidnapping. Simpson now faces up to life in prison as a result.

The charges stem from an incident last year at a Las Vegas casino in which Simpson and others stormed the hotel room of a sports memorabilia dealer and held him at gunpoint.

Simpson's lawyer, of course, is arguing that the jury in this case was out to right what they perceived as a wrong that was dished out more than a decade ago, and that his client didn't get a fair trial.

"This was just payback," said Yale Galanter of the verdict. "They (the jury) were on an agenda."

Perhaps Galanter has a valid point. I don't know. But with a large segment of the population believing Simpson got away with murder (two, in fact) 13 years ago, there's probably not a lot of sympathy for the former NFL icon. There may be those that pity him for what he has done to his own life, but I'm thinking not a lot of folks are feeling too sorry for him at this point and many probably feel justice has been served in a twisted sort of way.

And I imagine there was a little bit of a sense of satisfaction on the parts of the Brown and Goldman families in seeing Simpson handcuffed and hauled away after the verdict was handed down.

Hopefully this time it's for good!

Photo: Getty Images

It looks like maybe the Chicago Bears just might get something out of this year's top draft pick after all. According to Profootballtalk.com, first-round draft pick Chris Williams fully participated in practice on Friday and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Detroit Lions. But don’t expect the rookie to get considerable playing time anytime soon.

For one thing, he’s a rookie with no preseason and very little training camp experience playing one of the more important positions on the team at left tackle. Also, he still has his good days and his bad, and the Bears would be wise to exercise caution in their handling of his condition and not try to rush him back too quickly.

Throwing Williams to the wolves probably wouldn’t be the best strategy anyway, and really isn’t a necessity considering the way the Bears’ offensive line has held up. Despite my thinking, based on the preseason, that the unit would be horrendous in 2008, they’ve actually been fairly adequate. Nothing spectacular, but nothing disastrous either. They really do a better job of run blocking than pass blocking, though.

And John St.Clair has been serviceable at the left tackle position despite resembling a turnstile at times earlier in his career (particularly when he was with the St. Louis Rams). In all fairness, the Bears have used their running backs and tight ends to help him out some, but for the most part he hasn’t been as much of a liability as many assumed he would be.

A back injury can be a delicate thing to deal with, so there’s no guarantee when/if Williams will be ready to go, let alone take over for St. Clair. Look for the Bears to try to work Williams in slowly when he’s ready, though, and hope he catches up with the speed of the game quickly. I wouldn’t expect too much out of him this year, considering all the practice time he has missed. The Bears, however, should consider themselves lucky that they might get something out of him this season at all.

Photo: Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images

Former Oakland Raiders Head Coach Lane Kiffen may have decided to take the high road in cancelling his Wednesday press conference in which many assumed he would defend allegations from owner Al Davis that he is a liar and engaged in propaganda to make the Raiders look bad. But other former members of the organization aren't being so tight-lipped.

Take, for instance, former quarterback Rich Gannon, who had some interesting things to say about the organization on Sirius Radio:

"Well, you know it from being around it. I always said it’s not a tough place to work; it’s an impossible place to work. I left there on a high note. I went to four straight Pro Bowls, was league MVP. I don’t have any bad feelings about the place. I just know how difficult it was for me and I just look at the people that have left."

"Mike Shanahan leaves and wins two Super Bowls. Jon Gruden leaves and wins a Super Bowl. Norv Turner is having success in San Diego. To let people like that leave, particularly a guy like Jon Gruden who really worked and really threw every ounce of energy he had into the place. To let him leave the way he did was just a mistake. And what happened is, in my opinion - people say, ‘Why have they had the big fall-off since the Super Bowl and stuff?’ – I think that it’s about six people who have left the organization that really were the heart and soul of the whole group and really kept it going."

"Guys like Jon Gruden, Bruce Allen, the general manager, Bill Callahan, who was our offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. You lost quality people and some players and they’ve never been able to recover."

