Since the news broke Sunday night that a team of Navy SEALs had indeed killed Osaama bin Laden, reaction has been swift and in many forms.  People took to the streets outside the White House and cheered.  Notoriously hard-edged Phillies fans chanted “USA!” as their team played the Mets with the game tied 1-1 in the 9th.

While even Republicans praised President Obama on a job well done, Steelers RB Rashard Mendenhall tweeted his reaction and his is the response that caused quite a stir.

His Tweets as quoted from his Twitter account:

What kind of person celebrates death? It’s amazing how people can HATE a man they have never even heard speak. We’ve only heard one side…

@ dkeller23 We’ll never know what really happened. I just have a hard time believing a plane could take a skyscraper down demolition style

That Tweet may be referring to the documentary “Loose Change” which has been watched by millions of Americans and has caused quite a stir among conspiracy therorists.

Throwing these Tweets out on a day America was finally feeling closure was not too bright.  In fact, it makes his fumble in February’s Super Bowl XLV begin to look like the second-biggest blunder he’s made in 2011.

Reaction has been swift and not so positive, to say the least.  His name was one of the top trending phrases on Twitter Tuesday.  In addition, the Steelers released a statement, in which team president Art Rooney II said that he hadn’t yet spoken with the player, and that the team is, “…very proud of the job our military personnel have done and we can only hope this leads to our troops coming home soon.”

Look, I’m all for freedom of speech.  But that works both ways – while Mendenhall is perfectly free to “say” what he wants, people are also free to express their disdain for his remarks.  While it isn’t generally good to celebrate someone’s death, I think a lot of people are making an exception in this case.  And as for hearing “one side” – I think we heard enough from bin Laden, namely his taking credit for the 9/11 attacks.

As for his doubting that a plane could take down a skyscraper, I have friends who actually witnessed the planes flying into the World Trade Center.  Others were lucky enough to survive the towers crumbling.

Here’s an idea, Rashard: why don’t you go visit Ground Zero, the Pentagon or the field not far from you in Shanksville.  Come back to us after you’ve done so and let us know what you think.

And another thing – is it me, or has Twitter, Facebook and the internet in general become like the bathroom wall or classroom desk in high school once was?  You, know, a forum for every random thought.  Instead of kids writing “Cowboys suck!” we now get athletes tweeting about bin Laden and bashing Roger Goodell.

Although there’s one difference – eventually the janitors (including yours truly for a few summers) scrub all that junk off.  On the internet, it stays there forever, for all to see.  Do we really care or need to hear the random thoughts of athletes and celebrities?  Go pick up a phone and tell your friends in confidence.  You know, like they used to do in the 20^th century.

So here’s some wise advice, Rashard: think before you tweet.  And try to focus on more important things, like holding onto the football.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris covered the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

After the Tampa Bay Rays lost Carl Crawford and Carlos Pena to free agency this off-season, the Rays decided to go with older, less expensive veterans as replacements. The team signed two cornerstones of the 2004 Red Sox squad that won its first Word Series in 86 years – Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon.

The concept was that the two would be reinvigorated by moving to their home state of Florida and provide leadership to the team’s young players.

Ramirez, whose “Mannywood” empire crumbled in Los Angeles after serving a 50-game suspension in 2009 for violating MLB’s drug policy and generally mailing it in last season, has already gotten his new club acquainted with his “Manny being Manny” quirks.  He missed a March 30 exhibition game for “personal reasons,” with Manager Joe Maddon  adding that “there was something he really had to do today.” Don’t you miss this, Dodgers fans?

On the other hand, Damon, who landed with the Detroit Tigers last year after playing a high-stakes came of free agency “chicken” with the New York Yankees, has been behaving himself.  However, he has already missed one game, after being scratched from Sunday’s lineup due to tightness in his calf.

And it looks as though the two players may have started to settle into pre-retirement mode.

After three games Inside Edge Scouting Services reminded me that in three games Manny was hitting just .083 (1-for-12) and after two games, Damon has yet to get a hit in eight at-bats and had struck out three times.  On top of that the Rays started the season out by getting swept by the Orioles while both these players could be pushed for playing time by power-hitting outfielder Matt Joyce who had previously been relegated to the bench by Crawford.

