When looking back on the Giants 2006 season, the game against Tampa Bay will likely blur into the season like a rest stop en route to summer camp. With the swirling winds reinforcing the Meadowlands’ gusty reputation, there was little offense to be found. More euphemistically said, it was a game of “field position”…a punter’s duel, of which there were 18 punts in all. Not bad enough to watch Heidi, but with the exception of Plaxico Burress’ one-handed touchdown grab, this game provided few, if any other highlights.
The game got off to a somewhat tentative start. The Bucs in the last seven days have had to adapt to climate extremes; stifling heat at home against the Eagles a week ago, brisk chills Sunday in Giants Stadium. It’s no secret that cold weather to Tampa Bay is like kryptonite to Superman. As a result, the game started like a lumbering bear coming out of hibernation.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Giants did go for the throat, blitzing early and often. Clearly the Giants have found a way to compensate for their secondary, and that’s to simply get to the quarterback as quickly as possible. It’s nice to see again, as making life miserable for quarterbacks had been a lost art in Giantdom until recently. Even better, since the secondary hasn’t been able to cover much of anyone this season, why not ramp up the corner and safety blitzes as well? Until Sunday, Gibril Wilson had been a complete afterthought. And when the Giants had a chance to get burned by the blitz, they got help from the wind in the form poorly thrown passes from Bucs’ QB Brad Gradkowski. Add in a number of dropped passes by a frightened Joey Galloway and company, and one could see early that it was going to be a long day for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs’ however, did make some adjustments that stymied the Giants pass rush as the game worn on; putting in a two tight-end set consisting of Anthony Becht and Alex Smith. This spread out the Giants linebackers into the flat and thus took away the Giants ability to blitz. To further exploit this formation, Tampa Bay was also able to work in several screen passes to Cadillac Williams and Michael Pittman for marginal gains. At best, however, this enabled Tampa Bay to pick up a few first downs in the second half. Yet as soon as they looked to be in striking distance, something would implode in the form of a penalty, sack or turnover and kill the drive.
Even though this wasn’t the most exiting match-up, there was one very significant thing to extract from this game, and that was the innate sense the Giants had this game won from the very beginning. For years, as well as early in the Tom Coughlin era, there was always a disturbing anticipation that the Giants were about to let a game slip away. This feeling didn’t go without merit, just look at the last ten years. We’ve seen it earlier in this season as well, when they could have beaten Indianapolis, as well as in Dallas last week where the Giants had a chance to deliver the finishing blow early in the second quarter. For years the Giants have simply lacked that knockout punch. Yet something about the way they beat Tampa Bay showed no hint of the game ever being in jeopardy. It was obvious to the point of being dull, but it’s a dullness that Giant fans will happily take.
Call it magic if you want, I’ll just call it defense.
Monday, October 30, 2006
Saturday, October 28, 2006
BY REQUEST...
I’m not sure how this happened, but somehow one of my readers got hold of my personal cell phone number and left me a message. I’ve called Verizon to get answers, but I’ve given up on customer service in New York City. He wanted my perspective of how things are shaping up in the NFC East; particularly in the wake of injuries, quarterback controversies, retirement announcements and overall concerns facing the division. So, whomever you are that called me at 9:57 on Thursday morning, here’s my take. Glad you called, I needed the release. The job that pays has kept me well occupied this week. I’ll have Verizon call off the search.
Dallas Cowboys:
Dallas is under the microscope this week because they lost badly on Monday night to the New York Giants. The Giants played well, perhaps their best performance to date. Though there’s no doubt the Cowboys made it easier than it needed to be. And as if the T.O.-a-meter hasn’t already gone on full tilt, a national television audience has now witnessed the Drew Bledsoe-Tony Romo quarterback controversy unfold before their very eyes. For now it’s saucy stuff, much juicier than the Gary Hogeboom-Danny White QB controversy of the early 1980s. Then again, the egos of Tom Landry and Tex Schram have about one eight the wattage of Bill Parcells and Jerry Jones.
First of all, I don’t think there’s much of a controversy here. I’ve never been sold on Drew Bledsoe. He’s been in the league for 13 years now and has never demonstrated any true command for the game. Perhaps if Bledsoe had a dose of Joe Montana’s smarts with the “gun slinger” aspect of Brett Favre, he might have been one hell of a quarterback. To his credit, Bledsoe has always had a strong arm and has remained remarkably durable, but unfortunately lacks the proper intangibles to have ever been great. In essence, Drew Bledsoe is Kerry Collins with higher self-esteem. Parcells knows it’s too late to change Bledsoe’s habits. He overthinks when his instincts should take command and allows impulses to override times when judgement should prevail. His wires have always been crossed, and thus it’s time to shelve the veteran rookie for someone else. Enter Tony Romo. Now, Tony, let us fill you in about this offensive line…
What’s also crazy is the sports punditry is trying to examine if there’s any power struggle going on between Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells. Jones is pro-Bledsoe, Parcells is pro-Romo. Now that Romo is starting this week against Carolina, is it because he’s the better quarterback, or is it because Parcells wants to stick it to his boss? For God’s sake, could if just have to do that Bledsoe can’t move worth a damn and makes decisions that are dumb even by junior varsity standards? Once upon a time, people concerned themselves with what the Dallas Cowboys did on the field. To loosely barrow from Simon & Garfunkel: Where have you gone Roger Staubach, a sprawling city turns its lonely eyes to you.
Jones has to be careful about his continuous desire to pull all the strings, as he’s had lousy luck finding anybody to work for him between the tenures of Tuna and Jimmy Johnson. After all, Dave Campo and Chan Gaily are, for lack of a better comparison, the James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce of Cowboys franchise history. What’s really looming is that Parcells has perhaps this season and maybe…and I stress maybe… next season to get Dallas where they want to be. We’ve all seen how Parcells gets his teams going in the right direction, then quits. The main difference with these Cowboys is that only in spurts have they’ve been competitive, failing to show any constant forward direction. Thus making for a rather un-Parcellsian anomaly. It’s also well known that Parcells hates front office intervention, though he can’t absorb the responsibility of being head coach and general manager at the same time, as previous experiments proved. Maybe Parcells’ current situation is what he wants after all, as he’s only happy when he’s miserable. And boy does he look miserable (so, then…maybe he’s happy?). Who knows? In any case, a few more weeks of these shenanigans and look out for a clandestine sighting of Jerry Jones and Jim Fassel. For Fassel it’s either talk to Jones or audition to pitch the Sleep Number Bed.
Philadelphia Eagles:
I’ve pretty much had it with this team. For some reason there’s this false believe; this illusion if you will, that the Philadelphia Eagles are among the NFL’s elite teams. Oh yes, in the second week of the season they won an impressive road game against the Houston Texans. You could say the same about America’s military prowess in Grenada. Ever since Rush Limbaugh made the politically incorrect comment that Donovan McNabb was “overrated…because the media has been very desirous to see a black quarterback do well,” there has been an overcompensating backlash about how “well” he’s played ever since. Enough already. He goofed off on the sidelines and even tried to taunt the Giants’ linebackers before that game was stolen in overtime last month. And don’t even tell me how great he looked in the game against Tampa Bay. Had he not gift-wrapped 14 points in the form of two interceptions to Ronde Barber, there wouldn’t have been a sense of urgency to begin with. That late touchdown pass to Brian Westbrook was more an example of shoddy arm tackling by Tampa Bay defenders than a brilliant, Elway-esque, comeback (which wasn’t a comeback anyway because Tampa Bay won). Yet thanks to Rush Limbaugh, McNabb is forever sacrosanct from such criticism. Somehow Marc Bulger, Tom Brady and Damon Huard have fallen well below the radar while McNabb has had his “career season”. Lest us forget that McNabb’s team is just one game north of .500. If the media is truly desirous to see a black quarterback do well, take a look at how Charlie Batch has stepped up in Pittsburgh this season. Better yet, just view the quarterback position with same color-blindness as an offensive lineman.