On the prospects of their latest head coach succeeding, Gannon had this to say:

"This guy, Tom Cable, the poor guy, does he think he is more equipped and better prepared than his predecessors? In other words, if Jon Gruden couldn't make it there and Bill Callahan couldn't make it there and then if Norv Turner couldn't make it there and then Art Shell couldn't make it there and then Lane Kiffin couldn't make it there, why does he think, all of a sudden, he's going to make it there?''

Wow!

Retired defensive tackle Warren Sapp threw in his two cents worth as well, saying, "Nobody tells you how bad it is." He said he was mad that ex-Raiders didn't warn him about how bad things were and said if anyone calls him for advice he says, "Do not go anywhere near Oakland."

Double Wow!

That's hardly a ringing endorsement.

With the Brett Favre Saga, the Tatem Bell bag-jacking incident, Chris Cooley exposing himself on his blog, and this cluster fudge in Oakland, this is shaping up to be about the most entertaining year in football off the field!

Photo: Jamie Squire / Getty Images

With Jerry Jones no longer able to take shots publicly at referree Ed Hochuli, he's turned his attention to the Houston Texans.

Public criticism by Keyshawn Johnson of Terrell Owens' comments following the Cowboys loss to the Redskins may have sparked a catfight.

Travis Henry has probably played his last game in the NFL.

The player formerly known as Chad Johnson says he's primed for a big game this weekend against the Cowboys. And if he does, it will be exactly the first time he's had a good game as Chad Ochocinco.

Despite the fact that Vince Young is healthy, the Titans will stick with Kerry Collins at quarterback. Apparently they've decided they'd like to win this year.

No matter how many times they flush, one turd keeps floating back to the surface for the Bengals.

The Rams are being sued for allegedly firing a trainer because he has epilepsy.

While pain is an issue for Aaron Rodgers, arm strength is more of a concern heading into this weekend's game with the Falcons.

Tony Mandarich, one of the NFL's biggest draft busts ever, discussed recently his football career failures on Showtime's Inside the NFL, saying he cheated on a steroids test (shocker, I know) prior to the 1988 Rose Bowl and that he was addicted to alcohol and pain killers when he joined the Green Bay Packers as a rookie.

Many, myself included, concluded that much of his severe drop in production from college to the pros was probably the result of being forced off the juice because of mandated testing in the NFL for performance enhancing substances. But, per the Milwaulkee Journal Sentinal, he says now that's not the whole story.

"There are other factors that were involved that nobody knows about that were way more of an effect on why I had the huge downfall in Green Bay than steroids (such as) drug and alcohol abuse. I was injecting a drug called staydal ... and it was euphoric. I went from doing one injection on that one day, and a week later I was doing between 5 [to] 7 shots a day for the next three years."

Mandarich started just 15 games for the Packers after being selected No. 2 overall in the 1989 NFL Draft, just ahead of Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas, and Deion Sanders.

Top Ten Draft Busts of All Time

Photo: Scott Halleran / Getty Images

On Tuesday, the long-awaited axe hanging over Oakland Raiders Head Coach Lane Kiffen's head finally fell. No big shocker there. The move had been anticipated for weeks now. But the fact that owner Al Davis decided to air the franchise's dirty laundry in detail during his press conference to announce the move -- which included the promotion of offensive line coach Tom Cable to interim head coach -- is a bit of a surprise.

Generally, in a situation like this, NFL teams take the high road and tend to focus on the future rather than dredging up the sordid details that led to making a change. It's usually considered the professional thing to do regardless of what has transpired behind the scenes. But unlike his contemporaries around the league, Davis didn't pull any punches.

Among other things, Davis called Kiffen a liar and said he was removing him for "cause", not because of the team's poor performance on the field. Davis also accused Kiffen of engaging in propaganda to make the Raiders look bad and said that his former head coach cannot be trusted. (Video of Davis' comments can be seen at NFL.com)

If half of what Davis said Tuesday is true, no one could blame him for firing Kiffen. However, keep in mind that we have heard just one side of the story. Something tells me we are going to hear a different version of the events leading up to Kiffen's demise when he talks to the media on Wednesday. (Editor's note: Kiffen's press conference was canceled.)

