This and that from the AFC Championship Game Press Box:
Ozzie Newsome said he would have no comment on the Browns pursuit of Raven Pro Personnel Director George Kokinis to be the team's GM. "Not today," Newsome said when asked if he'd discuss Kokinis' possible hiring. One can hardly blame him. His team is playing to go to the Super Bowl today. Kokinis has not yet been in the press box, but Kokinis supposedly is not commenting on the interviews either. He also does not have an assigned seat with the Ravens front office folks.
I think we should get used to this. Eric Mangini does not like anything public about the team he coaches, so any kind of information will be slow to come from Berea as it relates to the Browns.
Adam Schefter of the NFL Network and NFL.com reports that the league is looking into the Rooney Rule in light of the way the Browns handled their minority interview with Mel Tucker. The team's defensive coordinator interviewed for the position, but was never considered a serious candidate. At least from the outside. That's because owner Randy Lerner came out and said he wanted a coach with experience. Tucker has none. Tucker had only been a coordinator for one year, and the Browns defense was atrocious. Yet he was the team's minority interview.
New offensive coordinator Brian Daboll is from Buffalo, and went to St. Francis. He was a classmate of Chris Polian, son of Colts president Bill Polian, and may have played in games against Cleveland St. Ignatius. His offensive thinking: It's "game-based, scheme-based." That's one of those phrases that make a dope like me sound like he's on the inner pulse of things, but it basically means this: He studies the defense and decides what will work best based on the way the defense attacks the offense. So … he's a game-based, scheme-based coach.
Lot of peanut butter products recalled. That's a shame to kids nationwide.
I opined that I'd have taken Jon Gruden over Eric Mangini as coach had Gruden been available, but nobody knew he'd be available. A lot of stuff has come out since Gruden was fired explaining why. Like this story by Peter King of Sports Illustrated wrote that Gruden and GM Bruce Allen "ran the team like the Nixon White House, communicating poorly with the public and running the teams with an our-way-or-the-highway approach." Sunday Keyshawn Johnson said on TV: " … I am not surprised that he's gone. Jon is the type of guy that will tell you one thing and then the next thing you know will say, 'I need to go get a guy like Tim Brown.' He was a like a used car salesman in this situation. A great X's and O's coach but he wore out the welcome. I may have been the first to say it, but I won't be the last. I guarantee that." And ESPN's Chris Mortensen said: "You can't say this enough of how badly the Glazer family that owns the Bucs, must have wanted Gruden out. Remember to get him, they fired Tony Dungy, they give up two first round picks, two second round picks, $8 million dollars in cash to the Raiders and despite owing him almost $16 million dollars right now, ironically it was that loss to the Raiders that ended the season and forced his way out. So six years after Gruden delivered a Super Bowl title, the Bucs relative mediocrity, two straight years with high hopes and bad finishes, the bizarre exits of popular coaches like Monty Kiffin, player discontent and yes the reluctance by Gruden to draft and develop a young quarterback combined with a reminder of teams this year like the Falcons with Matt Ryan and the Ravens with Joe Flacco can actually pull it off. Right or wrong it was a laundry list of negatives. … The climate change from the popular Chucky to unpopular Gruden was quite remarkable." OK then.