Washington Redskins:
The Washington Redskins coaching staff is like a collaboration of established musicians forming a new band, and sucking. Think the concept of Derek and the Dominos with the product of Asia. Thus far the “super group” billing of Joe Gibbs, Gregg Williams and Al Saunders has produced only two wins with whispers of a potential quarterback controversy as well. Mark Brunell, whose mobility could be compared to that of a hippopotamus, has been beaten and bruised all season. Though to his credit Brunell’s brittle 36-year-old body has remained largely intact. Despite another crop of mercenary receivers harvested from the Skins’ cornucopia, Brunell has had little time to get them ball. And when he does have time, his receivers, particularly Brandon Lloyd, have run the wrong route or aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Generally pre-season is the time when such kinks get banged out, however, when the offensive playbook exceeds the thickness of the New York City Yellow Pages, confusion is bound to happen.
Confusion isn’t the only problem with the Redskins offense but pass protection too. Last week against Indianapolis, Redskins tackle Chris Samuels gave his best impersonation of a bowling pin; colliding with other lineman and knocking them down while Colt defenders mauled Mark Brunell. As for the running game, Clinton Portis and the four other backs on Washington’s roster have moved the ball well enough, though Portis’ health seems to be a weekly concern. We’ve seen what Ladell Betts can do when given the opportunity, but it remains a question if he can keep his stamina if elevated beyond a supporting role.
The problem with the Skins is ever since Dan Snyder took over the team they simply don’t operate as a cohesive unit. Fewer teams have spent as much on big-ticket free agents only to see them lose their luster once they get to DC. For a team that’s always had one of the most devoted fan bases in the NFL, one wonders about the constant need for such star power. Even a scab team donning the burgundy and gold would fill FedEx Field to capacity. Sure they’re the Redskins, but are they your Redskins; the one’s that played in RFK Stadium back when Loudoun County was still farmland? Like Jerry Jones with Bill Parcells, Dan Snyder has about reached to bottom of his bag of tricks for producing head-coaches. Some say that Notre Dame Head Coach, Charlie Weis, could get pried away if the price was right; even though Weis recently stated that he wanted to remain in South Bend until he died. With Joe Gibbs looking as though the game has passed him by, the Redskins are looking like the NFL’s version of Ishtar.
New York Giants:
As much at the media wants to drum up the significance of Tiki Barber retiring after this season, it’s hardly been a distraction. There’re a lot of other things about the Giants that will likely change after this season. One main change will be in the front office. With Giants’ co-owners Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch dying within the span of a few weeks last season, Giants’ GM Ernie Accorsi postponed his retirement for another year. Of course he could change his mind again and keep working, but if Accorsi’s plan stays the same, then major change is looming. For whatever reason, this issue has been largely unmentioned. And when that happens, it’s doubtful how long Tom Coughlin will hang around. Lately the Giants have been playing much, much better, but the ebb and flow of their play since Coughlin took over three years ago has always been an issue. There’s simply something unconvincing about Coughlin manning the helm of Big Blue. The car may start for a few weeks, then it may need a jump-start, but when one really needs the car to start it fails to turn over…that’s the Tom Coughlin pattern. Just look at how the Carolina Panthers embarrassed the Giants in playoffs last season. One just never knows; as in, when’s the other shoe gonna drop?
What is getting fans riled up is the Giants are playing defense again. The pass rush that was non-existent early in the season is now in complete abundance. It’s a good thing since Big Blue’s secondary is still getting burned routinely and thankfully has some cushion. Michael Strahan still looks young and vibrant even in his fourteenth season, and the push from the Giants interior line play has stuffed the running game very well. This Sunday against Tampa Bay, Osi Umenyiora will be nursing his hip as Mathias Kiwanuka gets his first rookie start. Kiwanuka, or “MK” as he’s known, plays with uncanny quickness, and even better, he’s got a mean streak. Frankly, it’s good to see the Giants look a little meaner in order to jettison anything – and I mean anything – from the Jim Fassel era.
So far this season I’ve been off with my hunches and can’t seem to get off my own campaign to make Visanthe Shiancoe a household name. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink. I’ve done all that I can. But since I like to give my gut feeling, I do feel that Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay will be Brandon Jacobs’ first real breakout game. The reason I feel this way is I get a sense that there’s some resentment to Tiki Barber’s retirement announcement. Earlier in the week, there was some uncharacteristic jawing between Tiki and Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson of ESPN. Tiki even went to the extent of calling them “idiots”. Essentially, there’s a contingent that believes Tiki Barber is a sissy for retiring while he’s still in the prime of his career, and I think Tampa Bay is going to pursue him with a vengeance. Being that Tiki’s twin brother, Ronde, plays cornerback for Tampa Bay, they’ll do all they can to gang up on Tiki in order to show that their Barber is the boldest. To answer that assault, the Giants will launch Brandon Jacobs right into the pits, wear them down, and the let Tiki pave right over them. That’s just a hunch of course, but I’m sticking with it.
Enjoy the games everyone, wherever you might be.
Dallas Cowboys:
Dallas is under the microscope this week because they lost badly on Monday night to the New York Giants. The Giants played well, perhaps their best performance to date. Though there’s no doubt the Cowboys made it easier than it needed to be. And as if the T.O.-a-meter hasn’t already gone on full tilt, a national television audience has now witnessed the Drew Bledsoe-Tony Romo quarterback controversy unfold before their very eyes. For now it’s saucy stuff, much juicier than the Gary Hogeboom-Danny White QB controversy of the early 1980s. Then again, the egos of Tom Landry and Tex Schram have about one eight the wattage of Bill Parcells and Jerry Jones.
First of all, I don’t think there’s much of a controversy here. I’ve never been sold on Drew Bledsoe. He’s been in the league for 13 years now and has never demonstrated any true command for the game. Perhaps if Bledsoe had a dose of Joe Montana’s smarts with the “gun slinger” aspect of Brett Favre, he might have been one hell of a quarterback. To his credit, Bledsoe has always had a strong arm and has remained remarkably durable, but unfortunately lacks the proper intangibles to have ever been great. In essence, Drew Bledsoe is Kerry Collins with higher self-esteem. Parcells knows it’s too late to change Bledsoe’s habits. He overthinks when his instincts should take command and allows impulses to override times when judgement should prevail. His wires have always been crossed, and thus it’s time to shelve the veteran rookie for someone else. Enter Tony Romo. Now, Tony, let us fill you in about this offensive line…
What’s also crazy is the sports punditry is trying to examine if there’s any power struggle going on between Jerry Jones and Bill Parcells. Jones is pro-Bledsoe, Parcells is pro-Romo. Now that Romo is starting this week against Carolina, is it because he’s the better quarterback, or is it because Parcells wants to stick it to his boss? For God’s sake, could if just have to do that Bledsoe can’t move worth a damn and makes decisions that are dumb even by junior varsity standards? Once upon a time, people concerned themselves with what the Dallas Cowboys did on the field. To loosely barrow from Simon & Garfunkel: Where have you gone Roger Staubach, a sprawling city turns its lonely eyes to you.