No matter how Manny and Damon fare in 2011, one thing is for certain: no matter how poorly they may be performing at the outset, their jobs should be much safer than that of current closer Kyle Farnsworth.  Yes, you read that correctly – he IS still in baseball and someone DOES think he can still close games.

This sure puts Crawford’s early struggles with Boston into perspective, doesn’t it?  Unless you’re a typical overreacting Red Sox fan, of course.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris also covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell sat right down and wrote a letter. . . and the NFL players didn’t much appreciate it. . . so they wrote one back.

The words put in text are the latest punches thrown in the “Billionaires vs. Millionaires” dispute (a.k.a. the lockout/lawsuit).  In case you missed it, talks between league owners and the NFLP broke down, the extended negotiation period passed, the NFLPA decertified, and then filed an Federal antitrust lawsuit against the league I call Ponytail…ERR…Brady v. NFL.

Last week, Goodell took the unusual step of writing a letter which explained certain facts about the negotiations and clarified certain financial terms that have been disputed.  He then e-mailed it directly to every player and their agent.  What’s interesting is that Goodell clearly sent this as a way to bypass the (now decertified) union and go directly to the players.  A move that’s legally allowed since the union is no longer certified but it’s still risky move and yet another salvo in the ongoing PR war.

Naturally, the players took offense to this letter.  They responded by – what else? – firing off a letter of their own to Goodell, in which they disputed the facts quoted in his letter, reminded him that they were indeed at the negotiating table, and reminded him that the NFLPA is still advising the players in their litigation.

This week, Goodell said that his intention was to ensure “…that keep people informed.”  Regardless, his letter got the attention he wanted, and the players got to vent their frustrations.  Ah, nothing like negotiating via the keyboard!

Is anyone having fun yet?  Shouldn’t we be reviewing endless mock drafts by now?

Ultimately, it’s hard to pull for either side in this dispute.  The owners extort money from season ticket-holders in the form of PSLs, build brand-new palatial stadiums with more high-end suites than some hotels, and rake in more and more money as they cry poverty.  The players make an average salary that would make players from the 1960s and 70s willing to come out of retirement for, have better benefits, and more job opportunities than ever before (via expansion and expanded rosters).

And when Goodell sends a letter like this, or NFLPA president DeMaurice Smith does an interview like the one he did with WFAN’s Mike Francesa, I realize why more and more fans are already sick of this charade.  And the only losers in the situation will be we, the fans.

In the meantime, send both sides a message.  Don’t buy any NFL merchandise.  Don’t watch anything related to the NFL.  Don’t pay for your season tickets.  (Oh, wait, that only works if you have New York Giants tickets).  You get the point – that’s the only way to send both sides a message.

Instead, focus your attention and hard-earned money on a sport whose season is less than a week away, actually has labor peace, and cares about its fans: Major League Baseball.

On second thought, scratch those last two facts.  But at least MLB is playing games instead of passing notes to each other.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris covered the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

Photo provided by Public Domain Pictures.

By now, we all know that the NFL owners And NFLPA agreed to extend the expiration of their current CBA for 24 hours meaning it expires tonight at 11:59PM.

Why is this?

There have been two interesting pieces of news that have come out in the past few weeks that may have swung some of the momentum back towards the NFLPA.

First, on Tuesday U.S. District Judge David Doty reversed a previous ruling that would have given NFL owners the ability to access $4 billion in television revenues, even in the event of a lockout.  This would have created a “war chest” of sorts for the owners, who would receive a key revenue stream while potentially no games are played in 2011.  Advantage, players.

The second story is a more somber one.  On February 17^th, Dave Duerson, the former Pro Bowl safety for the Chicago Bears (as well as the New York Giants and then-Phoenix Cardinals), died as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest.  Duerson’s wife filed for divorce in 2007 and had filed for bankruptcy in September of 2010, but the chilling text messages he sent before his suicide may give another motive.  It also has sent shock waves throughout the NFL.

In his final message to family members, Duerson clearly states that his brain be given to the NFL’s brain bank (a reference to the Boston University center that is studying the effects of concussions on deceased NFL players’ brains).  One anonymous source told the New York Times that Duerson told him that Duerson thought he may have C.T.E. – a variation of Dementia that is linked to head injuries in athletes.  The fact that Duerson spared his brain makes this tragedy even more heartbreaking.

