In the internet era, watching a game on a self imposed 96-hour tape delay is as pointless an activity as one can hope to engage in. Nevertheless, I watched the Baltimore game tonight, and, unsurprisingly, I didn’t learn anything new. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to share my observations. I am. First, however, I will impart a few bits of wisdom from the preceding 96 hours of my life which necessitated said tape delay.
1. When flying, keep all of your prescriptions in your carry-on bag. Do not check them. Especially if you’ve got something good. For instance, if you have pain meds that might be necessary to control kidney spasms after surgical removal of a 5.8 mm stone. TSA agents (or at least the one checking my bag) have no shame regarding taking what they think ought to be theirs.
2. In business, don’t spend in excess of $1,000 on a trip wherein success or failure is determined on tenuous arrangements made by a former employee who is punctually challenged. I have nothing further to add to that at this time.
3. Don’t try squeezing in tastings at three wineries in under three hours.
4. Two hours is not enough for all airlines to get you checked in in time to make your flight. When the flight in question is an afternoon flight that traverses 1,500 miles and terminates in a city no one in their right mind would go to, that means you’re flying tomorrow.
Needless to say, I’m spent. On to the game, which I shall summarize also in the “bits of wisdom” format….
1. Chris Harr and David Mims are going to get someone killed, and Butch Lewis is likely to be witness to the crime.
2. That someone very badly needs to not be Matt Cassel. This isn’t an endorsement of the accidental Pro Bowler, but rather a tacit implication that without him, the team is in trouble. Tyler Palko (or was it Shane Falco…. the announcers were unclear as to this point) was not as bad as I’ve made him out to be after prior appearances, which maybe indicates signs of improvement. Under the tutelage of a guy like QB Coach Jim Zorn, anything is possible.
3. That last point illustrates why it’s pointless to pile on Ricky Stanzi at this present juncture. The kid’s had three weeks with an NFL playbook and an NFL position coach to confer with. That’s fine. What’s not fine is stocking an entire position with guys whose careers, however brief or however storied, are chock full of asterisks, and I feel like that’s what the quarterback position looks like right now in Kansas City.
4. Wallace Gilberry, Allen Bailey, Cameron Sheffield, and Justin Houston are all legit. I think their level of play warrants some consideration as to why Tyson Jackson and Andy Studebaker are being giftwrapped starting spots they haven’t earned.
5. I have seen enough of the following players: Terrance Copper, Chris Harr, Butch Lewis, Donald Washington, and Sabby Piscatelli. I’d add Anthony Toribio to the list, but I can’t recall a single play he’s been involved in.
6. ATTN: Todd Haley–It’s just preseason. Clearly you didn’t care about the score in the Tampa game. There’s no sense at all in verbally sparring with other coaches over them letting their scrubs punch one in at the end of the 4th quarter. It’s unlikely that more than maybe five or six of the players on the field during that last scoring drive will even make a roster, so it’s not as if anybody of value was greatly demoralized.
I’m sure I could make a hundred more observations, mostly about players that don’t matter, but I’ll refrain. We’re less than 48 hours from the start of the Governor’s Cup, and if nothing else in my life goes right this month, at least I’ll be able to watch that game from beginning to end as it’s actually happening.