Jones has to be careful about his continuous desire to pull all the strings, as he’s had lousy luck finding anybody to work for him between the tenures of Tuna and Jimmy Johnson. After all, Dave Campo and Chan Gaily are, for lack of a better comparison, the James Buchanan and Franklin Pierce of Cowboys franchise history. What’s really looming is that Parcells has perhaps this season and maybe…and I stress maybe… next season to get Dallas where they want to be. We’ve all seen how Parcells gets his teams going in the right direction, then quits. The main difference with these Cowboys is that only in spurts have they’ve been competitive, failing to show any constant forward direction. Thus making for a rather un-Parcellsian anomaly. It’s also well known that Parcells hates front office intervention, though he can’t absorb the responsibility of being head coach and general manager at the same time, as previous experiments proved. Maybe Parcells’ current situation is what he wants after all, as he’s only happy when he’s miserable. And boy does he look miserable (so, then…maybe he’s happy?). Who knows? In any case, a few more weeks of these shenanigans and look out for a clandestine sighting of Jerry Jones and Jim Fassel. For Fassel it’s either talk to Jones or audition to pitch the Sleep Number Bed.
Philadelphia Eagles:
I’ve pretty much had it with this team. For some reason there’s this false believe; this illusion if you will, that the Philadelphia Eagles are among the NFL’s elite teams. Oh yes, in the second week of the season they won an impressive road game against the Houston Texans. You could say the same about America’s military prowess in Grenada. Ever since Rush Limbaugh made the politically incorrect comment that Donovan McNabb was “overrated…because the media has been very desirous to see a black quarterback do well,” there has been an overcompensating backlash about how “well” he’s played ever since. Enough already. He goofed off on the sidelines and even tried to taunt the Giants’ linebackers before that game was stolen in overtime last month. And don’t even tell me how great he looked in the game against Tampa Bay. Had he not gift-wrapped 14 points in the form of two interceptions to Ronde Barber, there wouldn’t have been a sense of urgency to begin with. That late touchdown pass to Brian Westbrook was more an example of shoddy arm tackling by Tampa Bay defenders than a brilliant, Elway-esque, comeback (which wasn’t a comeback anyway because Tampa Bay won). Yet thanks to Rush Limbaugh, McNabb is forever sacrosanct from such criticism. Somehow Marc Bulger, Tom Brady and Damon Huard have fallen well below the radar while McNabb has had his “career season”. Lest us forget that McNabb’s team is just one game north of .500. If the media is truly desirous to see a black quarterback do well, take a look at how Charlie Batch has stepped up in Pittsburgh this season. Better yet, just view the quarterback position with same color-blindness as an offensive lineman.
Washington Redskins:
The Washington Redskins coaching staff is like a collaboration of established musicians forming a new band, and sucking. Think the concept of Derek and the Dominos with the product of Asia. Thus far the “super group” billing of Joe Gibbs, Gregg Williams and Al Saunders has produced only two wins with whispers of a potential quarterback controversy as well. Mark Brunell, whose mobility could be compared to that of a hippopotamus, has been beaten and bruised all season. Though to his credit Brunell’s brittle 36-year-old body has remained largely intact. Despite another crop of mercenary receivers harvested from the Skins’ cornucopia, Brunell has had little time to get them ball. And when he does have time, his receivers, particularly Brandon Lloyd, have run the wrong route or aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Generally pre-season is the time when such kinks get banged out, however, when the offensive playbook exceeds the thickness of the New York City Yellow Pages, confusion is bound to happen.
Confusion isn’t the only problem with the Redskins offense but pass protection too. Last week against Indianapolis, Redskins tackle Chris Samuels gave his best impersonation of a bowling pin; colliding with other lineman and knocking them down while Colt defenders mauled Mark Brunell. As for the running game, Clinton Portis and the four other backs on Washington’s roster have moved the ball well enough, though Portis’ health seems to be a weekly concern. We’ve seen what Ladell Betts can do when given the opportunity, but it remains a question if he can keep his stamina if elevated beyond a supporting role.
The problem with the Skins is ever since Dan Snyder took over the team they simply don’t operate as a cohesive unit. Fewer teams have spent as much on big-ticket free agents only to see them lose their luster once they get to DC. For a team that’s always had one of the most devoted fan bases in the NFL, one wonders about the constant need for such star power. Even a scab team donning the burgundy and gold would fill FedEx Field to capacity. Sure they’re the Redskins, but are they your Redskins; the one’s that played in RFK Stadium back when Loudoun County was still farmland? Like Jerry Jones with Bill Parcells, Dan Snyder has about reached to bottom of his bag of tricks for producing head-coaches. Some say that Notre Dame Head Coach, Charlie Weis, could get pried away if the price was right; even though Weis recently stated that he wanted to remain in South Bend until he died. With Joe Gibbs looking as though the game has passed him by, the Redskins are looking like the NFL’s version of Ishtar.
New York Giants:
As much at the media wants to drum up the significance of Tiki Barber retiring after this season, it’s hardly been a distraction. There’re a lot of other things about the Giants that will likely change after this season. One main change will be in the front office. With Giants’ co-owners Wellington Mara and Bob Tisch dying within the span of a few weeks last season, Giants’ GM Ernie Accorsi postponed his retirement for another year. Of course he could change his mind again and keep working, but if Accorsi’s plan stays the same, then major change is looming. For whatever reason, this issue has been largely unmentioned. And when that happens, it’s doubtful how long Tom Coughlin will hang around. Lately the Giants have been playing much, much better, but the ebb and flow of their play since Coughlin took over three years ago has always been an issue. There’s simply something unconvincing about Coughlin manning the helm of Big Blue. The car may start for a few weeks, then it may need a jump-start, but when one really needs the car to start it fails to turn over…that’s the Tom Coughlin pattern. Just look at how the Carolina Panthers embarrassed the Giants in playoffs last season. One just never knows; as in, when’s the other shoe gonna drop?
What is getting fans riled up is the Giants are playing defense again. The pass rush that was non-existent early in the season is now in complete abundance. It’s a good thing since Big Blue’s secondary is still getting burned routinely and thankfully has some cushion. Michael Strahan still looks young and vibrant even in his fourteenth season, and the push from the Giants interior line play has stuffed the running game very well. This Sunday against Tampa Bay, Osi Umenyiora will be nursing his hip as Mathias Kiwanuka gets his first rookie start. Kiwanuka, or “MK” as he’s known, plays with uncanny quickness, and even better, he’s got a mean streak. Frankly, it’s good to see the Giants look a little meaner in order to jettison anything – and I mean anything – from the Jim Fassel era.
So far this season I’ve been off with my hunches and can’t seem to get off my own campaign to make Visanthe Shiancoe a household name. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink. I’ve done all that I can. But since I like to give my gut feeling, I do feel that Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay will be Brandon Jacobs’ first real breakout game. The reason I feel this way is I get a sense that there’s some resentment to Tiki Barber’s retirement announcement. Earlier in the week, there was some uncharacteristic jawing between Tiki and Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson of ESPN. Tiki even went to the extent of calling them “idiots”. Essentially, there’s a contingent that believes Tiki Barber is a sissy for retiring while he’s still in the prime of his career, and I think Tampa Bay is going to pursue him with a vengeance. Being that Tiki’s twin brother, Ronde, plays cornerback for Tampa Bay, they’ll do all they can to gang up on Tiki in order to show that their Barber is the boldest. To answer that assault, the Giants will launch Brandon Jacobs right into the pits, wear them down, and the let Tiki pave right over them. That’s just a hunch of course, but I’m sticking with it.
Enjoy the games everyone, wherever you might be.
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
NO FRILLS, NO WORRIES
Going into Week Five with a 1-2 record, the Giants were a salesman needing a big month to offset a rough quarter. Beating the Redskins Sunday didn’t necessarily constitute a “big month”, but they satisfactorily met their goal. By winning they avoided the probationary letter this week, but to say that they’re in a secure enough position to buy that bigger house would be a bit premature. Management was reminded why they showed some patience. The Giants are reminded they’re only as good as their last game.