How does this tie into the current NFL labor dispute?  First off, player safety and the need for better medical benefits for retired players are two key issues that the NFLPA has brought to the forefront in recent years.  In addition, this could throw a wrench in the league’s proposal for extending the regular season to 18 games, as more games could only lead to more injuries.

Regardless of what side of the table you agree with, a good source of funding the costs of these improved benefits for players should come via a rookie wage scale.  The NBA already has one, and I don’t see young players suffering financially and the NHL set the trend early with an entry level contract that is set around 900K per year for newcomers to the league.

When JaMarcus Russell is basically run out of the league after earning $32 million in guaranteed money, yet other former players are denied health insurance due to “pre-existing conditions,” the pay scale is nearly non-existent and way too lopsided. Anyone who’s ever been laid off and had to worry about benefits (including yours truly) can surely relate.

No matter what happens in the “Billionaires vs. Millionaires” labor dispute, here’s hoping Duerson did not live (or die) in vain.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris covered the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

The past six months have given us three of the biggest implosions by professional athletes in recent memory.  With this being movie award season and all here in L.A., we at Sports Climax thought it would be nice to give out our own award, of sorts.  Excellence in ruining your image MUST be rewarded!

In the category of “Best PR Implosion By An Athlete,” the nominees are:

• LeBron James, “The Decision”
• Brett Favre: “The Indecsion III” and “Sexting.”
• Jay Cutler: “Knee-Gate”

All three are deserving nominees and here’s a brief synopsis of how they all made it to the red carpet.

James was the most sought-after free agent in NBA history last July when his contract with his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers expired.  Where would he go?  Everyone thought he’d end up in media capital of the world, New York.  Other suitors emerged – the Bulls, Heat, Clippers (OK, maybe not), Nets and Cavs.  A “tour” of sorts ensued.  As if that weren’t enough, his “team” decided to green-light an ESPN special to announce which team he would be signing with, called “The Decision,” hosted by the parasitic Jim Gray – who was even paid for his services by Team LeBron.  James chose the Heat, the “show” was a PR disaster, and public opinion turned south.

After coming so close to taking his Minnesota Vikings to a Super Bowl, Favre did his usual off-season retire/un-retire dance.  He strung along the Vikings some more, caused then-head coach Brad Childress to come visit him, and then finally returned to the team with just a few weeks left in training camp.  Once the season started and things weren’t going Favre’s way, he started to publicly throw Childress under the proverbial bus (no, not Jerome Bettis).  Then, came the news that Favre once “sexted” a picture of his, um… to former Jets “in-house sideline reporter Jenn Sterger.  Childress later got fired, Favre got hurt yet again, and then two former massage therapists hired by the Jets accused him of sexual harassment.  By the end of the season, people just wanted Favre to retire.  For real, this time.

Finally, Cutler – a notoriously surly and non well-liked quarterback in both Denver and now Chicago – had his sudden plunge in public opinion as a result of last month’s NFC Championship Game.  During a loss to the Green Bay Packers, Cutler suffered a knee injury and only played one series in the third quarter.  This wouldn’t normally have been a big deal, except for the fact that he gave the appearance of not being seriously hurt, tried to ride an exercise bike on the sidelines and later stood on the sideline for the rest of the game.  The media quickly came down on him (including various current and former NFL players via Twitter).  After an MRI the next day revealed that Cutler did indeed have a tear of his MCL.  But Cutler quickly eliminated any sense of public sympathy last week, when he was spotted strolling through Beverly Hills with his reality TV “star” girlfriend, Kristin Cavallari.

This one’s tough to predict, sports fans.  The envelope, please.  (Insert drum roll).  And the winner is…LeBron James!  What a close vote – he just edged out Favre in the voting.

While Cutler clearly has zero grasp on his image, in his defense, it was revealed on Thursday that he did receive a painkiller shot during halftime, so at least he gave it the old college try.  As for Favre, we pretty much expect his annual diva act, and the sexual-related allegations should really surprise no one.  Let’s just say that Favre’s not the sharpest tool in the shed.