Photo: Jed Jacobsohn / Getty Images

NFL head coaches generally live in pressure cookers, and their game-management skills are really tested on Sundays. But just as the players are expected to perform on game day, so are the coaches. So when one of them really goofs up a game plan or mismanages the clock in crunch time, it deserves just as much press as a wide receiver dropping a sure game-winning touchdown pass.

Having said that, we have to ask, what the heck was Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Brad Childress thinking Sunday when he punted the ball away with roughly two minutes left in his team's loss to the Tenneesee Titans? At the time, he had no time outs on the board, and was trailing by 13 points. Was he not aware that all the Titans had to do to burn the clock was to kneel down a couple times? I mean, simple mathematical calculations should have told him that the Titans wouldn't have to run a single play at that juncture.

Granted, the likelihood that his offense would score two touchdowns in two minutes -- or convert on fourth down, for that matter -- was probably a longshot at best. But if he was aware of the circumstances and still punted the ball away, he might as well have waved a little white flag and pulled his team off the field. However, if he gave the ball up so late in the game not realizing there was no way his team would get it back, that's unforgiveable. Either way it's inexcusable, in my view.

That in itself would be bad enough, but Childress, during his Monday press conference, made matters worse when he addressed questions as to why he punted on fourth-and-13 from his own 18-yard line when faced with a 13-point deficit.

“Based on the way we were playing defense, I thought we’d have a chance to get it back,” Childress told reporters.

Yes, that's right. With a day to review the situation, Childress still seemed unaware that with no timeouts, there was no way he was going to get the ball back. That smacks of incompetence if you ask me. How can a guy rise to the level of NFL coach and not know that there's not enough time in that particular situation to get the ball back, let alone to score? Twice!

Photo: Jeff Gross / Getty Images

Along with the Dallas Cowboys' first loss of the season, a 26-24 defeat at the hands of the division-rival Washington Redskins, predictably came the first complaints of the season from wide receiver Terrell Owens. Of particular concern for Owens during his postgame press conference was the number of times the team looked his way on offense.

"Everybody recognized that I wasn't really getting the ball in the first half," Owens said. "I'm pretty sure everybody watching the game recognized it, people in the stands recognized it. I think my team recognized it."

I'd like to add one other thing to his list. Many also recognized that Owens had a hard time shaking Redskins cornerbacks Shawn Springs and Carlos Rogers. Everybody watching the game recognized it, people in the stands recognized it. And I think the team recognized it... although I'm not completely sure since they continued to target him over and over anyway.

Despite Owens' whining about not getting the ball, he was actually targeted 20 times out of 58 offensive plays. Apparently he has a very selective memory. I'm not sure how many times T.O. thinks the team should go to him during a game -- especially when it's obviously not working that well -- but it's tough to argue (at least with a straight face) that the Cowboys didn't try to get the ball into his hands during this particular game.

Now, maybe had Owens gained a little separation from the defender more consistently he and quarterback Tony Romo might have connected on a higher percentage of those plays. If anything, in my opinion, the Cowboys tried too hard to get the ball to Owens when there just wasn't a play there. It appeared as if Romo were forcing the issue rather than letting the opportunities come to him naturally. When Owens is covered, they still have capable receivers in Patrick Crayton and Miles Austin, along with tight end Jason Witten and a potent rushing attack. So there's no reason to focus so much on one weapon. In fact, the offense is more effective when Romo is spreading the ball around.

If there's anyone who should complain about not getting the ball during the loss, it's the running backs. The Cowboys, inexplicably, virtually abandoned the running game Sunday afternoon, giving Marion Barber just eight carries all day and rookie Felix Jones none.

But you didn't hear either of those guys complaining during postgame interviews. Perhaps they were distracted by minor things like being a team player and didn't have time for the important things like individual statistics and accolades. Apparently, there are players out there who actually care more about winning the game than who gets the credit for the victory and who takes the blame when they lose. Who would of thunk it?

Photo: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images