Coming off their bye week, the Giants had two weeks to meet, analyze and do whatever teambuilding drills were required to plug the leaks in their young season. There were tons of questions going into this game, with the biggest concerns being on the defensive end of the ball. The Giants, with all their depth on the defensive line, desperately needed some semblance of a pass rush and did; with Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan and Fred Robbins all getting a sack apiece. For most of the day, Redskins quarterback, Mark Brunell, was hurried, knocked around, and rarely with enough time to locate an open receiver. That said, there seems to be a noticeable disappearance from first round draft pick Mathias Kiwanuka. Kiwanuka’s play both in pre-season and the opening game against the Colts indicated a somewhat Taylorian presence. He’s quick and mean, not to mention a “find” coming out Boston College. Yet he seems to be relegated to cameo appearances. Why? Granted Michael Strahan still has some “gas in the tank”, but isn’t New York ready for some “MK?”
The other major defensive question was how well would the secondary play. In typical Washington DC fashion, the Redskins have enjoyed name-dropping their much touted “Al Saunders” offensive scheme. It took a few weeks for it to come together, but after the shootout against Jacksonville, it looked as though Brunell got ten years younger while Don Coryell sprinkled some magic dust over FedEx Field. Knowing how shredded the Giants secondary was in their previous three games, it was foreseeable that Santana Moss, Antwaan Randel El, and Chris Cooley could potentially post some career high numbers. It didn’t work out that way, as Chris Cooley, of all people, was the Skins’ top receiver with a paltry four receptions for 41 yards.
What made this victory significant was its situational timing as opposed to overall execution. In order for the Giants to have some motivation to keep playing this season, they had to beat the Skins. Plain and simple. If they didn’t, then questions of Coughlin having control of his team might snatch a morsel of the attention away from Joe Torre’s job status. Still though, (and this is when one goes on auto pilot when discussing the Giants) Big Blue showed once again that they can move the ball with great efficiency only to come up with less than seven points on all but one drive. As most of us know, this is a decades old rant starting with the Bill Arnsbarger era. Granted, the Giants didn’t have nearly as many drive stopping penalties as they did in previous games this season, but they did have a few. The most costly was an illegal pick by Jeremy Shockey that negated an Amani Toomer touchdown. Fortunately for the Giants, they didn’t need 42 points to win. Two safeties would have been enough to eclipse Washington’s lone field goal. Not every victory has to result with an impromptu block party. But this game gets them to 2-2, and with the deadlock in the NFC East behind Philadelphia, this game might be regarded as the springboard that kept the season alive.
Other Thoughts…
Giants Player You’ll Get To Know Better Next Week:
I have a sense that Visanthe Shiancoe, the Giants number two tight-end, is going to have a break out game next week against Atlanta. With the status of Jeremy Shockey’s ankle sill uncertain (MRI results due out soon) it looks as though Shiancoe might get a rare start. Shiancoe, though used sparingly, has shown that when he does get the ball, he holds on to it pretty well. Blocking is not his forte, in fact, you’ll have to go back to Dan Campbell (now with Detroit) to when the Giants had a tight-end that could actually block. In any case, with Shockey going into yet another season dinged up, look for Coughlin to work Shiancoe a lot more into the offensive game plan. Go ahead, read into the subtext on that one if you want. Even if Shockey did apologize for his comments after the Seattle game, I think Coughlin wants to make things a little unpleasant for New York’s favorite Okie since Mickey Mantle.
Giants Player You Got To Know Better This Week:
Tim Carter made a few key receptions Sunday against Washington. He still has to survive at least half a season before we get really exited about him. The Giants have shown patience with Carter mainly because of his speed, though that patience will continue to wear thin if the oft-injured Carter continues to drop key passes and get penalized at the most inopportune times. Each week though, Carter has gained steady ground to show he’s a legitimate third receiver after Plaxico Burress and the ageless Amani Toomer. Let’s see if that trend continues.
Five Other Football Thoughts:
1) I think it’s about time that Bill Cowher really consider retirement. After 15 years as the Steelers’ head coach, and finally winning that Super Bowl which has put him among the NFL’s elite coaches, there’s just a sense that his fire and gumption has evaporated. It’s a like a rock star who’s sold three multi-platinum albums based on angst ridden lyrics and throaty vocals. I mean, after three blockbuster albums, a house in the Hollywood Hills, and a crash pad in TriBeCa, how frustrated can one still be? What’s the fourth album going to be besides something…ummm…acoustic? That’s where I see Bill Cowher right now; as Alanis Moriseette post “Jagged Little Pill”. The loss to San Diego Sunday night proves it.
2) It’s too early to determine if Detroit Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli is the reason to the Lions’ woeful start. Being that he’s so new, it’s easy to point the finger at Detroit’s GM, Matt Millen instead. It’s likely Millen will be ousted after this season. Too many poor draft picks, too many head coaches not succeeding (though I’m still a believer in Steve Mariucci), too many free agent busts. However, while catching the final seconds of the Detroit-Minnesota game Sunday, I watched Rod Marinelli waddle with a militant gait, like he’s got a thermometer in his lower orifice, with a clipboard stuck in the front of his pants, and I couldn’t help but think that this guy has the leadership skills of an anvil. Now I could be wrong here. After all, if you looked at Albert Einstein, you wouldn’t necessarily think he was a genius. But still, there are those types that strike an intuitive chord right off the bat, and I am sorry, but I’m just so not sold on Rod Marinelli. Based on Detroit’s current winless record, it doesn’t look like his team is either. With the exception of Andy Reid, seldom do position coaches ever make for good head coaches.
3) The St. Louis Rams are the most under-the-radar 4-1 team in the NFL right now.
4) The Dallas-Philadelphia match-up was one of the best games so far this season. But the hype around T.O. returning to Philly was about as overblown as the 1983 TV Movie “The Day After”. For those who don’t recall that movie, or weren’t born then, “The Day After” was about a nuclear attack on Lawrence, Kansas, and for weeks there was mass hysteria about the emotional consequences this film would have on its audience. The day after America saw “The Day After” everyone scoffed at the absurdity of the media hype. I mean, it was just TV…entertainment…and a B-movie at best, even if it did star the late Jason Robards. Ergo with T.O. coming to Philly. For God’s sake, he’s just a painfully insecure wide receiver who can’t keep his mouth shut, not Idi Amin coming out of exile. Extra security my foot, it would be better used guarding the Liberty Bell.
5) If there’s a team in the NFL that could use a youth movement right now, it’s the Buffalo Bills. It’s tough enough that they hail from a frigid Rust Belt city that’s seen better days, but to have two octogenarians run the show doesn’t suggest the Bills are on the cusp of football precocity. Throw in Dick Juron, a yard sale pick-up of a coach, and you’ve got the NFL’s version of Orange Julius from a mall built in 1973. Time for the Bills to find the next Jack Del Rio…now.
Coming off their bye week, the Giants had two weeks to meet, analyze and do whatever teambuilding drills were required to plug the leaks in their young season. There were tons of questions going into this game, with the biggest concerns being on the defensive end of the ball. The Giants, with all their depth on the defensive line, desperately needed some semblance of a pass rush and did; with Osi Umenyiora, Michael Strahan and Fred Robbins all getting a sack apiece. For most of the day, Redskins quarterback, Mark Brunell, was hurried, knocked around, and rarely with enough time to locate an open receiver. That said, there seems to be a noticeable disappearance from first round draft pick Mathias Kiwanuka. Kiwanuka’s play both in pre-season and the opening game against the Colts indicated a somewhat Taylorian presence. He’s quick and mean, not to mention a “find” coming out Boston College. Yet he seems to be relegated to cameo appearances. Why? Granted Michael Strahan still has some “gas in the tank”, but isn’t New York ready for some “MK?”