But James actually had a good, positive public image before “The Decision,” and he wiped it all away with that one hour train-wreck on ESPN.

Had he simply held a press conference to announce that he was leaving for Miami, people would have gotten over their initial anger (well, maybe not in Cleveland).  No one begrudges an athlete leaving for more money in the 21^st Century.  But his WWE-style orchestrated charade simply rubbed people the wrong way.  That, as well as the mere fact that Gray asked such tough questions as, “Where is the powder?” and “Are you still a nail biter?”  Nothing like insulting people’s intelligence, LeBron.  And kudos for increasing the Lakers’ and Celtics’ fan bases overnight.

Congratulations to the winner and the nominees, and we look forward to seeing you back here next year.  Yes, there WILL be plenty of athletes to choose from in 2011, I’m sure.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris covered the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

The NFL’s version of the Hatfields and McCoys are at it once again. The New England Patriots and New York Jets meet up on Sunday for a third and final time in the AFC Divisional Playoffs and like their previous two meetings, the week leading up to the game has fired up the war of words between the two rivals. Keeping with the trend, the Jets have been the more loquacious of the two sides.

The first sublime shot came last Saturday night when Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and his wife, Gisele went to see the hit Broadway play, “Lombardi.” Second-guessers immediately insinuated that he was disrespecting the Jets (who were playing the Colts in the AFC Wild Card game that exact time).  Brady explained that he got the tickets well in advance, and therefore wouldn’t know who was playing that night.

Not surprisingly, the first verbal salvo was fired by Jets head coach and notorious foot-lover Rex Ryan.  At a press conference on Monday, Ryan once again used his favorite quote, “It’s personal.” He added:

“This is about Bill Belichick vs. Rex Ryan.  There’s no question. It’s personal. It’s about him against myself, and that’s what it’s going to come down to.”

Ryan also went on to accept all the blame for his team’s 45-3 loss to New England in Week 13.  Vintage Rex, causing a stir and deflecting attention away from his players who are the ones who should have the finger pointed at them.

Belichick retorted in his usual staid form, refusing to take the bait and calling the Jets a “good team” during his Monday conference call.  He also added a humorous analysis of the match-up between the two coaches, adding, “Well, I might have a little quickness on him.  He’s probably got a little more strength and power on me.”

But that was just the beginning of all the fun.

On Tuesday, Jets cornerback (and this decade’s version of Shawn Kemp) Antonio Cromartie told the New York Daily News that Brady did engage in finger-pointing after throwing a touchdown pass against the Jets on December 6^th.  Cromartie also added that he hates Brady, called him “an asshole” and summed it all up by stating, “F*ck him.”  Cromartie also made sure to take a shot at his former team, the San Diego Chargers, gloating, “I’m in the playoffs and they’re not.”  (Memo to Antonio: Ironically, the Chargers were happy your team won last week – they now get a 2^nd round pick from the Jets in return for trading you earlier this year).

On Wednesday, Brady also responded in a Belichick-esque manner, saying, “I’ve been called worse.”  He then called Cromartie “a good player” and fellow Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis “a great player.”  He then summed it all up by concluding, “They’re one of the best defenses we’ve faced.”  Well-played, Tom.  If the Justin Bieber look-alike thing doesn’t pan out for you as a future career, we see a bright future for you in public relations.

Now I’m no prognosticator (I just do well at fantasy football) but a wise man once told me to let sleeping dogs lie.  Yes, this is true for my beloved pooch, and I’m guessing it also is for a certain team that plays in Foxboro.  Regardless of who wins the verbal jousting match this week, it should make for an interesting game on Sunday.  And I’m sure Sean McManus, Jim Nantz and Phill Simms of CBS Sports are giggling with glee…

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris also covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

The New Year usually signals a few things – colder weather, post-holiday doldrums, having to endure yet another Ryan Seacrest appearance from Times Square, and the NFL coaching carousel starting its annual spin.  Since we last visited this topic, Wade Phillips, Brad Childress, Josh McDainels, Mike Singletary, John Fox, Eric Mangini and Tom Cable were handed their walking papers.  The Dolphins have yet to make a decision on the future of Tony Sparano, but he could be out soon as well.