The other major defensive question was how well would the secondary play. In typical Washington DC fashion, the Redskins have enjoyed name-dropping their much touted “Al Saunders” offensive scheme. It took a few weeks for it to come together, but after the shootout against Jacksonville, it looked as though Brunell got ten years younger while Don Coryell sprinkled some magic dust over FedEx Field. Knowing how shredded the Giants secondary was in their previous three games, it was foreseeable that Santana Moss, Antwaan Randel El, and Chris Cooley could potentially post some career high numbers. It didn’t work out that way, as Chris Cooley, of all people, was the Skins’ top receiver with a paltry four receptions for 41 yards.
What made this victory significant was its situational timing as opposed to overall execution. In order for the Giants to have some motivation to keep playing this season, they had to beat the Skins. Plain and simple. If they didn’t, then questions of Coughlin having control of his team might snatch a morsel of the attention away from Joe Torre’s job status. Still though, (and this is when one goes on auto pilot when discussing the Giants) Big Blue showed once again that they can move the ball with great efficiency only to come up with less than seven points on all but one drive. As most of us know, this is a decades old rant starting with the Bill Arnsbarger era. Granted, the Giants didn’t have nearly as many drive stopping penalties as they did in previous games this season, but they did have a few. The most costly was an illegal pick by Jeremy Shockey that negated an Amani Toomer touchdown. Fortunately for the Giants, they didn’t need 42 points to win. Two safeties would have been enough to eclipse Washington’s lone field goal. Not every victory has to result with an impromptu block party. But this game gets them to 2-2, and with the deadlock in the NFC East behind Philadelphia, this game might be regarded as the springboard that kept the season alive.
Other Thoughts…
Giants Player You’ll Get To Know Better Next Week:
I have a sense that Visanthe Shiancoe, the Giants number two tight-end, is going to have a break out game next week against Atlanta. With the status of Jeremy Shockey’s ankle sill uncertain (MRI results due out soon) it looks as though Shiancoe might get a rare start. Shiancoe, though used sparingly, has shown that when he does get the ball, he holds on to it pretty well. Blocking is not his forte, in fact, you’ll have to go back to Dan Campbell (now with Detroit) to when the Giants had a tight-end that could actually block. In any case, with Shockey going into yet another season dinged up, look for Coughlin to work Shiancoe a lot more into the offensive game plan. Go ahead, read into the subtext on that one if you want. Even if Shockey did apologize for his comments after the Seattle game, I think Coughlin wants to make things a little unpleasant for New York’s favorite Okie since Mickey Mantle.
Giants Player You Got To Know Better This Week:
Tim Carter made a few key receptions Sunday against Washington. He still has to survive at least half a season before we get really exited about him. The Giants have shown patience with Carter mainly because of his speed, though that patience will continue to wear thin if the oft-injured Carter continues to drop key passes and get penalized at the most inopportune times. Each week though, Carter has gained steady ground to show he’s a legitimate third receiver after Plaxico Burress and the ageless Amani Toomer. Let’s see if that trend continues.
Five Other Football Thoughts:
1) I think it’s about time that Bill Cowher really consider retirement. After 15 years as the Steelers’ head coach, and finally winning that Super Bowl which has put him among the NFL’s elite coaches, there’s just a sense that his fire and gumption has evaporated. It’s a like a rock star who’s sold three multi-platinum albums based on angst ridden lyrics and throaty vocals. I mean, after three blockbuster albums, a house in the Hollywood Hills, and a crash pad in TriBeCa, how frustrated can one still be? What’s the fourth album going to be besides something…ummm…acoustic? That’s where I see Bill Cowher right now; as Alanis Moriseette post “Jagged Little Pill”. The loss to San Diego Sunday night proves it.
2) It’s too early to determine if Detroit Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli is the reason to the Lions’ woeful start. Being that he’s so new, it’s easy to point the finger at Detroit’s GM, Matt Millen instead. It’s likely Millen will be ousted after this season. Too many poor draft picks, too many head coaches not succeeding (though I’m still a believer in Steve Mariucci), too many free agent busts. However, while catching the final seconds of the Detroit-Minnesota game Sunday, I watched Rod Marinelli waddle with a militant gait, like he’s got a thermometer in his lower orifice, with a clipboard stuck in the front of his pants, and I couldn’t help but think that this guy has the leadership skills of an anvil. Now I could be wrong here. After all, if you looked at Albert Einstein, you wouldn’t necessarily think he was a genius. But still, there are those types that strike an intuitive chord right off the bat, and I am sorry, but I’m just so not sold on Rod Marinelli. Based on Detroit’s current winless record, it doesn’t look like his team is either. With the exception of Andy Reid, seldom do position coaches ever make for good head coaches.
3) The St. Louis Rams are the most under-the-radar 4-1 team in the NFL right now.
4) The Dallas-Philadelphia match-up was one of the best games so far this season. But the hype around T.O. returning to Philly was about as overblown as the 1983 TV Movie “The Day After”. For those who don’t recall that movie, or weren’t born then, “The Day After” was about a nuclear attack on Lawrence, Kansas, and for weeks there was mass hysteria about the emotional consequences this film would have on its audience. The day after America saw “The Day After” everyone scoffed at the absurdity of the media hype. I mean, it was just TV…entertainment…and a B-movie at best, even if it did star the late Jason Robards. Ergo with T.O. coming to Philly. For God’s sake, he’s just a painfully insecure wide receiver who can’t keep his mouth shut, not Idi Amin coming out of exile. Extra security my foot, it would be better used guarding the Liberty Bell.
5) If there’s a team in the NFL that could use a youth movement right now, it’s the Buffalo Bills. It’s tough enough that they hail from a frigid Rust Belt city that’s seen better days, but to have two octogenarians run the show doesn’t suggest the Bills are on the cusp of football precocity. Throw in Dick Juron, a yard sale pick-up of a coach, and you’ve got the NFL’s version of Orange Julius from a mall built in 1973. Time for the Bills to find the next Jack Del Rio…now.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
THE SNYDER INN
The Giants got what Sunday’s are generally intended for last week, rest. After back-to-back road games against two of the NFL’s better teams, they’ll have an extra week to prepare for a home game against the Washington Redskins. In theory, the Giants should have the advantage here. But as it’s been incessantly stated, the Giants are generally awful when coming off their bye. They also know that Washington will be ready to play after coming off a big OT victory against Jacksonville the week before.
It’s hard to gauge what kind of team the Redskins are this year. While Clinton Portis was hurt for the first two games, and Mark Brunell was ready to be shipped to the mothball fleet, it looked as though the Redskins were looking at yet another season that failed to live up to the hype. Now after trouncing Houston and beating the bruising Jaguars a week later, the ‘Skins are looking like a team that’s indeed to be reckoned with.
Nevertheless, despite the cottage industry that Daniel Snyder has turned his favorite football team into, when it’s come to winning overall, it’s been a whole different story. To use an everyday analogy, the Washington Redskins are like that poorly located hotel which every city has. One year stands a Howard Johnson’s, the next a Days Inn, and the year after a La Quinta. In other words, lots of new looks but the same old results. Would things be any different for The Snyder Inn?