What’s unusual this year however is that there are fewer head coaching openings. The Vikings and Cowboys took the interim tag off Leslie Frazier and Jason Garrett, respectively.  A number of other coaches rumored to be on the hot seat, including Tom Coughlin (Giants), Jack Del Rio (Jaguars), Gary Kubiak (Texans), Marvin Lewis (Bengals) and potentially Jeff Fisher (Titans) all will be sticking with their current teams.

Wait a minute − I see a trend developing here.  Why are teams promoting interim coaches, keeping ones who would normally be fired and not bidding on free agents such as Bill Cowher?  Because of the looming lockout.

You see, if the NFL owners and NFLPA can’t agree on a new collective bargaining agreement once the current one expires on March 3, players will literally be locked out of their teams’ facilities.  That means no workouts, OTAs, etc.  That could potentially lead to a delayed/shortened training camp and – GASP – a delayed or even shortened 2011 season.

If a team brings in a new coach with a new staff, new playbook, etc., that team would be behind the proverbial eight ball should there be less time to prepare for the season.  Hence, owners aren’t willing to spend millions on new coaches who might be paid to sit around for a few months.

Now I’m no financial journalist (although I do play a glorified one during the day), but it seems to me that this is a clear smoke signal being sent from the owners:  they anticipate at least some sort of lockout, and they won’t be giving in to the NFLPA anytime soon.  There are a multitude of economic implications too long to mention, but it sure smells like the owners are preparing for the worst.

That being said, there are still three known and one potential opening to speculate about.  Stanford’s Jim Harbaugh is the hottest candidate right now.  He had been the favorite to take the 49ers job, with reports suggesting an offered salary of $5 million per year.  But then today comes news that his can’t-miss quarterback Andrew Luck would be returning for his junior season.  Now, Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports reports that the Dolphins are on the verge of signing Harbaugh, with other reports speculating at a salary of $7-8 million per year.  But shouldn’t Miami actually HAVE a job opening before they “post” it?

According to this Tweet by ESPN analyst John Buccigross this morning, “Chris Mortenson says Tony Sparano will coach Dolphins next year.”  Should Harbaugh decide to stay in Palo Alto or take another NFL job, a report by Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network mentions Fox’s Brian Billick, Raiders offensive coordinator Hue Jackson and former Broncos coach Josh McDaniels (which is complete insanity – do the Niners remember the taping scandal from earlier this year?) as potential candidates in San Francisco.

No clear front-runners have emerged yet in Denver or Cleveland, but it will be interesting to see how John Elway and Mike Holmgren handle their first hires.

Despite all this turmoil and potential lockout, there is still one constant: no one knows why Al Davis fired Cable after the man improved to 8-8 going with a 6-0 division record, and no one knows who will take the Raiders job.  Some things never change.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris also covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

Dear Santa,

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve written you, but you know how it goes – wife, kids, dog. . . never a free moment.  Okay, that doesn’t excuse me from not writing since I was a wee lad in elementary school but either way I HAVE been a good boy for the last two-plus decades so I hope your accountants have been keeping accurate books. As a sports journalist and fan, I submit to you my Christmas sports “wish list” for 2011:

1. PLEASE make Brett Favre stay retired in 2011.  Enough already!  He’s making Willie Mays’ stint with the Mets look less and less painful.
2. That Fox’s Joe Buck stop doing bad stand-up comedy and saying “fresh set of downs.”
3. A copy of Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales.  If this book is nearly as good as their last collaboration (Live From New York An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live), then we’re in for a treat.  The suits at “The Bristol Improv” must be anxious…
4. No NFL lockout.  Make Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith watch the Ken Burns documentary, The Tenth Inning so they do not repeat the fate of Major League Baseball.
5. Anyone but the Miami Heat to win the NBA title.
6. Anyone but the Boston Red Sox or Philadelphia Phillies win the World Series. I know you’re not fond of those Philly fans who once booed you at the old Vet.
7. Better sports talk radio.  Here in Los Angeles, we have practically no local shows, and the syndicated ones (Dan Patrick, Colin Cowherd, Petros and Money, J.T. the Brick) aren’t cutting it.
8. If you can’t deliver me No. 8, how about a Sports Climax podcast?
9. That more sports fans act like the ones in Seattle.  Yes, I witnessed first-hand how loud Qwest Field can be, yet the supporters of the Seahawks that I encountered were all nice, gracious and well-mannered.  Wish I could say the same for most fan bases.  With apologies to Ron Burgundy, “You stay classy, Seattle.”
10. More great documentaries from HBO Sports and NFL Films/NFL Network like   Lombardi, Bill Parcells: Reflections on a Life in Football and Tom Landry: The NFL’s Man in the Hat.
11. New owners for the Los Angeles Dodgers.  And please, no more wanna-be celebrities who prefer to spend more on lawyers than players.
12. No matter who owns the team, that 2011 not be Vin Scully’s last year calling Dodgers games.
13. More hilarious “celebrity” sports Tweeters like WFAN’s “Mike Francesa,” former MLB pitching great “Old Hoss Radbourn” and the man that creep Robert Blake portrayed on TV, “David Toma.”  OK, Toma’s not really a sports figure, but he does have a great anti-drug message – witnessed it myself during a high school assembly.
14. The ability to be able to take my wife and kids to a professional sporting event for less than the cost of a weekend vacation.
15. Finally, as always, less jerks and more good people in sports.