In 1999 it was The Snyder’s Inn’s turn to see what they could do with this hexed location. The new owner (Daniel Snyder), short in stature but shrewd in nature, has lofty goals and begins to shake things up right away. His first step is to fire the existing manager (Norv Turner). Apparently he’d been there for way too long. The staff was getting complacent; making beds and cleaning toilets with a noticeable lack of joie, not to mention that the hotel was seldom full. Unfortunately it happens to be peak season when this decision is made, and so the market for a new GM is tight. Begrudgingly, Mr. Snyder promotes his Assistant Night Manager (Terry Robiskie) to ride things out, but isn’t encouraging about him being his man for the long haul. Seeing the writing on the wall, Robiskie soon finds greener pastures in Cleveland. Not sure what to do, Mr. Snyder takes a more conventional route, and offers the management of his property to an industry veteran who’s been around the block (Marty Schottenheimer). He’s not the sexiest recruit, but at least Schottenheimer knows what he’s doing. Neither men seemed thrilled with the situation, yet both realize they need each other for the time being. Schottenheimer is known as an old retread who can get a place turned around, but never up to the five star level. He’s also aware that his new boss knows this, and sees that he’s still meeting other potential managers for lunch. For at least the next year or so, Schottenheimer knows he’s got a steady paycheck, but afterwards, well, who knows? Nevertheless, regardless of who’s running the place, Snyder needs to spend money and jazz things up. He decides first to build a modern exercise room (Bruce Smith). Then he goes about building a swimming pool (Deion Sanders). With no limit to what he can spend, he puts in a restaurant that spins (Jeff George); then he installs satellite TV in every room (Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson). But where are the guests? Why isn’t the Snyder Inn booked solid three months in advance? Something is still amiss.
So Mr. Snyder realizes his fledgling hotel still needs something else to make it sparkle. No doubt a lot of money has been poured into the place, and people had been taking notice, but what was keeping the Snyder Inn from really taking off? “Ah-ha”, the ambitious young owner thought, it was no longer about bells and whistles, it was about themes and style; an unorthodox way of doing things. Schottenheimer was fine at keeping the books and seeing that the place was clean, but it wasn’t enough to get the staff, or his guests, really exited. While attending a hospitality convention, Mr. Snyder met this hotshot professor from the University of Florida (Steve Spurrier). Apparently, he gave a whizbang presentation that immediately struck a chord with Mr. Snyder. It was all about numbers, big numbers…the kind of numbers that would instantly make the Snyder Inn one of the hottest properties in town. Mr. Snyder had something to prove, and he didn’t like seeing these expensive amenities being underutilized. But Snyder’s ego yearned for more than just proving something to his critics, he wanted to embarrass them as well, and there was no better way of doing it then posting gaudy numbers for everyone to see.
There was only one catch. Steve Spurrier’s theories had never been tested in the real world. While ensconced in the provincial world of academia, he was a star. Some even said he was brilliant, though he never practiced his own work where the going got tough. This posed a huge dilemma for Spurrier, either remain in his cozy little hole in Gainesville, or step beyond his comfort zone to show he was for real. The former gave empty security; the latter, precarious fulfillment. Either way it was a tough call until Mr. Snyder broke out his tattered checkbook.
As he expected, Schottenheimer got his one year managing the Snyder Inn before being let go in favor of a man who was sure to make a big splash no matter what. Snyder, who was no stranger to generating publicity himself, announced a big press conference once Spurrier came to town. He said all the right things, and gave hints about his big plan to turn the Snyder Inn into a stalwart property, though without ever getting specific. At last Daniel Snyder had the guy he really wanted running his place. Happy days were finally on the horizon.
Naturally, things didn’t shoot right out of the gate. But that was OK, Snyder figured the magic lamp just needed some extra rubbing. Spurrier organized various promotions that had worked marvelously in Gainesville, such as Hawaiian luaus, beach volleyball, clambakes and two-for-one Jell-O shots on certain nights. To some extent, he got the locals to stop by once in a while, but what the Snyder Inn desperately needed was full occupancy – overnight guests – to achieve the stratospheric numbers that Spurrier was supposed to bring. It seemed that all Spurrier could do was bring a party atmosphere to a place where people didn’t really come to party. Sure they moved a lot of booze and chicken wings, but the real money was renting rooms to folks with deep pockets -- adults in other words. And after a short while, it was clear that Spurrier’s head was still in the deepest galaxies of the collegiate universe. He was damn expensive to boot.
Once again Snyder was in a pickle. Not only was the Snyder Inn considered the Edsel among local hotels, there was considerable snickering going behind Snyder’s back as well. The gist of the chatter was that the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts, and the fancy, brand name parts that Snyder purchased were grossly overpriced, didn’t fit, and had expired warranties. “He had enough lemons to sink a fleet of barges”, one tradesman said. “But they only made enough lemonade to fill a thimble.” Snyder felt both fleeced and humiliated, but he was smart enough not to fling Spurrier back to the world of tweed and bubbly co-eds; at least not yet. Snyder knew that firing Spurrier too soon would be a huge admission that he hadn’t a clue to what he was doing; which is the last thing in the world he wanted to admit. And since Spurrier was still under contract, and making the sum of a small state’s lotto jackpot, Snyder decided to change things up with a laissez-faire approach. In essence, he was no longer going to be that rich micro-managing owner, instead he was going to let his guys run things their way, have some breathing room…maybe even a little fun. By doing it this way, when Spurrier got fired the following year, it wasn’t by Snyder’s volition, but because Spurrier pushed his head through the noose on his own. Secondly, while letting Spurrier do his little rah-rah thing by himself, Snyder had more time to pull what would be the ultimate coup in his brief history with the Snyder Inn.
Rather than focus so much on the future, Snyder delved into the past. It seemed that distancing himself from the day-to-day operations of the Snyder Inn was doing him some good. He did some research, and went to the library to learn more about the hotel he was struggling to own. At one time, he learned, the location where the Snyder Inn now stood was one of the region’s most prestigious properties, the Cooke Hotel. Adored by his staff, the hotel’s founder, Mr. Jack Kent Cooke, was known as a bit of an eccentric, not to mention a philanderer. However, when it came to running a first class operation, few other owners were ever in his league. It was here where the movie stars, foreign dignitaries and senators stayed. In fact, one of Cooke’s most frequent guests was Bobby Kennedy. So often did the Senator stay at the Cooke Hotel, that after he was assassinated in 1968, Mr. Cooke renamed his main banquet hall the RFK Room. It was in the RFK Room where the hotel’s most glorious memories took place.
Cooke though, didn’t do it all on his own. He was a great judge of character, often hiring solid managers who’d ultimately do even greater things, but there was one particular manager who elevated the Cooke Hotel to the top echelons of the industry (Joe Gibbs). Gibbs was a modest man with a Southern drawl that at first seemed like a misfit for such an established property. Nevertheless, he commanded respect that his reserved manner might otherwise conceal. Despite Gibbs’ illustrious career, he didn’t go without his challenges; showing his resiliency by reaching the pinnacle of success while forging through two labor strikes. In addition, he also had the misfortune of witnessing one of his best employees lose his leg on the job. Perhaps what Gibbs was best remembered for was getting the everyday worker to be as productive as possible. “He had a bunch of these big fat guys working here called ‘The Hogs’,” recalled a former employee. “But after a while those ‘Hogs’ became the backbone of the hotel. They were a hard charging bunch of guys, and everyone else followed suit.” Still though, with all the accolades and adoration Gibbs’ received after twelve years of service, it was time to move on.
While researching, Snyder learned about all the supporting characters that made the Cooke Hotel so special. There was a crazy bartender named Riggins countered by a more sedate concierge named Monk. The poor guy who lost his leg was named Joe. All these different personalities working as one cohesive unit. Snyder thought if he could only get a guy like Gibbs to run his place he’d be set. Then the “eureka” moment struck him, why not try to lure Gibbs himself?