On second thought, scratch #16.  If that happens, I’d have nothing to write about…

You have safe travels, especially here in L.A. – people seem to drive like lunatics, even when it rains.

Sincerely,

Chris

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris also covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

It’s been an eventful year of negative media coverage for Rex Ryan and his New York Jets.  First, he was caught on camera flipping off Miami Dolphins fans at an MMA event.  That was followed by a slew of outspoken, profanity-laden moments during HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series during the preseason; sexual harassment allegations by TV Azteca reporter Ines Sainz; lots of smack-talk with opponents and the “human wall” and Sal Alosi’s tripping of a Dolphins player.

Ryan’s had a number of instances where he’s stuck his foot in his mouth but after foot fetish videos surfaced on sports sites throughout the country this morning, that phrase may suddenly have a literal meaning.

According to a report on Deadspin this morning, Rex’s wife, Michelle Ryan, shown here modeling NFL gear for the Jets, has allegedly starred in a number of foot fetish videos that have appeared on the internet.  These foot fetish videos have appeared on YouTube and on the alternative lifestyle site alt.com under the profile “ihaveprettyfeet.” 

But wait, it gets better.

One of the videos seen at the Deadspin.com link above features Michelle sitting in a green SUV, wearing green (oh, the irony!) with her feet hanging out of the window.  Here’s the kicker, the cameraman/narrator sounds an AWFUL lot like Rex himself, just minus the F-Bombs.

The male in the video asks the lady about her feet:

“Can I feel them. . . can I smell them.”

Smell them! That’s where you may want to pull the plug on this whole type of fantasy.

When asked about this story earlier today in a conference call about Sunday’s game against the Bears with the Chicago media, Ryan responded, “It’s a personal matter and I’m really not going to discuss it, OK?”

Look, here at Sports Climax we’re not prudes and personally don’t care what people do in the privacy of their own home, so long as it doesn’t break any laws, harm others or involve the removing of mattress tags from mattresses.  But when it’s obnoxious Rex Ryan who we’re talking about here, if this is true, then we have to call him out.

Perhaps Rex should watch the new HBO Sports documentary, “Lombardi.”  That could teach him a thing or two about NFL head coaching and acting with class and in the meantime, if he really wants to do another foot-related video, perhaps he should follow in the footsteps of NFL coaching great John Madden who has a foot video of his own on YouTube.

Closing out here, as of now, there’s no truth to the rumor that these videos were leaked by former capable NFL quarterback and accused sexter Brett Favre, in retaliation for the Jenn Sterger incident.

And here’s hoping that Giants’ head coach Tom Coughlin sends the Ryans a very nice Christmas gift for getting him off the front pages of the New York tabloids for the rest of the week.

Just make sure it’s not shoes, Mr. Coughlin.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri also covers the NFL for Sports Climax and the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com.  He has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. He previously wrote for 1766, the Rutgers Alumni Magazine, and popular blog, ‘The Outer Loop’.  Be sure to follow Chris on Twitter for more MLB and sports observations

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

It was a choke-job of colossal proportions and it made the original “Miracle at the Meadowlands” look like child’s play.

The New York Giants blew a 21-point fourth quarter lead to the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday at Meadowlands Stadium, losing 38-31 to the Philadelphia Eagles when DeSean Jackson returned a punt from Matt Dodge 65 yards for a game-winning touchdown as time expired. Dodge had been instructed to punt the ball out of bounds, but instead kicked a poor, line-drive punt at Jackson.

In reality this punt debacle was just icing on the meltdown cake and Giants head coach Tom Coughlin deserves a lot of the blame. With 8:17 left in the game, Eli Manning threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kevin Boss.  After Lawrence Tynes converted the extra point, the Giants had a commanding 31-10 lead.  Their sideline seemed to be a little too cheerful to yours truly with that much time left on the clock.

Less than a minute later, Eagles quarterback Michael Vick hit tight end Brent Celek over the middle for a 65-yard touchdown, thanks in part to blunders in the Giants secondary.  David Akers then executed a perfect onside kick, and the Eagles got the ball back at their own 44 yard line.  Mind you, the Giants “hands team” was nowhere to be found.  Make a note of this.

Vick scrambled for 35 yards, and then ran untouched for a 4-yard touchdown on 3^rd-and-goal.  The Eagles were within 7 with 5:28 left, and the Giants defense was suddenly tired and a shadow of its earlier self.  Make yet another note.

After some ineffective runs by Ahmad Bradshaw and an incomplete pass, the Giants punted back to Philadelphia with just over three minutes to go.  This note thing is getting tiring.

Vick then rushed two times for 55 yards, toying with New York’s defense as if it was sandlot touch football.  He capped the drive with a 13-yard TD pass to Jeremy Maclin.  Is this game really headed to overtime?

Manning followed up with two incompletions and a sack, and then Dodge lined up for his infamous punt.  Meanwhile, the Matt Dodge who does NOT punt for a living suddenly was about to get bombarded on Twitter.

As a result, the Giants went from possibly being in the drivers’ seat for the NFC East title and a possible No. 2 seed (and first-round bye).  Now they have to fight it out for a Wild Card berth, a road that goes through frigid Green Bay next week when they face the playoff-hopeful Packers.

Let’s recap: no “hands team,” no adjustment in defensive strategy, no clock-chewing drives by the offense.  And where was the punt coverage on Jackson’s return?  Last I checked, there are ten other guys that can make tackles.  And in case you missed it, this is a team that has struggled with mental errors and costly turnovers all season.

While Dodge definitely deserves blame, he is a rookie punter that has struggled all season.  The team considered cutting g him in Week 3, but did not do so.  Yet another organizational blunder, and blame should land directly on the coach’s desk.  As my colleague Paula Duffy pointed out, Coughlin went overboard by dressing-down Dodge on the field immediately after the game.  Yes, Dodge deserved a tongue-lashing, but not in front of 81,223 in attendance, as well as millions more watching on Fox.

The New York media is going to have a feeding frenzy with this story, and it’s already started with rumors that former Steelers coach Bill Cowher has interest in returning to coaching and the Giants are at the top of his short wish list that is also said to include Miami and Houston. Coughlin has just one year remaining on his deal, and a tailspin down the stretch and/or early playoff exit could very well cost him his job.  Giants owner John Mara later called the Cowher rumors “ridiculous,” but what else could he say with his team still in the playoff hunt?

For those of you too young to remember, the fallout from the original “Miracle” was wide-ranging and actually triggered a turn-around for the Giants.  They fired head coach John McVay and hired George Young as general manager.  He is the same man who drafted the likes of Phil Simms, Lawrence Taylor, Mark Bavaro, Joe Morris and Carl Banks, and also promoted a little-known defensive coordinator named Bill Parcells to head coach in 1983.  Twelve years after Young’s hiring, the Giants hoisted their second Lombardi trophy.

Perhaps a similar house-cleaning is in order.

Used with permission of the author.

Chris Lardieri runs the “West Coast View” column for Sports Climax. A veteran to the keyboard, Chris also covers the Los Angeles Dodgers for Examiner.com and has written about Major League Baseball for Inside Edge, a scouting company that provides content to ESPN Insider and Yahoo Sports. Follow Chris on Twitter for more sports observations.

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