Gibbs however, had left the hotel business all together and was now immersed as a team owner in the world of motor sports. Racing was big business, and watching cars speed around an oval track was far less stressful than running a major hotel. But even if it was an easier lifestyle for Gibbs, Snyder thought, there had to be void from the hotel business that racing just couldn’t fill. Was rubbing elbows with mechanics really as glamorous as schmoozing the Hollywood A-List? Not that the Snyder Inn even catered to the Hollywood G-List, but, well, Gibbs didn’t need to know that right away. In any case, Snyder would keep things open-ended to gauge Gibbs’ interest. If Gibbs still gave Snyder some pushback, Snyder figured he could just buy him off. He was right.
While Gibbs and Snyder secretly hammered out their negotiations, Steve Spurrier started whining about how homesick he was for campus life again. Even the most grizzled alumni were nothing compared to the sharks who stayed at the Snyder Inn. And now of all things, several rooms had become infested with mice. Spurrier tells his boss that if he has to remain in the awful world of accountability for much longer, he just might have a nervous breakdown. “Forget about the contract,” Spurrier pleads. “Just let me go home.” Snyder happily acquiesced, and, just as he planned it, made sure that Spurrier publicly blamed himself for squandering the dream job of working for him. The revolving door spins again.
The announcement of Joe Gibbs returning to where it all began took place on a frigid January morning in 2004. Had the President been shot that same day, it’s doubtful if anyone would have noticed. Of course it was a whole new organization, where the industry had rapidly changed since he stepped down in 1993, in a building that’s completely foreign from the Cooke Hotel. Nevertheless, it was still on the same piece of land, and now he was a far richer man than he ever needed to be. Which made many wonder…what the hell was he doing this for anyway?
Regardless of Gibbs’ motivation, it was pretty clear what Snyder’s was, and that was to tell the rest of the hospitality world to GET OFF MY BACK. Snyder’s attempt to lob a grenade at the naysayers, via Spurrier, only resulted in the same grenade blowing up in his lap. He learned his lesson about gimmicky hires, and now by orchestrating Gibbs’ comeback, Snyder pulled off the recruitment version of D-Day. People were impressed, and more importantly, they shut up. Snyder was finally for real, he hoped.
Since Gibbs came on board, the Snyder Inn has seen a healthy boost in occupancy. Room rates, naturally, have been jacked-up, and there’s now a gift shop where Snyder Inn sweatshirts can be bought for $30.00. Parking which previously was for free, now costs guests an additional $17.50 a day. And for $21.00, one can have a lukewarm cheeseburger sent to their room. For the most part, staying at the Snyder Inn feels no different than paying $36.00 for free-range chicken at a celebrity owned restaurant. Seldom does having one’s wallet siphoned feel so good.
While Gibbs’ presence is still felt throughout the Snyder Inn, he’s relinquished some of the control that he kept in the past. Sales and marketing have been almost entirely delegated to a seasoned professional (Al Saunders), while operations is completely in the hands of another (Gregg Williams). With this management team in place, the Snyder Inn is confident that while increasing profitability they’ll achieve what they’re ultimately striving for, credibility. As for quality control, there are still some consistency issues. Overall satisfaction from the guests isn’t quite where it needs to be yet, and there are some noticeable swoons with the production of certain employees. Job related injuries are also a concern. But all in all, if Snyder’s dream of having a five star property is ever going to be realized, this is the team that’s going to get it done. If not, then it’s time to see the Snyder Inn boast the name of another billionaire with bigger ideas and an even bigger head.
It’s hard to gauge what kind of team the Redskins are this year. While Clinton Portis was hurt for the first two games, and Mark Brunell was ready to be shipped to the mothball fleet, it looked as though the Redskins were looking at yet another season that failed to live up to the hype. Now after trouncing Houston and beating the bruising Jaguars a week later, the ‘Skins are looking like a team that’s indeed to be reckoned with.
Nevertheless, despite the cottage industry that Daniel Snyder has turned his favorite football team into, when it’s come to winning overall, it’s been a whole different story. To use an everyday analogy, the Washington Redskins are like that poorly located hotel which every city has. One year stands a Howard Johnson’s, the next a Days Inn, and the year after a La Quinta. In other words, lots of new looks but the same old results. Would things be any different for The Snyder Inn?
In 1999 it was The Snyder’s Inn’s turn to see what they could do with this hexed location. The new owner (Daniel Snyder), short in stature but shrewd in nature, has lofty goals and begins to shake things up right away. His first step is to fire the existing manager (Norv Turner). Apparently he’d been there for way too long. The staff was getting complacent; making beds and cleaning toilets with a noticeable lack of joie, not to mention that the hotel was seldom full. Unfortunately it happens to be peak season when this decision is made, and so the market for a new GM is tight. Begrudgingly, Mr. Snyder promotes his Assistant Night Manager (Terry Robiskie) to ride things out, but isn’t encouraging about him being his man for the long haul. Seeing the writing on the wall, Robiskie soon finds greener pastures in Cleveland. Not sure what to do, Mr. Snyder takes a more conventional route, and offers the management of his property to an industry veteran who’s been around the block (Marty Schottenheimer). He’s not the sexiest recruit, but at least Schottenheimer knows what he’s doing. Neither men seemed thrilled with the situation, yet both realize they need each other for the time being. Schottenheimer is known as an old retread who can get a place turned around, but never up to the five star level. He’s also aware that his new boss knows this, and sees that he’s still meeting other potential managers for lunch. For at least the next year or so, Schottenheimer knows he’s got a steady paycheck, but afterwards, well, who knows? Nevertheless, regardless of who’s running the place, Snyder needs to spend money and jazz things up. He decides first to build a modern exercise room (Bruce Smith). Then he goes about building a swimming pool (Deion Sanders). With no limit to what he can spend, he puts in a restaurant that spins (Jeff George); then he installs satellite TV in every room (Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson). But where are the guests? Why isn’t the Snyder Inn booked solid three months in advance? Something is still amiss.
So Mr. Snyder realizes his fledgling hotel still needs something else to make it sparkle. No doubt a lot of money has been poured into the place, and people had been taking notice, but what was keeping the Snyder Inn from really taking off? “Ah-ha”, the ambitious young owner thought, it was no longer about bells and whistles, it was about themes and style; an unorthodox way of doing things. Schottenheimer was fine at keeping the books and seeing that the place was clean, but it wasn’t enough to get the staff, or his guests, really exited. While attending a hospitality convention, Mr. Snyder met this hotshot professor from the University of Florida (Steve Spurrier). Apparently, he gave a whizbang presentation that immediately struck a chord with Mr. Snyder. It was all about numbers, big numbers…the kind of numbers that would instantly make the Snyder Inn one of the hottest properties in town. Mr. Snyder had something to prove, and he didn’t like seeing these expensive amenities being underutilized. But Snyder’s ego yearned for more than just proving something to his critics, he wanted to embarrass them as well, and there was no better way of doing it then posting gaudy numbers for everyone to see.
There was only one catch. Steve Spurrier’s theories had never been tested in the real world. While ensconced in the provincial world of academia, he was a star. Some even said he was brilliant, though he never practiced his own work where the going got tough. This posed a huge dilemma for Spurrier, either remain in his cozy little hole in Gainesville, or step beyond his comfort zone to show he was for real. The former gave empty security; the latter, precarious fulfillment. Either way it was a tough call until Mr. Snyder broke out his tattered checkbook.
As he expected, Schottenheimer got his one year managing the Snyder Inn before being let go in favor of a man who was sure to make a big splash no matter what. Snyder, who was no stranger to generating publicity himself, announced a big press conference once Spurrier came to town. He said all the right things, and gave hints about his big plan to turn the Snyder Inn into a stalwart property, though without ever getting specific. At last Daniel Snyder had the guy he really wanted running his place. Happy days were finally on the horizon.
Naturally, things didn’t shoot right out of the gate. But that was OK, Snyder figured the magic lamp just needed some extra rubbing. Spurrier organized various promotions that had worked marvelously in Gainesville, such as Hawaiian luaus, beach volleyball, clambakes and two-for-one Jell-O shots on certain nights. To some extent, he got the locals to stop by once in a while, but what the Snyder Inn desperately needed was full occupancy – overnight guests – to achieve the stratospheric numbers that Spurrier was supposed to bring. It seemed that all Spurrier could do was bring a party atmosphere to a place where people didn’t really come to party. Sure they moved a lot of booze and chicken wings, but the real money was renting rooms to folks with deep pockets -- adults in other words. And after a short while, it was clear that Spurrier’s head was still in the deepest galaxies of the collegiate universe. He was damn expensive to boot.
Once again Snyder was in a pickle. Not only was the Snyder Inn considered the Edsel among local hotels, there was considerable snickering going behind Snyder’s back as well. The gist of the chatter was that the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts, and the fancy, brand name parts that Snyder purchased were grossly overpriced, didn’t fit, and had expired warranties. “He had enough lemons to sink a fleet of barges”, one tradesman said. “But they only made enough lemonade to fill a thimble.” Snyder felt both fleeced and humiliated, but he was smart enough not to fling Spurrier back to the world of tweed and bubbly co-eds; at least not yet. Snyder knew that firing Spurrier too soon would be a huge admission that he hadn’t a clue to what he was doing; which is the last thing in the world he wanted to admit. And since Spurrier was still under contract, and making the sum of a small state’s lotto jackpot, Snyder decided to change things up with a laissez-faire approach. In essence, he was no longer going to be that rich micro-managing owner, instead he was going to let his guys run things their way, have some breathing room…maybe even a little fun. By doing it this way, when Spurrier got fired the following year, it wasn’t by Snyder’s volition, but because Spurrier pushed his head through the noose on his own. Secondly, while letting Spurrier do his little rah-rah thing by himself, Snyder had more time to pull what would be the ultimate coup in his brief history with the Snyder Inn.
Rather than focus so much on the future, Snyder delved into the past. It seemed that distancing himself from the day-to-day operations of the Snyder Inn was doing him some good. He did some research, and went to the library to learn more about the hotel he was struggling to own. At one time, he learned, the location where the Snyder Inn now stood was one of the region’s most prestigious properties, the Cooke Hotel. Adored by his staff, the hotel’s founder, Mr. Jack Kent Cooke, was known as a bit of an eccentric, not to mention a philanderer. However, when it came to running a first class operation, few other owners were ever in his league. It was here where the movie stars, foreign dignitaries and senators stayed. In fact, one of Cooke’s most frequent guests was Bobby Kennedy. So often did the Senator stay at the Cooke Hotel, that after he was assassinated in 1968, Mr. Cooke renamed his main banquet hall the RFK Room. It was in the RFK Room where the hotel’s most glorious memories took place.
Cooke though, didn’t do it all on his own. He was a great judge of character, often hiring solid managers who’d ultimately do even greater things, but there was one particular manager who elevated the Cooke Hotel to the top echelons of the industry (Joe Gibbs). Gibbs was a modest man with a Southern drawl that at first seemed like a misfit for such an established property. Nevertheless, he commanded respect that his reserved manner might otherwise conceal. Despite Gibbs’ illustrious career, he didn’t go without his challenges; showing his resiliency by reaching the pinnacle of success while forging through two labor strikes. In addition, he also had the misfortune of witnessing one of his best employees lose his leg on the job. Perhaps what Gibbs was best remembered for was getting the everyday worker to be as productive as possible. “He had a bunch of these big fat guys working here called ‘The Hogs’,” recalled a former employee. “But after a while those ‘Hogs’ became the backbone of the hotel. They were a hard charging bunch of guys, and everyone else followed suit.” Still though, with all the accolades and adoration Gibbs’ received after twelve years of service, it was time to move on.
While researching, Snyder learned about all the supporting characters that made the Cooke Hotel so special. There was a crazy bartender named Riggins countered by a more sedate concierge named Monk. The poor guy who lost his leg was named Joe. All these different personalities working as one cohesive unit. Snyder thought if he could only get a guy like Gibbs to run his place he’d be set. Then the “eureka” moment struck him, why not try to lure Gibbs himself?
Gibbs however, had left the hotel business all together and was now immersed as a team owner in the world of motor sports. Racing was big business, and watching cars speed around an oval track was far less stressful than running a major hotel. But even if it was an easier lifestyle for Gibbs, Snyder thought, there had to be void from the hotel business that racing just couldn’t fill. Was rubbing elbows with mechanics really as glamorous as schmoozing the Hollywood A-List? Not that the Snyder Inn even catered to the Hollywood G-List, but, well, Gibbs didn’t need to know that right away. In any case, Snyder would keep things open-ended to gauge Gibbs’ interest. If Gibbs still gave Snyder some pushback, Snyder figured he could just buy him off. He was right.
While Gibbs and Snyder secretly hammered out their negotiations, Steve Spurrier started whining about how homesick he was for campus life again. Even the most grizzled alumni were nothing compared to the sharks who stayed at the Snyder Inn. And now of all things, several rooms had become infested with mice. Spurrier tells his boss that if he has to remain in the awful world of accountability for much longer, he just might have a nervous breakdown. “Forget about the contract,” Spurrier pleads. “Just let me go home.” Snyder happily acquiesced, and, just as he planned it, made sure that Spurrier publicly blamed himself for squandering the dream job of working for him. The revolving door spins again.
The announcement of Joe Gibbs returning to where it all began took place on a frigid January morning in 2004. Had the President been shot that same day, it’s doubtful if anyone would have noticed. Of course it was a whole new organization, where the industry had rapidly changed since he stepped down in 1993, in a building that’s completely foreign from the Cooke Hotel. Nevertheless, it was still on the same piece of land, and now he was a far richer man than he ever needed to be. Which made many wonder…what the hell was he doing this for anyway?
Regardless of Gibbs’ motivation, it was pretty clear what Snyder’s was, and that was to tell the rest of the hospitality world to GET OFF MY BACK. Snyder’s attempt to lob a grenade at the naysayers, via Spurrier, only resulted in the same grenade blowing up in his lap. He learned his lesson about gimmicky hires, and now by orchestrating Gibbs’ comeback, Snyder pulled off the recruitment version of D-Day. People were impressed, and more importantly, they shut up. Snyder was finally for real, he hoped.
Since Gibbs came on board, the Snyder Inn has seen a healthy boost in occupancy. Room rates, naturally, have been jacked-up, and there’s now a gift shop where Snyder Inn sweatshirts can be bought for $30.00. Parking which previously was for free, now costs guests an additional $17.50 a day. And for $21.00, one can have a lukewarm cheeseburger sent to their room. For the most part, staying at the Snyder Inn feels no different than paying $36.00 for free-range chicken at a celebrity owned restaurant. Seldom does having one’s wallet siphoned feel so good.
While Gibbs’ presence is still felt throughout the Snyder Inn, he’s relinquished some of the control that he kept in the past. Sales and marketing have been almost entirely delegated to a seasoned professional (Al Saunders), while operations is completely in the hands of another (Gregg Williams). With this management team in place, the Snyder Inn is confident that while increasing profitability they’ll achieve what they’re ultimately striving for, credibility. As for quality control, there are still some consistency issues. Overall satisfaction from the guests isn’t quite where it needs to be yet, and there are some noticeable swoons with the production of certain employees. Job related injuries are also a concern. But all in all, if Snyder’s dream of having a five star property is ever going to be realized, this is the team that’s going to get it done. If not, then it’s time to see the Snyder Inn boast the name of another billionaire with bigger ideas and an even bigger head.
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